Charles and Anna 2005-ad infinitum
Charles and I met during the winter of 1995 thanks to our mutual friend, Michael. I had a HUGE crush on Charles, and we didn't begin dating until the influence of Jeff came into play. :) We began dating in September of 1998, and on December 24, 2004, Charles proposed to me! It was the best day of my life, hands down. :) I would like to keep a sort of record of some of the wedding dealings, partly for the benefit of my memory, but also for anyone else that wants to take the time to read about us. Thank you for taking the time to read this!
Above, you can see the beautiful engagement ring that Charles spoiled me with. I definitely don't deserve anything this nice, but I have to give Charles three cheers and my utmost respect (and gratitude!) for picking the perfect ring. The stone is a very very nice Natural Alexandrite, and the band is a hand carved white gold band from England. I only learned about Alexandrite from working at Jewelry Television, but it quickly became my absolute favorite gemstone. Alexandrite (or "Alex" as we call it!) is a natural stone that changes color in different lighting. Mine is normally a deep, rich green, but in low light or candlelight, it takes on a purplish-grey color, as seen in the picture above. For anyone that might like to learn about Alexandrite, here you go. :) A very special thanks to Joe for referring Charles to Mackley & Company. I am very impressed with their service! :)
Above, you can see me and the oompalacious Charles on the day after he proposed. He is so cute...
Frequently Asked Questions
1. When is the date? Have you set a date yet? Have you? Have you? Have you?
Alright, the official date is going to be July 9, 2005. :) Invitations should be out already, but they aren't, so expect them soon! :) Well, expect them if we are very close, cause I AM poor and couldn't invite everyone.
2. When are you going to have kids? When? When? When?
Charles and I don't believe in children. No, I am just kidding. Of course we believe in children. How can you not believe in something that is so pervasive and loud and always in your face? :) We will probably have kids one day, but it isn't going to be any time soon. And I find generally that the more people ask me about it, the less I want to have them. So....
3. Where is the wedding going to be?
We are getting married at Church Street United Methodist Church in downtown Knoxville. It is a really beautiful church, and because Char's dad and stepmom go there, we were able to reserve the church. It is a very pretty and welcoming place. We hope you like it!
4. Is it going to be a "big" wedding?
We would really like to keep things small and manageable. If you know our friends Joe and Kerri, we would like something the size of their wedding. This will be nearly impossible, so we are just going to keep it as small as possible. Hopefully acquaintances, distant relatives, and co-workers won't be offended if they aren't invited. You can't please everybody, but we are doing our best. The only thing harder than pleasing everybody is trying to please everybody while paying to have them involved in your special day. ;) We would really like it to just be our nearest and dearest. We made a draft of the guest list, and if you don't count children (see #5) there are approximately 75 people on the list so far.
5. Are there going to be children at the wedding?
For my feelings on children, please see #2. Ok, I am mostly joking, but I have to be honest. We aren't inviting children to the wedding. If you are concerned about whether your children are welcome, talk to us about it. We would like to find a way to be happy and have you be happy, too! :) I am sure there will be some people under the age of 18 present, but the only people there that should be behaving like people under the age of 18 are me, Michael, Jeff, and Shay. :) Crying and screaming in the church won't make me think fond and reverent thoughts. ;) Ok, as of May 29th there is an update: there is a chance that there will be a childcare service provided at the church. Not official yet, but likely. More info when I know for sure.
6. Who is going to be in the wedding party?
This has caused much drama, and if you are reading this and I didn't ask you to be in the wedding, I am sorry. :( We did the best we could, and we couldn't have a wedding party with 30 people in it, because there would be no one to sit in the church and watch us get married. I apologize. On the bride's side, there will be Lara, Sharon, and Rebecca. On the groom's side is Jeff, Ben, and Michael. I doubt we'll have flower girls (they are generally children, afterall, unless Shay wants to volunteer, but then there is the whole "wearing a dress" thing...), and we wanted Master Frodo to be the ring bearer, but two things stood in the way: 1. He might feel the urge to cast the wedding rings into Mount Doom, and 2. He gets really excited around people and might have an accident. Shay and David are going to be ushers, so expect to see them, and if you come uninvited, they will kick you to the curb. Shay is also going to read for us.. Colossians 3:12-17. ;) So I guess that is it for the bridal party. :)
7. Do you have a caterer? A photographer? A cake-baking person?
We have the cake, we have the photographer, we have a caterer, I have a hair appointment... we have everything more or less take care of. All I need is maybe some help assembling some things, and I'll be all set. :) Still need to do programs, but those should be relatively simple.
8. Are you going to dance? Throw the bouquet? Toss the garter?
Nope. This is subject to change, it is not set in stone, but those traditions aren't ones that I particularly enjoy being subject to. See, this is where Tevya and I differ. He believes that without tradition, our lives would be as shaky as a Fiddler On The Roof. I disagree. I would like to dance with Charles, but I don't really want everyone staring at me. And dancing with my dad would reduce me to tears. Bouquet-tossing and garter-tossing are fine for some people, but because I don't have too many single friends and relatives, I don't want to put the pressure on anyone. I just feel it is awkward, but Charles and I might talk things over and decide to torture you guys afterall. ;)
9. Where are you registered?
Not that I am begging for gifts, but if you are reading this, you must be curious! We are registered at Target and at Bed, Bath, & Beyond. We need to go put more middle-range items on the list, cause there are a lot of inexpensive things, and a few majorly expensive things, but I don't want people to feel awkward, so if you are looking on the registries and don't see anything to buy, don't despair- I'll add more. ;)
10. Where are you going on your honeymoon?
Nothing is certain yet, but tentatively the plan is to drive to our favorite little secluded beach. We have been there twice before, with other people. I won't reveal the location until after we get back, but it isn't anywhere crazy exotic, and it isn't Disney World like we were considering. And I shall definitely be sunburned when we get back. :)
There are so many more questions I could ask, but let's save some for another day, what do you say? I just want to end by saying, I LOVE MY CHARLES and I can't wait to be married!!! :) :) :) My New Year's Resolution for 2005 is not to be a Bridezilla. So if anyone sees me slipping into that trap, let me know so I can stop. :) Thanks again for reading! :)
Here is a picture from the shower that Sharon threw for me on June 11:
(left to right: Rebecca, Sharon, Bethany, Sarah, Lara, and Kim. Not pictured: Jiun-Fei and Barbara)
Update
Charles and I are married now! WOO HOO!!! We had a wonderful wedding, and thank you to everyone that came and supported us. :) The honeymoon was wonderful, and I'll post pictures as soon as I have some! EEEEEEK! Also, Chrissy (the world's most talented person) made my wedding jewelry and I wanted to post a pic of the beautiful necklace she made! So here it is. This isn't the best photo but I'll post a better one when I get the chance. :)
