The incredible adventures of Nate and Nalie

Thank You One and All

2010-06-21T16:32:00.003-05:00

Nate and I just want to thank each and everyone of you who celebrated with us. We had an amazing time getting to see old friends, everyday friends and making new friends.

Hopefully everyone enjoyed themselves. Here's all the photos from the photobooth.

The BIG Week

2010-06-13T12:17:00.012-05:00

It's been a crazy few weeks here, trying to figure out the details...but the big week is finally here...oh my! I thought I'd give everyone a heads up on the schedule of events for this Saturday, June 19th!

Can't wait to see you all!

Time	Event	Location
2:00 PM	Ceremony	St. John's of Little Canada
4:30 PM	Social Hour Come enjoy some free appetizers and drinks. Social hour is at the reception hall not at the bar/restaurant.	Jimmy's
6:30 PM	Dinner	Jimmy's

Reminder

2010-05-24T21:44:00.002-05:00

Wow, can't believe we are under a month away!! Lots to do and no time to do it!

This is a friendly reminder that the deadline to RSVP is this Saturday, May 29th. Please reply!

RSVP Now

See you all soon!

Bridal Showers

2010-05-06T17:54:00.006-05:00

I want to thank everyone for throwing me some awesome bridal showers. It was so great to get to see everyone. I don't usually get to see all the special people in my life on a daily basis so it was nice to get together for some food, games and laughs. Plus it was extra special that everyone got to meet each other before the wedding.

Here are some pictures! Can't wait to see everyone again soon!

Gift Registry

2010-03-23T19:08:00.007-05:00

Target

In our quest to check some things off our list we decided to go to Target and register for some gifts. Nate was pretty excited to get the duty of handling the gun. We don't really have a system, so if you see our list at this point it's pretty random stuff. And mainly kitchen stuff, we didn't make it very far.

More to come!

RSVP

2010-03-19T12:29:00.007-05:00

Can't believe how quickly the months have flown by...we are at the 3 month mark..eeks!

Well, invitations will be coming but for you early-birds (AKA as "ahead of the trend") we are opening up the online RSVP system...it's really not complicated at all.

Launch the RSVP form here and fill it out.

Thanks...and we can't wait to see everyone!

Celebrating as a couple

2010-01-12T19:44:00.006-06:00

This was the first year Nate and I celebrated the holidays as a couple...and together for that matter. Usually Nate would drive home to Aberdeen for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I stay in the Cities. This year we started the his side/my side split.

For Thanksgiving we drove to Aberdeen (my 2nd trip!). Usually Nate is calling me from the road in a crazy blizzard and I am biting my nails hoping he gets there safely. This year the weather was clear and snow-free (I think it had something to do with me!)

For Christmas we stayed in the Cities with my family. It seemed that we planned it out very well, as the snow just came pouring in and driving would have been too dangerous to even consider.

Finally, for New Years we were able to drive up to Fargo and then Bismarck to meet some very important people I had not had the pleasure of meeting before. We stayed at the 5-star Heidt Hotel (Thanks Uncle Rick & Sherryl!). It was bitterly cold outside but that didn't stop us from visiting some important people (Grandma Lou) and places (University of Mary - where Nate went to undergrad).

DJ check, Photographer check...feels good!

2009-12-18T22:42:00.007-06:00

Nate and I have been really good in getting things for the wedding done lately. I'm pretty proud of us. It still feels like years away but I have a feeling it will all come together pretty quickly and the stress will too! So getting two big things checked off the list is exciting!!!

First one, we booked a DJ! Whoo-hoo! So exciting! I'm afraid there wasn't much work that happened in order for us to book a DJ. We should have probably done our homework and then interviewed DJs...however, we had such a great time at Jill and Todd's wedding we knew who we wanted...plus Joe (Nate's cousin) works for the company so it was almost a given :) DJ Dan from Midwest Sound gave us a good deal so we are happy! So the next step is to start thinking about music! What to dance to? What fun to dance to? Can we stand the chicken dance or is it banned!?!

Second item off the list is we found a photographer!! I was a bit worried about this one because pictures of so important to my parents. I looked at a ton of websites and everything just started to blend together so it was getting hard to pick.

One of my sisters (Hlee) is into photography and works in the media industry. She met this guy at a fashion show and suggested him. Last Monday Nate and I decided to meet up with Fong to see what he had to offer. It was probably meant to be as we pretty much went home happy. It's great because he's Hmong so there won't be a language barrier with some folks in my family. Plus he has shot a wedding with 1,000 guests...and I thought we had a big guest list! Eeks! Since he does more than just weddings (such as fashion) he has a neat perspective on what he does...and hopefully he can make me look good! You can see some of his work on Fong's MySpace page.

That's it for now...but whew, it feels good!

Happy Holidays everyone...and here we come 2010!

Fun at the office

2009-12-11T18:13:00.006-06:00

We had a competition to decorate each department area. IT of course was the best...a giant gingerbread house! Hehe..enjoy!

Save the Dates are here!

2009-11-22T12:25:00.006-06:00

I've been stalking my save the date order since I submitted it last week. Waiting anxiously for them to arrive...how will they look? Will it be just as I had imagined in my head they would be? The wait was over on Friday, November 20th!

The verdict = they turned out perfect! The colors were just right and the quality of how it printed was excellent...I'm not just saying because I work for the printer. It did make my images and letters on the words all come out very clear (see my last post which shows just the design template I created on my computer and the photos of the actual product below to compare how exact it came out). Of course I was showing it off right away to everyone in the office.

Image 1: This is the magnet itself.

Image 2: This is the carrier card the magnet fits into. On the back it has hotel information.

Image 3: This is the magnet with the carrier card on my fridge.

Story behind the design:

This design came out of Nate and my dating history. Nate lives in Saint Louis Park (Minneapolis) and I live in Saint Paul. Not a far drive but not a short one either. I'd say the drive is anywhere between 20ish minutes on a good day and up to an hour on a bad day. So whenever planning a date, we some times get into the battle of "come over to my side of the river!"

On the save the date we have Nate trying to pull me over to his side of the river. But who is the winner of this battle? Wait to see!

(Thanks everyone who voted and helped me pick my design!)

Save the date!

2009-11-06T19:23:00.006-06:00

I've mentioned this before that I work for a company that makes wedding stationery. So when it comes time for stationery such as save the dates I knew exactly who to go with! Problem was which one? We have such a talented group of designers and we have so many awesome designs (see for yourself). We have about 2,000 save the date designs and I looked at all of them! Being a DIY girl and someone who loves to play on Photoshop I decided I'd venture out and design something myself.

I wanted something personal that reflect Nate and me. I went through a whole bunch of ideas, some better than others. The following two concepts made the final cut...I will reveal which one next week when I get them back! Can't wait!

Do you get the concept? Does it reflect Nate and me? Which one is better?

Photoshoot

2009-11-02T20:41:00.003-06:00

So we decided we should take some "engagement photos". It served as a very good practice for Nate and I as we both really don't like to take photos. We really need to get use to getting our pictures taken and smiling a lot! With all sorts of people watching us smiling and posing. I think we still need more practice! Here's some photos to enjoy:

Thanks to Hlee and Vickie for taking the pictures!!

More on Hmong wedding celebration

2009-11-01T18:15:00.002-06:00

My friend Heidi did a great write up on the Hmong wedding celebration.
Read it here:
Truly Engaging

Thank you!

2009-10-15T17:16:00.006-05:00

One down...one to go! Thank you everyone for making our Hmong wedding so memorable!

Hmong Wedding...in a week!

2009-10-03T21:45:00.002-05:00

After much struggle to figure it all out, the Hmong wedding is now around the corner!!! So much excitement and yet so much to worry about. Why worry you ask? Well, these things are really out of the hands of the bride and groom. Depending on the families it can easily get out of hand. However, my dad said he'd do it by the book...yes there is an actual handbook! Or rather a guidebook that lists out everything to the ceremony. Problem...I can't read Hmong! There is a section pertaining to the costs that Nate and I have figured out because the dollar amounts are listed in English :-)

Anyhow, I am inviting a lot of friend to this event. I have not been able to be very good at telling them when to come since it is a two day event. But I do have a bit of a better idea now. The first night is negotiations and then the second day there will be a celebration lunch. So noon is the best time to show up and celebrate. Then we get to watch Nate get drunk! Really, but it's all in celebration. He has take a shot with all my uncles, cousins, and family. Don't worry he's been training ;-)

Exciting news!

2009-08-31T17:45:00.005-05:00

(Hmong wedding: October 9 - 10, 2009)

This last weekend Nate and I met with tij laug Teng (my sister's husband's brother) who is an "expert" at the traditions of Hmong marriages. He's a mej koob, however he's currently not taking on that role.

He was kind enough to meet up with us to see how he could be of help. Basically, he said "Don't worry, I'll take care of it". He said he'd find the people needed in order to carry out the ceremony. All Nate had to worry about was getting the money together...which I warned him of (early on), so he was already prepared for that part ;)

Tij laug explained to us that he would find us representatives including the best man and the bridesmaid. He gave us a small list of items we should purchase for that day (such as one case of 40 oz Budweiser). He immediately called my dad to make sure the date we wanted (October 9th) would work. Within a couple of minutes the date was set! Whoo-hoo!

We learned that tij laug was on the way to a wedding and he invited us to go observe. We agreed, and the next thing we knew we were at a wedding. A little strange as we didn't know anyone, but they were all very welcoming. I think they found it a little amusing that Nate was there, and even more amusing when tij laug told them Nate was a groom-in-training.

Although I've been to a few Hmong wedding in my times a lot of the action happens in a room full of men. This was the first time I've been present for the singing. So it was very interesting to watch and learn.I learned that there are two mej koob and things were done in pairs at the ceremony because when you marry you are coming together as a couple, so everything is done in pairs.

We are so fortunate that tij laug is going to take time to help us. We cannot thank him enough for his kindness and willingness to help us!

Next step: buy Nate some Hmong clothes!!

Hotels

2009-08-27T20:30:00.011-05:00

I messed up on the Save the Date magnets. The rate for Holiday Inn is actually $109, I fixed it on this page. Thanks!

There are two options available for hotels. Compare the two and see what is best for you.

NOTE: The weekend of the wedding is during the Back to the 50's car show, so book early! They will hold the rooms until May 19, 2010. After that you are out of luck!

Hotel Option 1:

Country Inn
Address: 3505 Vadnais Center Drive, St Paul MN 55110
Map of Country Inn: See Map
Cost: $97/night + tax (about $103.92), $109/night + tax for suites (about $116.77)
Phone: (651) 483-1625
Rooms: Double queen, King, or King suite
Notes: This one is a short walk, from the reception hall. Just down the block.

Hotel Option 2: Holiday Inn Express
Address: 1100 EAST COUNTY ROAD E ST. PAUL, MN 55110
Map of Holiday Inn: See Map
Phone:: 651-484-2400
Cost: $109/night + tax (about $118.76)
Rooms: Double queen or King
Notes: This place is attached to the reception hall (Jimmy's)

Preparing for Marriage

2009-08-27T18:11:00.004-05:00

(Details on the Ceremony)

Last Tuesday, Nate and I met with Father Dave Kohner at St. John's. This was the first step in preparing for our marriage.

First off, I like how Father Dave reminded us that Marriage was a sacrament. Actually it is one of the seven sacraments in the Catholic church (aren't you proud of me Sister Linda and Sue!) It was a great reminder that all that other stuff (the dress, the flowers, the food) was all just extra in this spiritual celebration.

Now for the fun part...

First, we will be paired up with a married couple. They will be our mentors. Then we will take a test! What! Will we pass!?! It's more of an evaluation on our relationship, to see in what areas we may need to discuss with each other. It's called the "PREPARE 2000 Relationship Inventory". They'll send our tests off to be calculated--isn't that cool! (I'm a geek so I personally think it's pretty cool...unless of course the results are bad!)

Over the next few months we'll go through the results with our mentors and work on areas we may need to discuss in order prepare for our marriage. Fiances is always a big issue area for couples. In addition, our mentor couple will share their experiences and tells stories about their own relationship--I love stories!

In between all that we'll also be meeting with Father Dave so he can get to know us better as a couple. What a great idea, it's nice since he'll be officiating the ceremony so it will feel more personal if he knew us better.

We'll also need to attend a marriage preparation retreat. I know some of you have done this so it would be great to hear what you thought as well as your suggestions. Here are the two that were recommended: Christian Marriage Ministries, Archdioceses Marriage Prep Program

In addition to all the education and preparing we'll also have to start thinking about music, decorations, passages...oh my! Let the fun begin...

St. John's of Little Canada

2009-08-27T17:59:00.006-05:00

Ceremony starts at 2pm

Ceremony Location: St. John's the Evangelist of Little Canada
Address: 380 Little Canada Road East Little Canada, MN 55117
Map of St. John's: See Map
Church to Reception: See Map

Reception Hall Booked!

2009-08-24T20:06:00.013-05:00

Alright here's the exciting conclusion to our search for a venue. The winner…wait for it…Jimmy’s in Vadnais Heights!

It’s pretty close to the church so it will be a painless drive.

Reception Hall: Jimmy's
Address: 3565 Labore Road Vadnais Heights, MN 55110
Map of Jimmy's: See Map
Church to Reception: See Map

Click to view larger:

Quest for stand-in relatives and more

2009-08-14T16:03:00.003-05:00

While the work for the June 19th wedding is happening we have also been working on the Hmong wedding. It's been a bit complicated since Nate and I don't know a lot about the tradition. I have obviously been to a few Hmong weddings in my time, however, I never actually know what's happening.

In the Hmong wedding you don't rent out a nice reception hall or get catering, the whole ceremony takes place at the bride’s house with home made food. The date is only set a couple weeks ahead. I recently learned that having a ceremony at the end of the month is bad luck to the marriage. Eeks, that would have been a disaster!
What I did know was that we needed to find Nate a mej koob (AKA the negotiator). If Nate was a Hmong boy he’d tell his dad he wanted to marry me, and then his dad would know how to get a hold of a mej koob and gather his relatives to help him. But he’s not, and I'm afraid Larry wouldn't know the first thing about finding a mej koob. Nate either, thus the quest!

We thought our only task was to find a mej koob for Nate but we learned it's a bit more complicated than that. Nate actually needs stand-in relatives who know the tradition so they can help organize the event and help him negotiate. So where can we get some stand-in relatives?!? And that's where we are at, waiting to hear if some good people would be kind enough to help two kids in love to get hitced the traditional Hmong way.

Also, if you know a single girl who's willing to spend two days with me, we also need a taib gao (which translates to "green grandma") to be my maid of honor.

More on Hmong Weddings:
Hmong marriages
My Big Fat Hmong Wedding

Jill and Todd's Wedding

2009-08-03T20:27:00.006-05:00

Had a blast at Jill and Todd's wedding this weekend. It was also the first time I met all of the Clemen's (Nate's mom's side of the family). Everyone was so nice and welcoming it but my nerves at ease.

I walked away with tons of ideas. Plus a long list of things I did not think about and should start thinking about! Good thing we are having our wedding after theirs as I heard Jill is very organized and a great planner. There's no way I could pull something off as well as she did, but she really did think of everything! It all executed so well too! What a great idea to have a color book and crayons at the table for the kids. And then an activity room for the kids! I suppose as a teacher she knows how to keep the kids busy:)

They also had a photobooth there. What a fun idea! Everyone loved it and there was some request for one at our wedding. We'll have to figure out how well that idea works with 400 people!! But it was a fantastic idea to capture images of all your guests.

I'll have to consult Jill when things start rolling. Great job!

Finding a venue

2009-07-24T11:59:00.004-05:00

So last week Nate and I decided that it was time to get working on this wedding. So after talking to the church we got our date...or so we thought. Anyhow, with this date in mind we started to look at potential places we'd like to hold the biggest party of our lives.

Right away I thought at the Great Hall in downtown Saint Paul where my sister had her wedding three years ago. It was historical and looked grand. I also found a place near by that had that historical, grand feel near the Great Hall called Union Depot. I forgot when but one afternoon after work Nate and I decided to stop by and check it out.

I immediately fell in love with the classic look and feel of the Union Depot. Especially because we went at night and all the lights were turn low, the glow of the place was just magical. At that moment I was thinking "This is the place!", not knowing how much it would cost.

Fast forward, we figure out that it was way spendy and the date we wanted wasn't available. Bummer, but if you ever get a chance to go visit the place for dinner sometime I'd suggest it. It has a historical and romantic feel to it.

Ok so by the end of the week I had called over a dozen places, sent out a few emails, and was getting frustrated. Did everyone know that June and September were the most popular months to get married?? Well I didn't until I called a bunch of places and was disappointed.

At this point, I had to get back to reality. The most important things to Nate and I was that we get to share this event with our loved ones. So we back tracked, let's make a list of all the people we'd want there (which turned out to be a big number). Then let's find a place not to far from the church that can hold that many people. Plus they should have our date available. Easy right? Well, not quite...it cut down the number of places that matched our requirements. Not to mention, while at Nate's cousins bachelorette/bachelor party she made a great point that we didn't even think about. "Finding a venue where there was a hotel nearby."

Why didn't we think of that? Nate would have a good amount of people traveling to the Cities, plus after a few beers some people may prefer not to drive (or rather should NOT drive). Ok, so one more requirement to throw in. Turns out all these requirements made the decision a lot easier! (Duh, I should know this from by job!) Nate and I are actually relieved since the both of us can't ever make a decision when given so many great choices.

Stay tuned to find out what we picked!!

Finally, pictures of the ring :)

2009-07-01T21:21:00.003-05:00

Finally, as promised pictures!! Just picked it up tonight! So exciting...and it fits my finger!

What does that stand for?

2009-07-01T16:22:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I posted about my job. Well at work sometimes I hear things I'm not sure what it means. So my friend Heidi pointed me to a spot to clear somethings up...did you know "IMNSHO" meant "in my not so humble opinion" and "FH" meant "Future Husband"?

Wedding Acronyms

Here it is...the Proposal

2009-07-01T12:19:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone, my dear friend Heidi has posted up on her blog about our proposal. Enjoy!

Truly Engaging - Nate and Nalie Proposal

My Turn

2009-06-30T20:08:00.003-05:00

By Nate

Hello followers. I am the other half of this duo. I am a little nervous as I don't really know what to blog about. Now that I think about it, I have never written a blog. It was "suggested" that I should write something about my experience to this point. Nalie has shared how everything has gone down so far but I will share some of my trials of purchasing a ring.

I started researching buying a ring in the beginning of January. I basically went out 2-3 times and looked around at the different stores along with looking on the net. It was pretty interesting to see the differing styles of sales that were used on me. Some I liked more than others. I also learned all about the 5 C's. After looking around I finally felt that I found a salesperson that I could trust. He was good at pointing out things to look for and he seemed to have the best deal on a real good diamond. I mean after looking at several diamonds, they all start to look the same.

The last time I went I took my roommate with me for some support and to confirm that the diamond was real. I made the decision that this diamond was the one that I wanted. I did attempt to talk him down on the price and was semi-successful. I decided to have them keep the diamond until I was ready to use it for fear of losing it.

Well, about 4 months later I picked up the diamond. It took me that long to decide on how to propose. Plus, there were many things happening and it just never seemed like a good time. It always seemed pretty easy to find an excuse to put it off! When I picked it up I kidded with the lady that I had forgotten that I purchased the ring.

Even after having the ring it was about another month and a half before I got to "use" the ring. The rest Nalie has shared with you.

I do know that I am excited about our wedding and realize that it will be a lot of work. I currently am working "researching" several different aspects of our wedding. Luckily I have the expert, Nalie, to help with all of the difficult decisions. Hope you enjoyed this blog.

My Job

2009-06-30T16:56:00.007-05:00

So it's really weird because I work for a company that sell wedding stationary (save the dates, invitations, table number, table cards, etc). My job is to make sure the website is easy to use for brides who shop at our site. For the last year I've spent a lot of time talking to brides, researching the process of planning a wedding and how our company fits into the picture. I've signed up for theKnot just because everyone uses it and I need to understand why. I've been to every competitor website to see their products. I've played with all the tools they have out there for brides.

So...one would think that with all this research I have done I'd know exactly what I wanted for my own. Hmm...not true! I have no idea what I want. Every thing looks beautiful to me...ok that's not true, I know what I don't want. There are some cheesy stuff out there. So how does one come to a decision about colors? Flowers? Inspiration?

Well I'm currently doing some research into how other people plan their weddings...maybe this time their words will hit closer to me and I will then be inspired!

I'd love to hear how you got inspired from your wedding. Please share with me!

Diamonds are a girl's best friend

2009-06-29T20:39:00.000-05:00

Nate had done a great job picking out a beautiful solitaire for me, however he had picked out the ring sized for someone who has twice my hand size! So after having the ring fly off my finger once, we decided we needed to go get the ring re-sized and look at picking out a setting..setting right? Anyhow a different band if I found one I liked.

So on Saturday we went off to Rogers and Holland. Nate and I both never feel quite comfortable in such a setting but it was something that needed to be done. However, we walked in and let them parade a whole bunch of rings in front of us. There was a set they showed us that was a shell. Basically you slip the solitaire into the gold shell and they don't have to take the diamond out of the solitaire setting. I was hoping one of these would work but I just didn't like any of them. Unfortunately I didn't know exactly what I liked. I just wasn't seeing and I thought I would have to go look elsewhere. I really wanted to get it from here as we can get credit for buying the new band from here.

So I tried on a whole bunch more and kept thinking no. Finally she pulled one out with all the details I loved. However, it had two small diamonds on the side, making it a three stone. Arg! It would be perfect without these two extra stones! I thought I love this, I might as well ask if I could have the band without the two diamonds. She thought it could be done, so after speaking with her colleague it turned out I could! Whoo-hoo!

Now I just have to wait for the call and then I can go pick it up. And yes post pictures up!

Hello World!

2009-06-29T12:50:00.000-05:00

Welcome to our blog where you can read about our rants and random comments as we trek out on this journey. I'm sure there will be lots of bumps and deadends, but there may be lots of shortcuts too (let's hope!).