Hello all to all of our past, present, and future Wedding Tree brides!
Firstly, we wanted to thank all you ladies for a truly wonderful Maggie Sottero Trunk Show! We had an outstanding turnout Friday and Saturday and we couldn't have done it without you ladies! Things are winding down here at The Wedding Tree so now would be a perfect time for all you summer and fall Brides to book an bridal appointment!
As this is my first ever Wedding Tree blog, I thought I would introduce myself and tell all you lovely ladies a little bit about me and my exciting news. My name is Rachel and I have been with the Wedding Tree since August of this year, and this job has been a dream come true! Not only do I get to work with all you fabulous ladies but I am also planning a wedding! Yes, you read that right, I'm just like some of you, I'm a Bride-to-Be!
My fiance proposed in early August after a year of dating with this lovely ring. In July we had casually been looking at jewelery when I saw this ring and I pointed it out and told him how much I loved it. When he went ring shopping, he too fell in love with this stunning set named Emma.
After he proposed I went into whirlwind planning mode! We both started classes in September so we wanted to get as many decisions made as possible before we got super busy with life. Our first tasks were to find a church, the reception hall, and to of course choose a date.. I quickly started researching venues and photographers on the internet. I drove my fiance nuts the first few days after he proposed, always tapping away on my laptop and sending him emails. He wanted to be very involved with the planning process, but he went into information overload with everything I bombarded him with.
Choosing a date proved to be harder then we both anticipated. Deciding on the season was the easy part, we both love fall. The crispness in the air and the splendor of the colors. Fall in Wisconsin is such a beautiful time, I can already imagine standing under an an oak tree with it's leaves shades of red and gold. After much thought and talking with our families we settled on October 15th. Far enough into October to avoid the Oktobefest crowds and to have the leaves changed colors but still early enough to enjoy the fall weather.
The church was the easy part, we both graduated from the same high school so we wanted a church in our hometown. My next prerequisite was that the church had to have a center aisle. I've always imagined myself standing in the back of the church in my gown, when all of the sudden the music starts and the doors are thrown open and I start my walk towards my new life, and I couldn't do this unless the church had a center aisle. Luckily, my fiance indulges my crazy little quirks, and he had no problem with this requirement. We decided on my church where we grew up, which also happens to be the church where my fiance's parents were married. With this information and how beautiful my church is we both knew my church was where we wanted to get married.
Next, we had to find a reception venue. With a limited budget and a huge guest list we needed to find a venue that could accommodate our champagne taste on a beer budget. We looked at several venues both in our hometown and here in La Crosse. We looked at golf courses, restaurants, and hotels. We knew we wanted a rustic, country theme, so we found hotels were a little too traditional for our tastes and restaurants lacked the character we desired. Golf courses looked to be our best bet. Affordable, charming, and great space. We hemmed and hawed between a few choices and I pulled the trump card. A grand stone fireplace that could be lit during dinner! How much more rustic can you get?!?! We both got super excited because we knew this venue fit our personality's exactly.
Well ladies, I hope you enjoyed reading about the beginning of my wedding planning and I look forward to sharing more with you in the future!
~Rachel
