I am officially a Mrs. now and Mark is finally got his ring on his finger to mark his married-hood. Wow.
The big day went by so fast. The 3 hours of sleep we had over 3 days total before the wedding most likely helped contribute to the fuzziness of it all. But it was so beautiful and SUCH a blast. Thank goodness for our last-minute decision to have our friends capture some of the moments of the day on the 2 Flip cameras we had. Seeing the day unfold through the eyes of our friends reminded us again of how lucky we are to be surrounded by such amazing people in our lives who were able to all come together to celebrate this adventure called life with us.
As I sit here on the couch blogging, I realized that I have two choices: 1) to continue writing this entry and finish it as if it's the last entry to our "wedding planning" blog, or 2) figure out how to continue the life of our blog by, for example, announcing the extension of our "wedding planning" blog to "life as a Mr. & Mrs." blog, or something that's worth contemplating over. My post-honeymoon-pre-work-brain is too tired to figure out if #2 is the way to go, but it knows that killing the blog is not quite the way to go. That just seems, for some reason, too morose as Mark and I begin our new life together! More to come on exactly what will happen to this blog for those who may happen to be reading this.
In the mean time, I am going to fix the Mr. and myself an early dinner to feed our still-on-Portugal-time-stomachs and figure out how to get rid of all these empty boxes from Crate and Barrel that have overtaken our apartment.
Yeah - we DID it!! And can't wait to start our lives together as husband and wife.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Counting Down
Wow - can't believe we are getting married in 6 days!! This morning, we cooked in for some home-made frittata and reminisced about the good old days when we had time to just sit around and relax. Yup - life has been pretty insane, but it's all going to be worth it. We are totally looking forward to seeing all of our friends and families who are coming into town for our big day!! And off to Portugal we go the Monday after our wedding!! Let us know if you want us to bring you back some port wine from Portugal! :)
Hope to see you out on Friday (8.7) night for some pre-wedding wine at The District in San Francisco!!
xoxo,
m&a
Hope to see you out on Friday (8.7) night for some pre-wedding wine at The District in San Francisco!!
xoxo,
m&a
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Bachelor party vs. Bachelorette party
Mark is away this weekend at his bachelor party with his posse in Chicago. I hope he is having some good fun esp. since how hard he has been working and helping out with wedding planning! Like I told him and his friends, "Have a blast and get it out of your system! What happens in Chi-Town stays in Chi-Town." :b
It occurred to me some time ago that my philosophy on bachelor parties isn't shared by many other women. Also, men and women seem to have different perceptions of the respective gender's bye-bye-singlehood party. For example, how many times have you heard of brides getting upset at the groom for misbehavin' at the bachelor party? I seem to have heard quite a few, which is unfortunate. On the other hand, I don't think I have ever heard of grooms getting into fights with brides because of what they have done at the bachelorette party.
OK, so I am a sample size of one, but as I talk to friends and gather my information, it seems that guys do in fact get into trouble more than girls do with their significant others post these parties.
So, say this phenomenon is true, let's diagnose why this may be happening:
1. Men do crazy things (e.g. where scantily clad women may be involved) more so than women do at bachelor/bachelorette parties.
2. Men in close contact with other women (e.g. lap dancing) is considered unacceptable but women being in close contact with other men is not.
3. Women get upset at men more than men do with women.
I actually think that all three of these are possibilities and probably work together to result in the "phenomenon" explained above. With regards to point #1 above, as society agrees that guys tend to be more physical vs. women being emotional, it makes sense to me that there would be more "meat on display" at a men's party vs. women's party. As for #2, related to #1, my assumption is that there is a belief held by some that when men are in close contact with other women, more things can go wrong, whereas with a woman being in close contact with other men (e.g. lap dancer), there is more embarrassment and laughter as opposed to "what may happen...". As for #3, I hate to admit it, but it's probably true that women get mad at men more than men at women. Of course this is a generalization, but since women tend to nag more than men, I get the feeling that ends up translating to getting upset.
What does this all mean? As we continue the tradition of bachelor and bachelorette parties, how can we ensure that at the end of the day, more fun is had than fights taking place between the couple? Not that anyone is asking for my tips, but here is what I would think about:
1. Have fun! Parties are meant to be fun. Bachelor and bachelerette parties are a once-in-a-life-time thing where people of the opposite sex are involved. Let men be men and women be women so that fun can be had by all. And be appreciative of the work your bridal party has put into planning this gathering!
2. Gotta trust. Without trust, a marriage breaks down. I don't know what Mark is doing in Chicago (I don't think he did either before leaving), but I know that he is not going to do anything that he thinks would not be right to do or hurtful to me.
3. Give each other freedom. As two get together in a marriage, you are in each other's business a lot. It's ok to ask for personal space and not have to know everything that's happening in the other person's life. Guess that's related to the trust piece above.
Wow - I am starting to feel like "Dear Abby". Now, I can't wait to see what my girls have planned for me for my bachelorette party on July 11!! Looking forward to a fun weekend with the ladies (and scantily clad men - ha!)!!
It occurred to me some time ago that my philosophy on bachelor parties isn't shared by many other women. Also, men and women seem to have different perceptions of the respective gender's bye-bye-singlehood party. For example, how many times have you heard of brides getting upset at the groom for misbehavin' at the bachelor party? I seem to have heard quite a few, which is unfortunate. On the other hand, I don't think I have ever heard of grooms getting into fights with brides because of what they have done at the bachelorette party.
OK, so I am a sample size of one, but as I talk to friends and gather my information, it seems that guys do in fact get into trouble more than girls do with their significant others post these parties.
So, say this phenomenon is true, let's diagnose why this may be happening:
1. Men do crazy things (e.g. where scantily clad women may be involved) more so than women do at bachelor/bachelorette parties.
2. Men in close contact with other women (e.g. lap dancing) is considered unacceptable but women being in close contact with other men is not.
3. Women get upset at men more than men do with women.
I actually think that all three of these are possibilities and probably work together to result in the "phenomenon" explained above. With regards to point #1 above, as society agrees that guys tend to be more physical vs. women being emotional, it makes sense to me that there would be more "meat on display" at a men's party vs. women's party. As for #2, related to #1, my assumption is that there is a belief held by some that when men are in close contact with other women, more things can go wrong, whereas with a woman being in close contact with other men (e.g. lap dancer), there is more embarrassment and laughter as opposed to "what may happen...". As for #3, I hate to admit it, but it's probably true that women get mad at men more than men at women. Of course this is a generalization, but since women tend to nag more than men, I get the feeling that ends up translating to getting upset.
What does this all mean? As we continue the tradition of bachelor and bachelorette parties, how can we ensure that at the end of the day, more fun is had than fights taking place between the couple? Not that anyone is asking for my tips, but here is what I would think about:
1. Have fun! Parties are meant to be fun. Bachelor and bachelerette parties are a once-in-a-life-time thing where people of the opposite sex are involved. Let men be men and women be women so that fun can be had by all. And be appreciative of the work your bridal party has put into planning this gathering!
2. Gotta trust. Without trust, a marriage breaks down. I don't know what Mark is doing in Chicago (I don't think he did either before leaving), but I know that he is not going to do anything that he thinks would not be right to do or hurtful to me.
3. Give each other freedom. As two get together in a marriage, you are in each other's business a lot. It's ok to ask for personal space and not have to know everything that's happening in the other person's life. Guess that's related to the trust piece above.
Wow - I am starting to feel like "Dear Abby". Now, I can't wait to see what my girls have planned for me for my bachelorette party on July 11!! Looking forward to a fun weekend with the ladies (and scantily clad men - ha!)!!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Memorial Day wknd wedding planning?!?!
Mark and I decided to stay in town this Memorial Day weekend to make some progress on our wedding planning. And thus far, the weekend has turned into a weekend of eating... and relationship bonding, of course, over what else but our love for food. :)
Friday night: Checked out fancy French food served out of old taco truck.
Saturday: Ate our way through Bodega Bay, including amazing organic sourdough cheese bread and the best roasted chicken (served in truffle oil juis) and apple crisp.
Sunday: Started our day with delicious doughnuts of novel flavors, including bacon apple maple and chocolate rosemary almond.
Life is good. Happiness is when your stomach is satisfied (and you are with your loved one). :)
Friday night: Checked out fancy French food served out of old taco truck.
Saturday: Ate our way through Bodega Bay, including amazing organic sourdough cheese bread and the best roasted chicken (served in truffle oil juis) and apple crisp.
Sunday: Started our day with delicious doughnuts of novel flavors, including bacon apple maple and chocolate rosemary almond.
Life is good. Happiness is when your stomach is satisfied (and you are with your loved one). :)
Sunday, May 17, 2009
What's happening now?
Some of you have been asking us how wedding planning is going and if we have any updates. Well, here they are!
1. We are eating. Doing lots of eating. One of the nice things about wedding planning is the tastings you get to do. I don't understand how to-be-brides can lose weight with all of the opportunities of eating.
2. I am trying to figure out what to do with the flowers. A trip to the San Francisco Flower Mart totally overwhelmed me. Yup. Plus I found these really strange feather balls..
3. We have excuses to go to Napa. Gotta get wine for the guests! Our last trip ended with us carrying 4 cases of wine back in our car trunk. :)
1. We are eating. Doing lots of eating. One of the nice things about wedding planning is the tastings you get to do. I don't understand how to-be-brides can lose weight with all of the opportunities of eating.
2. I am trying to figure out what to do with the flowers. A trip to the San Francisco Flower Mart totally overwhelmed me. Yup. Plus I found these really strange feather balls..
3. We have excuses to go to Napa. Gotta get wine for the guests! Our last trip ended with us carrying 4 cases of wine back in our car trunk. :)
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Wedding Planning Exposé!!!
Three more months to go till the big day - wow! I finally understand what people mean when they say "you can plan for a wedding as long as you want!" and which the advice of "so make the engagement period as short as it can be!" often follows.... Ah ha....
As I look back on my wedding planning experience, I realized that somewhere down the road, I have decided to keep a list of "Did you know's" (which will maybe one day go into my book titled Wedding Planning Exposé) as far as wedding planning is concerned to help all future brides. Yeah, think of it as the wedding industry's version of Fast Food Nation.
Here are some starters:
1. Who says it has to be white? Did you know that the tradition of the bride wearing a fancy white wedding gown to her wedding was the creation of Queen Victoria (see photo below of her wedding) back in 1840 to boost the textile industry in the UK??? Before then, it was very common to simply wear your favorite dress to your wedding. Just imagine - had it not been for her, Vera Wang probably would not be who she is right now!! And who knows - I probably would have been ok wearing a polka dot (my fave!!) patterned dress to my own wedding!
3. "Just add it to the registry!" Did you know that when you start a bridal registry, you are highly encouraged to add as many things to it as you can (the logic being that "you can always take it off")? While I don't have the facts on this, I would, again, bet $20 that a large portion of the money retailers in the registry business make is from the gifts on the registry that are NOT fulfilled by the guests. Now, instead of trying to get you into the store to do more shopping the rest of your life, they simply have to send you a 10% off coupon that applies to the unfulfilled items to get you to open up your wallet. I mean, we all want to save money, right?
The point is - I've realized that with wedding planning, as it is with many things in the world, when you ask "why?" you can sometimes be surprised by the answers you get. Sometimes, traditions are not what you think traditions are. Like I have always said, it always goes back to marketing...
As I look back on my wedding planning experience, I realized that somewhere down the road, I have decided to keep a list of "Did you know's" (which will maybe one day go into my book titled Wedding Planning Exposé) as far as wedding planning is concerned to help all future brides. Yeah, think of it as the wedding industry's version of Fast Food Nation.
Here are some starters:
1. Who says it has to be white? Did you know that the tradition of the bride wearing a fancy white wedding gown to her wedding was the creation of Queen Victoria (see photo below of her wedding) back in 1840 to boost the textile industry in the UK??? Before then, it was very common to simply wear your favorite dress to your wedding. Just imagine - had it not been for her, Vera Wang probably would not be who she is right now!! And who knows - I probably would have been ok wearing a polka dot (my fave!!) patterned dress to my own wedding!
3. "Just add it to the registry!" Did you know that when you start a bridal registry, you are highly encouraged to add as many things to it as you can (the logic being that "you can always take it off")? While I don't have the facts on this, I would, again, bet $20 that a large portion of the money retailers in the registry business make is from the gifts on the registry that are NOT fulfilled by the guests. Now, instead of trying to get you into the store to do more shopping the rest of your life, they simply have to send you a 10% off coupon that applies to the unfulfilled items to get you to open up your wallet. I mean, we all want to save money, right?
The point is - I've realized that with wedding planning, as it is with many things in the world, when you ask "why?" you can sometimes be surprised by the answers you get. Sometimes, traditions are not what you think traditions are. Like I have always said, it always goes back to marketing...
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Meeting the extended family in motherland Taiwan!
Good genes live in the Hwang and Hsiao families. Mark and I just returned from Taiwan where we celebrated Mark's grandma's 100th birthday. Yup - 100!!! Pretty amazing! We also visited my grandma who is 93 and still has some black hair!! Yes, miracles do happen. :) It was great that we got to do what our friends have been calling "pre-wedding meet and greet" with all of our relatives in Taiwan. I think I met nearly 100 relatives from Mark's family - incredible! It's a good thing in the Chinses family, you only have to remember their role in the family tree (e.g. oldest aunt from mom's side, youngest uncle from dad's side) as opposed to actual names. Yes, the hierarchy helps one show respect! I am also glad that Mark got to meet my brother and family, including nephew Wesley in Taiwan finally! Can't wait for the big party gathering in August!!
Now back to being j..e..t..lagged!!! zzzzz.....
Now back to being j..e..t..lagged!!! zzzzz.....
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