Lodging

We've been busily planning and pulling things together for the wedding.  The first DIY night is set and many of our friends have offered to come and help with the multiple projects I have in mind!  Photographers, DJs, caterers and other entertainment has been contacted and a few have been booked.

Of course, there are always the speed bumps to deal with in the planning process.  The latest bump is lodging problems.  With 200 guests, most of which are out of town, it hasn't been easy finding a hotel that isn't booked for another wedding.  We have found blocks of rooms at a few different locations, and we are still looking for more.  For anyone reading this, we will be getting the discount code for the Holiday Inn Express in Windsor .  There are also rooms available at the Geyserville Inn and we are trying to negotiate a lower price for those rooms as well.  What we have been told is that if you call again in July, more rooms will be opened up, so here's hoping!  We will keep you all updated as we figure it out!

On to securing a photographer for engagement photo's and then the Save the Date!

We have a date!

On March 11, Robert and I took another day trip to the wine country to see a potential venue.  This time we went a little further and ended up in Geyserville.  

The venue is called The Little House and its a privately owned home that the couple rents out for weddings 6 times a year.  The owner had both her sons weddings there and decided it was a lot of fun, so she opened it up to the public.  

We were greeted by her and her two dogs Felix and Olive, and were taken out into the gardens.  It was beautiful!  Lush lawns with a quiet pool surrounded by large oak trees, and all around the gardens we saw vineyards and hills and beautiful landscape.  I fell in love with the place.  Robert made me wait a few days before deciding for sure if this was the spot.  Had to way the pro's and con's.  Here is everything I had to think about:

Lodging:  Healdsburg and Geyserville are the closest cities to the venue.  They are about 20 minutes outside.  Not too bad.  Roberts task is to look into hotels and book a block of rooms and then arrange a shuttle service.

Parking:  Not a lot of parking.  Have to have a valet service and/or shuttle service to bring guests to the location.  It will be an added cost, but at least we won't have to worry about anyone driving home when they shouldn't.

Set up:  We will have to rent our own tables, chairs, and a dance floor which is another added cost.

Food/beverages:  We get to pick our own caterer and bring in our own alcohol and soft drinks.  This will ultimately save us money.

Vendors:  We get to bring in any vendors we want which has been a problem at most of the spots we have looked at.  They all require their own florists and bakers and caterers to be used.  Understandable since those vendors know the spot, but those vendors always tend to be a little more expensive.

Location:  Its charming, quiet and exactly what I was looking for.  There is even a play structure in a grove of trees that my "little" guests can play in while the grown ups party!

So, the pro's out weighed the cons (but really I loved the place and would make it work any way I could!)

So...save the date.  September 29th, 2012!  Here are some pictures of the place:

The view from the one of the lawn.  It will have a lot more color and foliage in September.

As guests walk in they will see this view.

A view of the lawn where ceremonies usually take place.  

Stairs leading up to the other lawn.

A view from the second lawn.  This is usually where the receptions are

The back part of Little House

The kids play ground

The pergola leading to the front entry.

Now I'm off to locate a photographer and a caterer!!!