The Unbelieveable Ring

The ring, is breath taking. I keep looking down at it gazing in amazement. I pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming, and I smile.
We had the ring custom designed, to match my funky yet feminine personality. It is white gold, and wide, with swirls and diamonds set into the end of the swirl.
The sparkle, the wideness, and the brilliance of the design, creates the 'show stopper' reaction as I walk down the street.
I feel so fortunate to be wearing such a symbol of love and committment, and even more joy as I think about the love Jason and I felt as we designed this together.
The ring was designed by Tim Henrich, of Henrich's Jewellers in Owen Sound, Ontario.

Of course, I am also happy that he said yes.

Save the Dates

We came up with our list pretty fast and solidified it within a few days. We really value our friends and family and wanted to include as many as we could.
Our numbers are between 150-180 people.

We also know that a lot of them are going to be coming from out of town, and Collingwood area being a big tourist spot, we knew we had to send out more information with our 'save the dates'.

Being a designer/photographer has its advantages, I could design our save the dates,
and I did just that.

We choose to put in information on hotels in the area, the cocktail service, reception information and a chance for them to early rsvp. This also gave us a chance to state the hardest part, "adults only, please" of course in better taste then that. We figure this gives familes lots of time to plan for childcare and alternative care needs.
There were three pages to the save the dates, and here are the images of the actual pages.
I'll post the finished products and my mother and I stamping, and hand writing the addresses in a more detailed post.



This is also a prequil to the colors we have chosen and theme we are going with ;o)

Location, Location, Venue!

We have chosen our location for our ceremony, cocktail hour, reception and dance!
The Craigleith Ski Club Lodge, in Craigleith, Ontario, just outside of the Village at Blue Mountain, Collingwood.
The spectacular cathedral wooden ceilings, vast room was magnificent! (will post photos soon)
This is the description taken from their webpage:

Rustic Charm
Our climate controlled Base Lodge boasts more than 26,000 square feet of space featuring soaring cathedral ceilings, stunning handcrafted woodwork and awe-inspiring stone fireplaces. The flagstone patio situated outdoors at the base of the hill is an ideal place to host your party, or you can decorate the inside of the lodge for the wedding reception of your dreams. Your guests can relax on the balcony of the Georgian Bay Lounge while enjoying the panoramic views of Georgian Bay. The Lodge has the capacity to host parties with up to 400 people. We welcome you to hold your ceremony on the property, and our indoor and outdoor venues provide endless possibilities for your special day.

We went and chatted with Jake Hibbs their Caterer and event organizer. He was magnificent.
For the dinner option we choose to do a served specialty salad, a buffet dinner with shaved beef and chicken, then a plated specialty dessert. We choose a very specific menu for the cocktail hour, and for the late evening snack. We can't wait to go back and do taste testing!
Here is what they said about their catering:

Shirwood Food Services is the exclusive caterer to Craigleith Ski Club. They offer a wide variety of menu options including buffet style meals, gourmet specialties, delectable desserts, classic hors d’oeuvres and much, much more. Shirwood Foods proprietor Jake Hibbs promises incomparable service with a personal touch. Jake and his friendly staff will make your event something special. Shirwood Foods Executive Chef Richard Crevier has been preparing culinary delights for 20 years, working for the likes of Cranberry Resort, Delta Toronto Airport Hotels and the Toronto Congress Centre.

We are very excited and thrilled at this extravegant venue!

The Wedding Date

We both love the fall, and we knew this fall would be too soon to properly plan the extravigant event that we'd like. So we opted for next fall. We wanted the changing colors of the leaves as a backdrop. We figured up in the Owen Sound Area, the base of Georgian Bay, Ontario, the best weekend would be October 2, 2010.
So, that is our date for our special day.
This also gives us lots of time to plan, organize and have some fun with our bridal party!

Engaged!

Jason and I are engaged!

After planning and talking for the last few months, we really wanted to get engaged. I kept saying to him, you better hurry or I might beat you to it!
I don't think he really thought that I would, or that I was really thinking about asking him.

So, on July 10th, at approximately 2pm, when I was on my knee infront of the photography magazines in our local chapters (where we had first met), rings in hand, he was blown away.

The first words under his breath I believe were "oh, don't do this here", but then he smiled as he realized that I wasn't going to stop talking, I was shaking and tearing up.

I had two temporary rings, and I was so nervous. I was holding them out in the air proclaming my love for him, and then started to shake thinking to myself, what if he says no? ... what then? How do guys do this with out passing out?

I finished with tears in my eyes, and with out a pause, he replied "of course I will".

Here is a Picture of us at my family's island, located in amongst the Fishing Islands in Lake Huron, Bruce Penninsula.