photo prints.

if you're looking to buy individual prints of photos, we have placed them onto Snapfish.com for you to look at and reprint, if desired. we purchased the hi-res dvd of all the photos with reprint rights, so we'd like to share them with you.

here's the address to the snapfish album:

http://www2.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=1191511008/a=42524971_42524971/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/

the pictures are here!

Go to the Modern Image Studios website.

Click on "proofs" in the upper right hand corner.

Type in "Leban" - our wedding will probably be the only result you see.

Enjoy all 900+ photos!

Thank You!

We would like to express our deepest and most heartfelt gratitude to everyone who showed their support for us through this whole experience.  It was great to see so many of our friends and family at the wedding, and we appreciate you taking the time to share in our special day.  We were overwhelmed by the responses of love and support from everyone, whether or not you were able to attend the event.  

We are VERY, VERY lucky to have the family and friends that we do.  Words cannot accurately express how much love we feel and how thankful we are for all of you.

Thank you.

PHOTOS.

No "official" photos yet, but some preliminary photos from some of our guests are viewable on facebook.  Even if you're not on facebook, you're supposed to be able to view them anyways from this link:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2607&id=100000021541208&l=7aab82e923

this link takes you to photos taken by nicole v. - thank you nicole!

let me know if it's not working, ok?

Toast & Jam

Tonight was our final meeting with the DJs before the wedding (oh man, that means final payments, too...!)

We are so extremely happy with our DJs, Rachel Hinsdale and Kate Bilinski.  They are friendly, personable, easy-going, and open to all of our (sometimes non-conventional) ideas!  Having them as our DJs makes me really comfortable and feeling sure that things are going to go really well.

Also, all of our final musical selections have been made!  The CD was handed over to the DJs tonight around 7 pm.  Now I can go work on the program for the evening!

HOTEL BLOCK

Todd got an email yesterday from the Holiday Inn letting us know that the block of rooms reserved for the wedding is going to close in a few days.  Aside from Todd and I, only one room has been booked so far (thanks Mom!).  So... if you'd like to get the rate we have blocked off (I'm not sure if/how much more it costs otherwise) for a room reservation, please book your room NOW (see link at top of the blog page).

The nice thing about the Holiday Inn is that you literally walk down the hall to your room - no shuttles to take!  No driving to worry about, you can drink and have fun and be responsible too!

...and also, we'd love to have breakfast with you the next day at the hotel!

busy weekends - and the latest updates!

...WOW!!!

Everything is getting SO busy, but exciting at the same time.  This week alone:

• Finalized some flower plans @ Pink Carnation Florist.
• Our wedding rings came in from Donovan, and they're awesome!
• I spoke with our photographer, Nicole Blair, from Modern Image Studios and set a tentative day-of schedule.
• I made a near-finished version of the program for the wedding (thanks for the awesome idea Mom Leban!).
• I scheduled appointments for make-up trial run, eyelash application (yayy what better time to try out eyelash extensions than for your own wedding?!), and touch-ups, if need be - and set a schedule for the day of with Kelly Davy, our make-up artist friend.
• Got the last invitation out to my Dad (last minute corrections...)
• Flower girl dresses came in and the girls tried them on - totally adorable!

I think I've listed it all here for this week alone, but who knows?!  There's been so much before this, too... I've seen the basically finished version of my dress, and have the FINAL FINAL fitting at the end of the month, when the moms go to try on/pick up their dresses.  That's turned out really well, too, so happy about that!

Every weekend between NOW and the wedding is booked with stuff: outings, shower, bachelor/bachelorette party, salon visits, and even non-wedding stuff to go to as well (how the heck do we fit it in?) - graduation, retirement party, concerts (ooh yeah the NIN shows on May 29 & 30th!), and church service to attend... oh man my head is spinning just trying to name it all.  So I think I will give up here!

See you all soon!

invitations

as of tomorrow afternoon, all invitations should have been sent out (we had a couple of last-minute addresses to get)... so now we're actually having a pretty good time tallying up all the response cards (with occasional entertaining comments added) so we can do all of the final arrangements - seating charts, final counts (to determine favors, place cards, decorations, etc etc) and all the other fun final wedding details to-do.  

PLEASE consider staying at the Holiday Inn the night of the wedding!  They have a great breakfast/brunch buffet on Sundays... and, should you choose, we'll have a special reserved section for wedding guests to come and have breakfast with us the next day!

Mom's Dresses!

Both Moms went to see their dresses and try them on Monday.  I was given strict instructions NOT to post photos on the internet (ha ha).  So you'll need to contact them directly if you want a preview!

Wedding Party Plans: 6/11 & 6/12

REHEARSAL DINNER:
Thursday, 6/11/09
6 pm @ Holiday Inn Willowbrook for rehearsal
7 pm @ restaurant for dinner (TBA)

SALON SCHEDULE:
Thursday, 6/11/09
Mom Miller 12:30 w/Sarah
Mom Leban 12:30 w/Nicole
Abbey 1:15 w/ Sarah
Ashley 1:15 w/ Nicole
Lisa L. 2:00 w/ Nicole
Michelle T. 2:45 w/ Nicole
Lisa M. 3:45 w/ Nicole, 4:30 w/ Sarah pedi

Friday, 6/12/09
Jen 9 am mani & pedi w/ Nicole
Todd 9 am mani & pedi w/ Sarah

Karma Salon & Spa
15 N Cass Ave
Westmont, IL 60559
(630) 968-5874‎

tuxes and flower girls

Todd and I went tux shopping a few days ago and made some selections for our color schemes and such.  Above is a preview of what the guys will be wearing...

Then on Wednesday, Lisa and I took the girls out to look for flower girl dresses.  Although these are NOT the dresses, they are close to what we finally ordered (we tried these on for fit's sake).  The final dress is ALL white, no flower pin or flower petals.  I bought some fabric to make black sashes (belts) that will be tied around the waist.

p.s. I cropped the girls faces out purely as a teacher/internet safety thing!  The photos in their entirety are absolutely adorable!

cake concept

Here is a drawing I made for the cake.  Yesterday Todd and I got to test out flavors, and it was yummy.  Mmmmmm... cake!

coming soon...

coming soon...!!!

Finalizing Plans

On Saturday Todd and I had a meeting at the Holiday Inn to finalize some wedding details and assorted stuff.  Next week, we get to go to a tasting for appetizers and main course/meat options (that's Todd's area), and we also picked some cake flavors to try!  Who doesn't like testing CAKE?!

There were some ideas I was wondering about that I was able to integrate into the wedding plan as well...  For instance, I was worried about the lounge area not having any furniture in it, but since we're using the atrium for the ceremony, the tables that usually reside in the atrium will be put in the lounge/entry area with tablecloths and centerpieces on it.  I wanted people to have a place to hang during cocktail hour before everyone is let into the ballroom, so it's a good plan that doesn't involve renting furniture or major setup/additional costs.

So, we're getting to the final stretch before the main event!  Lots of little things have been going on, meetings are being had, decisions are being decided - I don't want to give it ALL away, so I won't talk too much...

An even more rock and roll gift...!!!

Ok, so technically this isn't wedding news, but I had to share.

Last summer, Todd and I went to St. Louis to see a Nine Inch Nails show.  There was a scavenger hunt on the internet (via Google Earth) started by the band, and Todd and I just happened to be the finders of the prize, which was a postcard that promised more later...

Yesterday, I received an email that said "We haven't forgotten about you" and read it to discover that we were invited to a show of our choice on the upcoming tour and the opportunity to meet the band before the show!  Todd and I are bringing Sam with us to the show we have chosen, which is the Nobleville, IN show on May 30th!

This is way exciting, and will be an incredibly fun experience just a few weeks before the wedding!

a rock and roll wedding present.

Def Leppard are touring this summer, and Todd and I don't have the money to buy the tickets. So I was just thinking that the most rock and roll wedding gift ever would be if someone bought us a pair of tickets...hint, hint!  :)

http://www.livenation.com/event/getEvent/eventId/404927?c=dm-1359019&p=29942890

flowers!!!

I feel the need to start this post with an apology because this photo does NOT do the actual centerpieces justice. But I am so excited about our wedding flowers that I had to post a preview (albeit lousy) here for you to see. There are roses and black magic calla lillies combined in the flowers you see here. Yep, those are candles, too, and clear chandelier crystals from the bottom of the candelabra. A room full of these is going to look absolutely incredible. We met at the flower shop last week to get all of this finalized.

We've also finalized the other flower selections (bouquets, boutonnieres) which are also in the same red/white/black color scheme of the wedding and will be equally awesome. Oh yeah, we're adding feathers to some of the pieces, too. So far, the flowers are one of my favorite wedding things. At least, until the next thing comes along! Thankyouthankyouthankyou to Jerry and Mary Ann for an absolutely incredible design!

Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to us!

...yes, I know that our wedding anniversary isn't until June 13th of next year, but February 25th is the date of the magical evening that Todd and I found eachother again.

Today marks 3 years from that date that we have been together!

Test for aisle runner

stones.

Today we got the black diamonds in from Thailand for my wedding band (yeah, it's a crappy cell phone shot, but oh well), so Todd's sending them to Donovan, who's going to do us the awesome favor of making the rings!  Cool.

we picked out flowers.

Today we had our meeting to pick out flowers for the wedding, and it was very fun.  I am excited to see how they look in person, but I also know they're going to look awesome!

Saturday Dress Fitting

I went for the first dress fitting today with Mom Miller and Mom Leban. I can't post pictures of it on here since Todd wants the dress to be a surprise for him, so I did email the photos to the bridesmaids so they can see. I got my shoes, too, which are super-super-cute.

The extra-extra good news was that BOTH moms found dresses for the wedding! We didn't take photos, but I drew pictures of their dresses when I got home. The first picture is a drawing of Mom Miller's dress. It's made mostly out of a ballgown material (I don't know the name for it) and it has a short bolero-style jacket over the dress part which is strapless or you can attach the staps that come with. The bodice has gathered layers, (which is what looks like stripes in my sketch!) and it goes down asymmetrically to the hips. She got hers in "celadon," which is a really greenish-grey jewel tone kind of color. It's hard to describe, but looks awesome. The flowery-looking thing on the sketch is actually a crystal-y brooch/applique at the hip which is very pretty.

The second drawing is of Mom Leban's dress. Her dress is made of chiffon, according to Camille at the bridal shop. Mom Leban's dress has a long skirt that has a sheer top layer and slightly curves out at the bottom, which I thought looked really flattering. The top is made of a stiffer material, but has folds/layers that look like stripes in my sketch (but aren't) and each layer/fold has tiny crystal-y beading along the edge, which really makes the dress look fantastic. The entire jacket piece is sheer chiffon as well, and has the same crystal-y beading on the edges and cuffs. Camille said she's going to take the sleeves up to an elbow- or 3/4 length, and we all agreed that looked really nice as well. Oh, and Mom Leban's dress is going to be in blue - the name is called "bluestone."

I actually just found photos of both dresses online, but I didn't post them here. I did, however, link to them above (by the corresponding "Mom's" names) - they're both "Jade" by Jasmine Bridal "mother-of-the-bride" dresses.