Allow me to fill you in

There’s so much to say I don’t know where to begin. I guess I might as well start with yesterday and work back to Friday.

Yesterday I submitted our proposal to the New York Times. Whether it was a sign from the paper gods or what, my first attempt came back to me as an undeliverable email! Gasp! society@nytimes.com already doesn’t want me and they haven’t even read my adoring account of how M and I met and fell in love. Once I figured out that our photo was bigger than the allowed JPEG limit I ditched it and resent --and so far, so good. The Times recommends that announcements be submitted at least 6 weeks in advance. Supposedly couples are chosen on a “first come, first serve” basis. But we all know that that’s b-s. Somehow, someone inside the Gray Lady will have to embrace us. I was tempted to use Gawker’s Wedding & Celebrations rating system to figure out if we actually have enough +s to make the pages, but that would just make me too nervous. Instead I’ll just wait and hope there aren’t too many other Jewish couples from Penn getting married on June 23rd. And if it doesn’t happen, then I will publish my very own wedding announcement right here, for the few people who actually read this blog.

Sunday I flew to D.C. for work after a lovely brunch at Tavern on Rush in honor of M and I, hosted by his Aunt G. and Uncle S. The weather in Chicago was spectacular and it was hard to break away from the fun in order to sit and wait for a delayed flight from O’Hare. With my mother and aunts in town for my shower, which I will get to in a minute, M’s aunt wanted to get everyone together for a special meal. She decorated the table with green candles (my favorite color), salted cashews in martini glasses with chocolate kisses on the edges and miniature bride and groom teddy bears.











In addition to décor and snacks, M’s family came with wedding gifts! I always act so surprised to see what gifts we get—only to be reminded that I am in fact the one who picked them out. We’ve now got our full set of beer and martini glasses, so you’re all invited over for a drink.

The party continued on Saturday night. M and his parents, my Aunts K and B, Uncle R, my mom, S and me topped off a special day with sangria, chips and guacamole.

On Saturday nine ladies hosted a shower for me at café in downtown Highland Park. Luckily I had my maid of honor, S, in town to help me get ready for the luncheon. She put my hair in rollers and applied my makeup to make sure I looked ready to play the role of cheery bride to be. Since she lives in NYC and I’m in Chicago, even the minutes we spent prepping in my bathroom were so precious to me. When we arrived at the shower I felt like a politician arriving at a fundraiser. I introduced myself to many of my f-mil’s friends, smiled, posed for pictures and graciously thanked them for being there. Each place setting had a hand made card and each table was adorned with candy that I tried so hard not to eat! Lunch was a creamy tomato soup, salad and bread pudding and fruit tarts for dessert. I was surrounded by my dear Chicago friends, S, and had my mom, aunts, and future family nearby.

The whole experience made me feel so fortunate. I also got some great gifts—baking pans, silver trays, wine glasses, knifes and candlesticks. Plus silk PJs from my mom who knows that I might not appreciate fine cookware, but I sure do love compfy sleepwear.

Check the mail

Stop reading. Get up and go check the mail.

Why? You ask.

Because there just might be a very special invitation waiting for you to tear open.

Yes, it’s true. Coming soon to your mailbox is my wedding invitation. I sent them out on Saturday morning after the Katz family assembly line lovingly stuffed, stamped and glued each and every one. If you happen to get two response cards, that’s my fault. If the stamp looks crooked- that’s my mom’s doing. And if the edges of the envelope aren’t glued down completely- fault my dad. Brother was directing the operation from the couch.

There I was at the post office, at the height of tax season, perhaps the busiest mail day of the entire year, batting my eyelashes and pleading with Mr. Postal Worker to please hand stamp my precious wedding invitations. It was a close call, but I made it happen.

A little advice to all my reader/guests out there: Make sure you send back the response card asap. The post office has thrown us a little curve ball and decided to raise the price of stamps sometime in May. I’d hate for your response card to get lost in the mail. So if you know you’re coming, don’t hesitate to share that with my mom and dad. If you’re one of those people who pay no attention to the return date, at least remember to add some postage.

I’ve been engaged for more than a year now and June 23 always seemed so far away. Finally, we’re starting to see some action.

Open to advice

Everyone seems to have a little piece of advice for me these days. Everywhere I go I come away with someone else’s words of wisdom on life, love and marriage. My dentist, the ladies at the nail salon, the man at the dry cleaners, my yoga instructor…—they have all made a concerted effort to prepare me for what’s to come. So if any of you faithful readers have something to add, please feel free to fill me in.

People LOVE to add their two cents. Here are some of the highlights:

“Don’t serve Chicken Fricassee.” – Dental hygienist

“Figuring out seating is the worst part. I say just have a hundred tables for two and avoid all the “I don’t want to sit at the same table as this person” crap.” –receptionist at my doctor’s office

Preface: Had Matt won his NCAA pool, half of the winnings would have gone to me and my wedding shower clothing/accessories fund. That was until UCLA played like crap-ola and let Florida glide into tonight’s final game. In any case, upon hearing our deal a friend said:
“When you’re married you don’t get half, you get the whole thing.” –D.W.

“Weddings bring out the best and worst of people.”—anyone who’s had a wedding

“You’re not serving chicken?! What do you mean you’re not serving chicken? How can you not serve chicken?” –a crazy second cousin

“Remember to enjoy every minute and don’t get too caught up in the details. The guests won’t notice anyway.”—saleslady at Krista K.

“Start writing your thank-you notes even before you get the gifts. Just fill in the blanks later.”—my Dentist

“Marriage takes A LOT of work.” --my mom

“When you have kids one day, the key to making sure they stay out of trouble is to keep them in school all the time. No camp, just school, all the time.”—John, the nail salon owner

“Make sure the bridesmaids all hold their bouquets at the exact same level.”—Matt’s dad

“Always remember, you’re a Katz!”—my Dad ----->