Una pausa y volvemos...

I just needed a little mental break from wedding planning. Plus, ABBA is awesome. This song has been in my head all week. 

My toes hurt already.

I'm not a shoe whore- I don't go nuts about shoes like Carrie Bradshaw. I'm more of a purse girl myself (sigh, Hermès). But my grandma used to say that a pair of shoes "de buena calidad" can make any outfit look like a million bucks. 

For day to day I prefer flip flops, which is a habit I couldn't shake after leaving UCSB. I am pretty clueless when it comes to buying nice shoes though and it makes the shopping experience less than enjoyable. Now I don't really feel cool admitting this, but in the hopes of getting some input, here goes: After about an hour of wearing one of these puppies, my feet get all swollen. That's why I HATE strappy shoes. Sure they are sexy, but not when my wide ol' feet are squeezing out between the straps. So, when buying shoes for the wedding, when I'm going to be on my feet most of the evening, saying hi to guests, dancing, posing, etc., is it wise to buy half a size bigger? Should I get another emergency pair? Can I get away with wearing a shoe that doesn't match my ivory gown like say a pair that's green or pink? Ahhh! 

First Row: Chinese Laundry, Chinese Laundry, David's Bridal, Nine West

Second Row: Chinese Laundry, Marc Fisher, Nine West, Guess

Third Row: BP., Nina, Vaneli, Matisse (my fave so far)

Last Row: Nine West, Marc Fisher, Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blahnik

The Wedding: A Scientific Perspective

Nice job to the folks at A Practical Wedding. 

Then vs. Now

In "Something Old Something New," Betsy Towner compares the average wedding of 1958 to those held in 2008 and looks at the way weddings have changed in the last 50 years.
Some intriguing facts:

The Bride:

The most common name then: Mary

The most common name now: Jennifer 

The stereotype then: Blushing Bride

The stereotype now: Bridezilla

The gown then: Princess lace handmade by Belgian nuns $135

The gown now: Strapless and sexy $1317

The average age then: 20

The average age now: 26

The Groom:

The most common name then: Robert

The most common name now: Michael

The tuxedo rental then: $5.50

The tuxedo rental now: $69.95

The average age then: 22

The average now: 28

The Reception:

The first dance then: "All I Have to Do is Dream" by the Everly Brothers

The first dance now: "No One" Alicia Keys (Really?)

Party song then: "At the Hop" by Danny and the Juniors

Party song now: "4 minutes" Madonna w/Justin Timberlake

The trendy gift then: CorningWare casserole $12.95

The trendy gift now: Nintendo Wii $399

The Expense:

Postage for invitations then: 3-4 cents

Postage for invitations now: 42 cents

Piece of cake per Guest then: 35 cents

Piece of cake per Guest now: $4.52

Marriage License then: $1

Marriage License now (Santa Barbara): $75

The Escape

The honeymoon then: Niagara Falls

The honeymoon now: Hawaii

The getaway car then: Chevy Impala convertible $2,700

The getaway car now: Toyota Camry $18,570

The honeymoon cost then: $237

The honeymoon cost now: $3,680

Gallon of gas then: 30 cents

Gallon of gas now: $3.80

The Future:

Divorce rate then: 33%

Divorce rate now: 50%

Number of kids then: 3.6

Number of children now: 2.1

Zero minutes of fame.

Oh well. I was so close to starring in my own wedding reality show but the dream is still a dream. Normally I wouldn't want to be on TV. I even hate taking pictures. However, I came across a casting call that would have solved all of my wedding planning woes. Not that I have that many. It hasn't been a hair-pulling experience yet. The announcement, in bold, read: "LET CELEBRITY WEDDING PLANNER DAVID TUTERA ENHANCE YOUR WEDDING ON WE TV!"
David Tutera is this Colin Cowie type event planner who recently partnered up with Disney to create the Disney Fairy Tale Wedding package. I certainly wouldn't mind having a wedding planner (any wedding planner) much less this quasi-celebrity planner create a beautiful reception that only the super rich or famous can afford. Of course, without Mickey and Minnie making a cameo appearance.
Well like I said, Oskar and I seemed to meet the requirements for the reality show. The producers wanted couples that were getting married this summer. Check. They want couples who have spent months planning the wedding. Check. And they want want couples who feel that something "STILL isn't quite right." Of course, check!
"Contact our producers today," I read. "Okay, I will," I thought.
Then I read: "Weddings should take place within an hour of New York City in July or August, 2008!"
Damn it! I only got a C in physics so I'm pretty sure that I won't be able to position a wormhole between Manhattan and Santa Barbara cause that's the only way I'd be able to have Tutera throw me a bone.
Well, there is always the "Newlywed Game" right?

Just so y'all know

I called this blog "Boda de mis sueños" because of this show that my family was obsessed with last year called "Bailando por la boda de mis sueños." Imagine "Dancing with the Stars" except for the fact that a Latino celebrity is paired with either a bride or groom. The winner of the competition obviously wins the wedding of their dreams. My mom told me I should compete. Yeah.
Anyway I would dance for a prize if I had any rhythm. Sadly, I have one or two stock moves that includes a lot of hair swishing but that's about it. Hmmm....that reminds me-Oskar and I need to practice for the first dance. Eeek! Have any of you seen Oskar dance? It's all shoulders.

Here's a little clip of my blog's namesake, in all it's fringed glory. I tried to do the quebradita once. Just once.

June Gloom

I have been trying my damnedest not be the dreaded "bridezilla" but it happened. And actually, now that I give it some
thought, I think I have been one for a quite some time, on the DL of course. Furthermore, these moments of anger and
frustration, the times that I have regressed to the three year old throwing a tantrum at the Toys-R-Us have been aimed
primarily at this guy I know with dark hair and an auburn beard.

I do feel pangs of guilt as I sit and watch my "Platinum
Wedding" and "Bridezilla" marathon and realize how quickly a ritual that is supposed to be an occasion celebrating the couple's
promise to step into an unknown and perilous future together can turn into an over-the-top, gratuitous display of autolatry.
can understand why this occurs as well.

 For many of us, the opportunities we have to express ourselves creatively
are rare or hard to do. Even more unusual are the times when we receive the type of adoration and awe that is freely showered
upon celebrities, sometimes for simply buying a latte at the local Starbucks. As a result, the smaller aspects of the wedding
like the seating arrangements or the type of centerpieces, can become points of contention. Everything must be perfect,
because the wedding is like the Oscar's we will probably never attend. 

I don't want to lose sight of what is
important. With only 16 weeks to go (yikes!) it's so tempting to exceed the budget and go glitz crazy. But, then again, no one is
really going to remember what the hell the table looked like or what kind of flowers I carried down the aisle. What people are
going to talk about later is how long they think the marriage is going to last or whether or not we make a good
couple. 

I don't think I have been acting as horribly as some of the women depicted on the shows though.  I
wouldn't "fire" my bridesmaids for not going to the bachelorette party or bridal shower. I wouldn't ban my mother-in-law from
the festivities simply because she didn't like me. I WOULD snub someone I held a grudge against even if Oskar got along with
them fine-that's pretty bridezilla-ish. Bad Maryté! Bad!

Okay, you know how in the third or fourth post I said
needed to lose twenty pounds? Yeah add a couple more pounds to that. Now I'm freaking out.