Wishes 10/8/11 WP/GF-- Love's First Kiss-- Trip Report Complete

[belle2211]

Your planning session sounds great so far! We have had Meri as our wedding planner. She's been great--no pressuring at all! And has been so good at the thousands of questions that my parents and I send her. We are having a signature drink, but like Meri said, there aren't many choices. I didn't find myself really liking any of them, so I just chose the purple one to match my colors. Can't wait to hear more and see who your floral contact is!

 

[DoomBuggy0922]

Oohhh your planning session sounded like tons of fun!!! I'm glad you got a lot done--- and I forgot to mention, I love those Snow White collectibles. Absolutely lovely.

 

[chellebelle18]

Your planning session sounds great!!

Though, I am concerned about the stain glass windows too. When you say side windows... which windows do you mean? I hope not too many.... When I visited the WP I loved all the windows and the light it let it...I agree with Sccrmnky2005 that it will make the WP really dark

 

[One_Song]

Love your PS trip report so far...

One thing I'm concerned about that you mentioned was the WP windows on the sides are scheduled to be stained glass Oh no, this is going to take away from all the lighting coming in and the natural beauty of the WP... Did she mention when this will start and be completed?? Since she said that this would be finished by the time your wedding happened, did this concern you with the lighting it would effect?? I'd love to hear your insight, I think the stained glass will make the WP much much darker

I can't wait to try the cake!! Your flavors and choices sounds sooo AMAZING!!

Hmm, that's a good point. To be honest, I hadn't even thought about how it would affect the lighting. I was concerned when she first said stained glass because I was thinking super bright colors like Notre Dame, but then she showed me the window in Franck's. She didn't say when the process would start, just that it would be finished by our wedding (Oct. 8). I'm not personally worried about it because I've been trying to figure out ways to make it darker for the ceremony. I always wanted a candlelit ceremony, but my family was totally against the 7:30 time slot. I can definitely see why the change in the windows would be disappointing to brides who envisioned bright, sunny weddings, though. The one upside I can think of is you will still have that big skylight-type window in the ceiling. I'm not sure what time your ceremony will be, but I can say that when we saw the WP around noon, a lot of sunlight was coming in through that top window.

All in all, it sucks that Disney is letting a DVC building spoil that breathtaking view. I understand that they're out to maximize profits, but if they want to market themselves as a luxury wedding business, some parts of the World need to stay beautiful for beauty's sake.

 

[One_Song]

Your planning session sounds great!!

Though, I am concerned about the stain glass windows too. When you say side windows... which windows do you mean? I hope not too many.... When I visited the WP I loved all the windows and the light it let it...I agree with Sccrmnky2005 that it will make the WP really dark

I didn't confirm which windows she meant, but when she said "side", I took it to mean the windows that are on the ground level, not the ones up the steps by the altar. She definitely didn't mean the back window with the view of the castle, and I don't think she meant the four on each side of it. She told us this was a confirmed/definite thing, to which my fiance replied "Are they doing that to block views of the construction?", and Meri gave a little smile. I guess they have orders not to specifically discuss the dvc project.

 

[LuvLuvLuv]

thanks for the update!! i tried to weasel some news from the dvc people a couple weeks ago when we went on the tour--the looks on their faces told me everything i needed to know . i guess we'll stop by in november and see what it looks like. i've never been a huge fan of stained glass, so i'm interested to see how it looks. your cake choices sound great!! thanks again!!

 

[One_Song]

That cat dj picture was making me laugh so much!!! Your df sounds like mine. He thinks it's so funny when animals dress up in people clothes or do people things
How was Narcossee's? We haven't been before but that is where we are having our wedding dinner. I hope it's going to be good!
After reading about your cake I can't stop thinking about cake. I seriously think I'm about to go bake one
Awesome PS trip report!! Thanks for posting!!

That cat dj was probably his favorite part of the trip until we got to taste cakes! I love that he's not afraid to like silly things

Narcoosee's is soooo good! The seafood is delicious and the view is beautiful! That will be a great wedding dinner!

Your planning session sounds great so far! We have had Meri as our wedding planner. She's been great--no pressuring at all! And has been so good at the thousands of questions that my parents and I send her. We are having a signature drink, but like Meri said, there aren't many choices. I didn't find myself really liking any of them, so I just chose the purple one to match my colors. Can't wait to hear more and see who your floral contact is!

That's a shame about the signature cocktails, I would have thought Disney could make anything.... I guess they could, but they won't. Weird. I'm so happy we have Meri, she has just been terrific!

Oohhh your planning session sounded like tons of fun!!! I'm glad you got a lot done--- and I forgot to mention, I love those Snow White collectibles. Absolutely lovely.

Thank you! I'm a total sucker for pretty knick-knacks. Our PS was so fun, and it makes me feel like the wedding is really *real*, you know?

 

[One_Song]

thanks for the update!! i tried to weasel some news from the dvc people a couple weeks ago when we went on the tour--the looks on their faces told me everything i needed to know . i guess we'll stop by in november and see what it looks like. i've never been a huge fan of stained glass, so i'm interested to see how it looks. your cake choices sound great!! thanks again!!

No problem-- these boards really have been invaluable to me in learning new information. Anything I can do to pass knowledge on, I'm glad to do! I really hope that Disney is very selective in the changes they make to the windows. They have to realize that the WP is their crown jewel at DFTW. To encase it in unsightly windows would completely change it's effect. We'll see!

On a happier note-- we are extremely happy with the cake flavors! They really were very, very good. Anytime Meri would leave the room or look up something over at her computer, Brandon and I would sneak another bite!

 

[One_Song]

Back inside, we met with our floral planner, Elizabeth, who was also fantastic. Along the way she was able to give lots of suggestions or alternatives. With décor, I really just said what I wanted, and I will scale back as needed once the BEO comes back.

For the flowers, I told her I wanted everything to be very soft, lush, delicate, and organic (no perfectly round shapes). I want the flowers in the ceremony to be white and blush, and then more of the raspberry-colored flowers at the reception. I gave her a picture of exactly what I wanted for my bouquet. She said everything was fine except we couldn’t do any peonies in the fall. At that point, I realized about 90% of my inspiration pictures were of peonies! Woops… Luckily, she had these great little cards with different flower types and colors. She helped me pick a mix of blooms including…

Sweet Peas

Dahlias

Football Mums

Which apparently look like a big powder puff if you bunch them all together...

And Roses

Although I told her I only want open roses like this, none that are closed and shaped like Champagne flutes (I kept making shapes with my hands so she would understand what I meant... I'm sure I looked like a nut)

We're also incorporating hydrangeas and some long branch type flower that I can't remember the name of into non-bouquet arrangements. Beyond that, I didn’t give her any specific flower instructions, just saying that I wanted her to stick to my aesthetic and color palette. I did mention that I would like each bridesmaid’s bouquet to be just a little bit different from the others.

For WP decorations, I asked for a plain white aisle runner, petals scattered down the sides of the aisle, and tea candles along the rows. Then we will have an altar arrangement and small floral clusters tied to some of the rows. I’m also considering just a basic white cloth over the altar—does anyone have a picture of this? It is the $15 one, not the fitted one.

For the cocktail hour, I asked for 3 tea candles on each table, but that’s it. It seems like a very short time to spend much money on decorations. Although after seeing the Whitehall room, I’m thinking about fabric chair covers. Those chairs are very convention-y.

For the reception, we picked a pale pink table cloth, white napkins, and gold chiavari chairs. For centerpieces, I asked her to do a couple of high, large centerpieces. These would be in a gold vase with small hanging crystals. Other tables will have low centerpieces in glass vases. All tables will have small scattered crystals and tea candles. The sweetheart table will have our altar arrangement. I think I covered everything… it’s hard to remember off the top of my head!

I also asked about draping, but Meri very politely suggested that it was quite expensive. Haha!

Then we had a small break before our menu tasting with Chef Cory—up next!

 

[KristiLyn]

I've recently become obsessed with dahlia's! I was originally doing daisies, but for some reason I've become crazy about dahlia's, so I'm probably changing my mind... I think they are beautiful, and that your flowers will be beautiful!

 

[Mindyjoy]

Holy Football Mums, my new favorite flower! I am enjoying reading about your planning session, especially the part about cake .... drool

 

[BethieTink]

Just joining in. All of your selections look really great. Your planning session sounds wonderful so far.

Your date is a lucky date for me and my DH. October 8th is the date we started dating. Eleven years ago this year. May it bring you as much happiness as it has brought us.

 

[lilsqueakrr]

Okay, all of your flowers look gorgeous! I'm a new fan of Dahlias and Football Mums! Gorgeous! They have very similar looks to Peonies (I love them too!) I love all of your choices!

And the gold chiavari chairs are so gorgeous. I want them so badly in my reception. But I'd have to rent them from elsewhere and I can't afford to do that. Wah. haha. I can't wait to see the rest of your PS!!!

 

[One_Song]

I've recently become obsessed with dahlia's! I was originally doing daisies, but for some reason I've become crazy about dahlia's, so I'm probably changing my mind... I think they are beautiful, and that your flowers will be beautiful!

Thank you! I wasn't familiar with dahlias before, but I just love how sweet and pretty they look! And have you seen how many colors they come in?? It's amazing!

Holy Football Mums, my new favorite flower! I am enjoying reading about your planning session, especially the part about cake .... drool

Haha! I have to give kudos to Elizabeth on the football mums, they were her suggestion. I love how interesting they look surrounded by smaller, simpler flowers. And oh my gosh, we absolutely loved the cake!! I can't wait to see how they look, I already know they'll taste great!

Just joining in. All of your selections look really great. Your planning session sounds wonderful so far.

Your date is a lucky date for me and my DH. October 8th is the date we started dating. Eleven years ago this year. May it bring you as much happiness as it has brought us.

Aww thank you! That is so sweet. We had such a fun time at our PS-- thanks for reading!

Okay, all of your flowers look gorgeous! I'm a new fan of Dahlias and Football Mums! Gorgeous! They have very similar looks to Peonies (I love them too!) I love all of your choices!

And the gold chiavari chairs are so gorgeous. I want them so badly in my reception. But I'd have to rent them from elsewhere and I can't afford to do that. Wah. haha. I can't wait to see the rest of your PS!!!

Thank you! I guess I should have looked up if peonies were in season, but I'm very happy with the flowers Elizabeth helped me pick (and like you said, they have that same kind of look I wanted). I love the chiavari chairs! I'm a little nervous to see how this all works out on the BEO, but hopefully we can make it work!

 

[belle2211]

Oh yay! You have Elizabeth too!! She has been my absolute favorite person to work with throughout this whole wedding! She has some amazing suggestions, gives you ways to cut back on budget and is just all around sweet! You are going to LOVE working with her!

 

[One_Song]

After our planning session, we headed over to the Grand Floridian convention center for our menu tasting. For anyone who is considering a menu tasting, I definitely recommend it. We tasted some things we liked and some things we didn’t like—it’s nice to know none of the latter will be at our wedding.

So Meri showed us one of the salons where our reception will be held (I think we have 3 reserved currently), then we headed back into the kitchen. This was the first thing I noticed as we stepped into the kitchen area

And they had this cute little set up behind our table

Each of us had a full place setting and a menu card

A close up of the menu

It’s a little hard to read all of them, it says:

Boursin Cheese Stuffed Medjool Dates
Brie and Strawberry Crostini drizzled with Balsamic Honey Syrup
Wild Mushroom Tart
Vegetable Samosa with Yogurt Sauce
Roasted Petite Potatoes with Caviar and Crème Fraiche
Crab Topped Mahi Mahi with a Light Curry Sauce
Three Peppercorn and Whole Grain Mustard Rubbed Beef Strip Loin, Caramelized Red Onion Compote and Horseradish Cream
Smashed Potatoes, With toppings to include Green Onions, Cheddar Cheese, Bacon And Sour Cream
Seasonal Baby Vegetable Medley
(Not sure what their guideline for capitalization was here—any other journalist brides out there??)

Chef Cory came over and introduced himself. He is such a nice man! He told us to be completely honest about anything we didn’t like. He was really great about offering different recipes. Sometimes we would just tell him about the kinds of food we like and he would suggest a new dish.

Like here, where I'm talking up a storm with my hands

First they brought out the cold appetizers

On the left is the Boursin-stuffed date. We didn’t care for that one. I’m not a huge fan of dates and this one tasted mostly like just a raw date. In the middle is the strawberry crostini. That one was great! I loved the mix of flavors—sweet honey, tart strawberry, salty crostini. We will be having that one at our cocktail hour. On the right is the potato with crème fraiche & caviar. I LOVED that one! That one’s a yes for the cocktail hour, too.

Next they brought the hot appetizers

On the left is the mushroom tart. Honestly, I thought this one was just ok, but my fiancé was crazy about it. It doesn’t taste strongly of mushrooms. I think it’s mixed with a beef flavoring; it tasted more like meat pie to me. We are having that one at the cocktail hour. On the right is the vegetable samosa. I should preface that Brandon and I love Indian and Middle Eastern food. We liked this one; it’s just a basic samosa, but if you like them, that’s a good thing The sauce has just a hint of curry. I love curry, I would have gladly taken more, but I know that our guests will be happy with this light version. We’re having the samosas as well.

I was a little disappointed that hot appetizers can’t be passed. I love when appetizers come to me! I told Chef Cory that I wanted one more cold appetizer, and I was thinking of chilled soup shooters. He said no problem and told me about a couple of different ones he makes. We settled on strawberry, cucumber-melon, and vichyssoise. My mom also wants a cheese spread with accoutrements.

Then they served the entrees

I really liked the flavor of the beef, but the cut was a little chewy. We asked if we could have the same recipe but with tenderloin instead of strip, which they said was fine. The mahi mahi was delicious, however, the curry flavor was pretty strong. Now like I said, I love curry, but we were concerned that most of our guests wouldn’t like it. We shared our concerns with Chef Cory and asked if it could be served with a different sauce. We settled on a lemon-butter sauce with tapenade. The potatoes and veggies were yummy too! I am very picky about vegetables because I really like them. I don’t like when restaurants coat them in sauce or serve them soggy.

We’ll be rounding out the buffet with a Caesar salad, fruit, a sundried tomato pasta (vegetarian option), and a mac n cheese for the kiddos.

We left the menu tasting totally stuffed, but very happy with our selections. I’m very excited for our wedding dinner—it’s going to be delicious!

 

[BethieTink]

Your tasting looks amazing!!! Wow!!! All of your choices are great.

I absolutely love the cold soup shooters. DH loves the strawberry soup and we plan on serving it at our brunch reception. The shooters may be the way to do it though. That sounds so cool.

 

[Fay]

The food looks beautiful!

Xxx

 

[DoomBuggy0922]

The little set up in the kitchen is ADORABLE! It looks like it was tons of fun, and the food looks great!

 

[One_Song]

Oh yay! You have Elizabeth too!! She has been my absolute favorite person to work with throughout this whole wedding! She has some amazing suggestions, gives you ways to cut back on budget and is just all around sweet! You are going to LOVE working with her!

Oh that's so great to hear! She really helped me in picking out the bouquets, since all the flowers I originally wanted are out-of-season for fall. Her little cards were so useful! Floral is really important to me, so I'll probably be working with her a lot!

Your tasting looks amazing!!! Wow!!! All of your choices are great.

I absolutely love the cold soup shooters. DH loves the strawberry soup and we plan on serving it at our brunch reception. The shooters may be the way to do it though. That sounds so cool.

Thanks! The food was so good! And I'm thrilled that Cory gave the shooters the thumbs up. Appetizers are usually my favorite-- I love bite-sized foods that are packed with flavor. I saw the idea of shooters in a magazine and it just seemed so fun!

The food looks beautiful!

Xxx

It was so pretty, I was surprised/happy that they put so much effort into the presentation of the food (since it was only a tasting!) I can't wait to see the real deal!

The little set up in the kitchen is ADORABLE! It looks like it was tons of fun, and the food looks great!

Isn't that cute? I love those little extra touches. One day I want to have a totally Disney kitchen. One of my Disney-loving friends gave us an assortment of Disney coffee mugs as an engagement present...I love them!