I thought we were eloping, but it's turning into a wedding! My cousin's girlfriend totally stepped up and got us family rate at the Hyatt and offered to take the kids on the wedding night, I searched online for a photographer and found out that he knows my cousin (bought his motorcycle from him), M hooked me up with two ministers. I called one and it sounds perfect to us. I explained to her that it couldn't be Christian/Jewish...but maybe something traditional Hawaiian on the beach? So she described the ceremony (she wears traditional clothing...chants to call the ancestors...have a coconut ceremony (strength and flexibility)...bless the rings...vows...exchange rings...says a Buddhist prayer about cleaning the slate and starting clean...offering to God/gods/cosmos/the Mother of tea/teak? leaves or whatever insprires her that day...another chant to close. It might be a little far out there for some people's tastes...but given that I couldn't have a religious ceremony, I thought that this was nice. I read somewhere about the families giving each other leis to represent being a new family and I thought that that was something nice that DF could do with the kids because they're also officially beginning a new life together. I didn't want to wear a gown/white, but when I saw pictures, I changed my mind...but I'm not spending a lot of money on it. Fortunately we have a couple of outlets out here...I'm starting WWs tomorrow. While I watched Maggie and Chris lose weight, I was gaining, ugh. Finally flowers...I think that I want one of those Hawaiian floral wreaths, I forget the name, in lieu of a veil. And for dinner afterwards, we're going to Roy's! I'm so excited about that.
This past week has been a big whirlwind...the kids came home this weekend to say that they were going to Hawaii in March (before we told them that we had picked a date!) and they're going to someone else's wedding in March, but on MAUI. So many emails later with expedia and travelocity et compagnie, they won't sell us tickets for kids to fly solo (theyhave to island hop from Maui to Kauai, a 45 min flight). So I was thinking that we would have to buy three separate tickets from three different airlines (doubling the price), but after I stopped by a travel agent yesterday...he said there's no reason to tell cheaptickets dot com that I'm buying tickets for children...because no one gives discounts for children anymore...so just buy the tickets and then deal with Hawaiian directly. Even if I bought the tickets from him, he can't do the paperwork involved, it has to be done with HA...so I called HA and the woman told me it doesn't matter how we buy the tickets, we have to contact them to arrange for the kids to fly solo. PHEW. We just have to make sure that we get them on the ONE flight that's direct. I owe that agent a lunch!
thanks to everyone for their congratulations...it means so much to me that my online family is supporting me!
hugs, hugs and more major hugs,
Catherine
THis all sounds SO STINKING FUN!!!! And except for the ceremony type, it was what I wanted. WAHHHHHH!!!! But, I get to live vicariously, so be ready to snap LOTS of pictures for us Bay!!!!
Your ceremony sounds like a great option. Fun. Exotic. Different. Exactly what you'd expect in Hawaii. ;)
Hi Bay, it's all so exciting!!