VEGAS Wedding ain't gettin' to look so bad!

*narrator's note: for those who first read this as Shotgun Wedding...it was brought to my attention what exactly that means. I just meant a wedding with no big to-do!. So it now says Vegas Wedding. Enjoy*

Heyyyyyoooo. Back in the swing of things! Gettin' those fingertips a-typin' again! Wooohoooo! (Nathaniel pulls out a 6-shooter and empties a few rounds into the air) Now that's more like it! (I should note right now, before an angry mob or an angry Jenna comes knockin' at my door, that in every piece of these blogs, take them with a grain of salt and a sense of humor. )

Let's continue on, whatdya say? So after decidn' tgit hitched on wednersday, Thursday rolls around and my heads all up in them clouds all day long singin' purty songs and whatnot. We've received many blessings from friends and family all 'round the world, sendin their happiest thoughts on over to us, the happy couple. And we go on home and get on the computer, head on over to what they call theknot.com and decide to do a little plannin' here, little plannin' there. See, we's already know we can't have the weddin' til 10-12 months from now, on a count of Jenna's best friend Alisa travellin the world and workin' on organic farms and not bein' here til then. So, ways I see it, we got plenty of time. In fact, if my math's correct (which, it's been a long time since I've been in school, so maybe my math ain't so great no more) we nearly got a whole year! So anyway, we type in an esteemated date into theknot.com and it pops up with just how many days we got. It said 315 days. Boy, that's a lot of days! Why, if I put away a dollar a day, I'd have…let's see here….hmmm…carry the one…$315.00!!! That'd be helpful in payin' for the wedding, right?

So then we click on the Checklist. It's this newfangled thing which gives you a checklist of things ya need to get done before ya say your vows and kiss one another. And just as I'm sittin' there baskin' in the enjoyment of havin' a beautiful fiancee and everything right in the world, the Checklist tells us all the things we gotta do practically yesterday in order to say those I Do's. Let me break it down just a little bit for ya. This month we gotta:

- Appraise & insure engagement ring
- Figure out a wedding budget
- Finalize our guest list.
- Finalize our wedding party.
- Choose a date and time.
- Book a venue.
- Start lookin' for a wedding dress
- Start getting' in shape for that dress and tuxedo
- Have an engagement party.
- Get engagement photos.
- Interview wedding caterers & sign contract
- Interview prospective officiants
- Choose your wedding colors

And that's just the major things. There's a few other things in there it says we oughta do as well. Whoooweeee this is gonna be a lot more work than I thought! We're supposed to be producin' three plays between now and the wedding! Now we got this website hootin' 'n hollerin' about do this 'n do that. Well Gee Willickers (sp? I'm not really sure how one spells that, but I've always been intrigued and entertained by the phrase). And on top of all this, I find out my $315 that I'm gonna save with my dollar-a-day plan over this time ain't gonna be much more'n a drop in the proverbial bucket! Well Holy Smokes! Well Son-of-a-Gun!

Now don't take this as if it's me complainin' at all. It ain't, not one bit. I'm one happy puppy, all said and done, and am enjoyin' all the plannin' and preparin'. It just all is a bit suprising, is all.

Now, to cut this story down a bit, as I am known for ramblin on every now and again, just last night we went and visited our first option for the venue for the ceremony/reception. Delille Cellars in Woodinville, and boy let me tell ya, it is beautiful. We're really keen on the idea of having the ceremony & reception in the same locale, and we're also purty sure we like the idea of a winery out in Woodinville, as well. So havin' this be our first place to see, I think we're pretty happy bout our options. The grounds are fantastic and I imagine quite unique. There are two ponds, plenty of wide open areas of grass for parking and walking and whatnot. The grounds have two separate areas for ceremony & reception, which is also real nice. Only issue is, our primary guest list is a little big for the grounds. Now, we can fit everyone, but it's gonna be a bit tight, should we go with this place. The other issue is the bathroom sitcheashun (say it out loud. It's situation, okay? LET ME HAVE MY FUN!). They've got just two bathrooms, and one is meant for menfolk only and one is meant for womenfolk only. The big issue is, the one for the womenfolk is located up in the gettin'-ready room for the bride, so it's tough before the ceremony for any females to use the restroom, less they share with the men. Which I see as bein' a real potential for a tough traffic jam.

But anyways, they're quite beautiful, they have some darn good wine, Diane who showed us round the place was fantastic and very nice and helpful and even stayed late so we could get out there and see the place on a weeknight. This weekend we're goin' to see Columbia Winery and the Edgewater hotel. And then next weekend, Willow's Lodge. Also, tomorrow night Danielle is throwin' us an engagement party, which should be plenty of fun, I'm sure.

I'll continue on with my Top Songs as that was a quite enjoyable pasttime in the past....time:
1. Cee-Lo - Fuck You
2. The Avett Brothers - A Lover Like You
3. Ryan Adams & Elton John - Daniel
4. Taio Cruz - Dynomite
5. Ryan Adams - Strawberry Wine

Until next time,
Nathaniel