Photo Credit: JC Dill Photography
]]>
As someone who had a vegan wedding (and did have a brief moment of of push back form the parental unit) Ithank Dear Abby for telling it like it is. Right here.
New Year's Day we had a lovely time at a couple we know who live nearby and are veg*n. (He's vegan, she's vegetarian...with a weakness for shellfish unfortunately.)
They said they discovered that veg*ns can't have potlucks and expect non-veg*ns to bring stuff, so they don't ask for that. So, there was a full complement of every kind of food there, including a surprisingly good vegan Apple Galette.
While at this party I had a small world incident. I originally found my wedding florist because someone was reading this blog, read about my desire to have a fruits & vegetables centerpiece, and emailed me with a suggestion. That reader was at his party. She was talking to the S.O. about our respective weddings and figured it out.
Wacky, huh?
Breakfast:
Fortune Cookie (not vegan, no excuse)
Apple-Connamon Organic Oatmeal
Organic Cashews
Lunch:
Leftover Mushu Vegetable, no Egg
Leftover Hunan Tofu
Leftover Spring Roll
Hansen's Grapefruit Diet Soda (which the S.O. bought for me because he heard me complaining about aspartame and HFCS, neither of which are contained herein.)
Dinner:
Cider
Apple galette
Olives and Mushrooms
Wild Rice Balls with Soy "Meatball" center
Donut Holes
MariaX took home her share of local, organic, season produce form my wedding centerpieces, in her Whole Foods grocery bag wedding favor, and turned them into a soup, entitled:
So, people often remarked that I was a pretty calm bride, and that's pretty much true. I wouldn't say, however, that I wasn't stressed. I just couldn't see the point in getting really worked up about things. At some point, things will either happen as planned, or they won't.
Of course I had some help from my sisters Cristy and Heather and my friend Susan, so they made it pretty easy to stay calm. I also decided to stay at the Fairmont in our wedding suite the night before the wedding, so I had that night and the next morning to myself...which was actually nice.
So, Friday the 2nd was the day before the wedding, and it turned into a rather stressful day because my cat (Samantha, the amazing geriatric kitty...who is now 20 years old) started sounding quite wheezy. I ended p having to find time to take her in for a chest x-ray. But my day was already packed with stuff that was supposed to be relaxing and fun: nails, hair etc.
That night was our rehearsal dinner at Paragon Restaurant in the Hotel Montgomery. They took care of me very well, bringing out special vegan versions of one of the appetizers and of my entree. I think the non-veg folks were pretty happy too.
As for the vegan wedding buffet? It was a huge hit. At least that's what everyone told me. I had someone tell me it was the best wedding meal they had ever had, and other folks told me that it was really surprising and amazing. Exactly my hope. I missed out on a couple of the appetizers, but definitely ate a full dinner, which was great! Cannot recommend Restaurant O in Campbell highly enough.
Our dinner menu was:
Heirloom Beet Salad
Spicy Pumpkin Corn Chowder
Mushroom Risotto
Shitake-Eggplant Cakes
Seitan Medallions
Soymilk Polenta, in Mini-Pumpkins
Sadly we ran out of the soup because they put out bowls, not cups, and people went hog wild. I'm hoping to get the soup recipe from the restaurant since that happened...then I'll include it in the thank-you cards we send.
The next day we ate mostly leftovers, which the restaurant kindly packed up for us!
Monday we left for a "mini-'moon"in Monterey. We took along the cash we got at the wedding...which wasn't that much really, but was enough to pay for all of our meals in Monterey, including a nice dinner at the Chart House. Chris got to indulge in a seafood dinner, while I had an excellent artichoke, a lot of Chris excellent salad, and then a fairly bland pasta dish.
I'm actually pretty surprised at how few veggie restaurants there are south of Santa Cruz. Really, Monterey and Carmel are pretty much veg wastelands. Not that I wasn't accommodated, but there weren't any restaurants geared towards me.
So, on Wednesday as we headed home, I decided I needed to stop in Santa Cruz and try one of their famous veg restaurants that I never had before: The Saturn Cafe.
Comfort Food for vegetarians (not health food...although I suppose you could eat healthily there if you were so motivated.) I loved the fact that they offered a tofu spread alternative for nachos and quesadillas...esdpecially since quesadillas used to be one of my restaurant staples. We tried the nachos with tofu spread and it was pretty good.
Thursday I headed back to work, after 2 days working at home and 4 days "off." (OK, I confess I did steal peeks at my iPhone and even responded to a few emails while out.)
And I returned to my bad habit of not making sure I had sustenance available to me at the office. Didn't eat until 3:30PM yesterday ( a burrito at the taqueria across the street.) Luckily the HUSBAND ordered in for dinner, so I had a good meal waiting (good old Brussels Sprouts and Verdure from Pasta Pomodoro.)
Heh. Were you wondering if I would start calling the S.O. the HUSBAND?
Actually I'll probably stick with S.O., we'll see. I had to try the HUSBAND word out, just to see how it felt. Which was weird.
So that was the wedding week that was. How was your week?
OK, I realize that in the end this is my own fault, so I don't have any recourse, but still, I just have to say:
All but one of my wedding vendors has made a great effort to stay in contact with me, gently remind me if they need information or money from me, just check in with me. The food caterer reminded me when they need my final minimum guaranteed head count. Which I gave...and even though it was about 15 fewer people than they had originally quoted for, it was no problem.
My beverage caterer (which the Museum forces everyone to use, no matter who your food caterer is) had a different approach. They sent me the contract weeks and weeks ago. I paid a deposit, and I never heard from them again. So I realized on my own this week that I need to give the head count and pay the balance. I emailed them 4 days ahead of the wedding with the head count (again 15 fewer than I cited when getting the initial quote.)
The reply was swift: I was supposed to give that info one week ahead, so it was too late, I'd have to pay for 150. That's almost another $500 in their pocket and out of mine.
Now, again, I know it was my responsibility to get this info to them, but I'm still cranky about it. All we're serving is beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages. And they made a big deal about how they service so many institutions and event venues in the area that we were benefiting from their scale. So I don't believe for one second that they acquired a bunch of stuff for our wedding that they won't be able to use by simply adjusting their order for the following week.
I just wonder how that works out for them never nudging their clients? I can't be the only person who, in the midst of the crush of details that is event planning, forgets to modify head count until less than a week before the event. I wonder if that is ever a little more drastic than my little adjustment?
I'm annoyed with myself, but I confess that given the proactive attitude of every other vendor I'm working with...food, DJ, florist, etc. etc...I'm annoyed with these beverage folks too.
On Sunday I spent more on make-up in one day than I probably have in my entire life. I am not an everyday-makeup-wearing kind of gal. I mean, I'm totally capable of rocking the make-up (and probably should more often) but I just don't. But it was impressed upon me that not only would I have to wear make-up at my wedding, I'd have to wear slightly stronger make-up than I usually do, because of the pictures. I was also impressed upon me that having the same make-up for something like three years probably isn't that healthy.
So, for the first time in my 43 year old life, I went and did that thing where they put make-up on you in stores. Oh, I guess it's called a "make-over." They spend quite a bit of time on you, and yes, I felt obligated to shell out. and my friend thought i should go to two different places, and use two different product lines to make a decision. Of course, she didn't think I should buy everything at both place.
I have truly been sucked into the wedding industrial complex now.
Anyway, that experience was kicked off with a lovely lunch sitting at the bar of California Pizza Kitchen.
Breakfast:
Organic Oat Bran Flakes
Rice Milk
Organic banana
Hash Browns
Lunch (California Pizza Kitchen):
Bread
Strawberry Lemonade
Curry Noodles
And I didn't really get hungry again, given that "lunch" was actually eaten at 2PM.
So, yes, I realize my wedding is only ten weeks away, and you haven't heard much planning going on here.
Some stuff has definitely been happening. We ordered and received the invitations. I met a couple of florists. I secured a photographer. We ordered our wedding bands. I invited a friend to be our officiant.
Some big stuff still has to happen, including:
1. Finalizing the wedding invitation list (and the rehearsal dinner and bridal shower list) and then sending those invitations.
2. Picking a florist and executing on my favor idea
3. Breaking down and hiring a DJ
4. Receiving that dress and seeing how it looks and getting the alterations done
5. Rehearsal Dinner site
6. Room block for out of town guests
7. A little thing called a honeymoon
8. I put a wedding web site URL on the invitations, so I guess I better start populating it with info!
9. Oh, and then there's the groom...who hasn't decided what to wear or who to ask to be his best man.
Yeah, I'm a little behind and starting to get a little nervous about it.
Yesterday I spent some quality time with the invitation list. Because the S.O. and I both have large extended families, the wedding will be fairly sizable, and yet we'll still have to make tough decisions on the guest list. I am a little sad that the cuts will have to come on the friend side, but I'm not really seeing an option. I do feel the obligation to put the families first...and you can talk all you want about "it's your day" and "do what you want", but reality is reality. And our venue size is what it is, and the costs are what they are.
Or, I could just invite everyone, and risk not actually having room for everyone if more than my guestimate # of "Yes" RSVPs show up.
Anyway, all this to say that sometimes leftovers come in particular handy, and yesterday was one of those times.
Breakfast:
Puffins Cereal
Rice Milk
Perfectly Protein Chai by Bolthouse Farms
Tempeh Bacon (Pretty nasty: Not recommended)
Lunch:
Edamame
Inari
2 slices of Sourdough Toast with Soy Margarine and Organic Avocado
Dinner:
Leftover Mooshoo Veggie and Veggie Fried Rice
Coconut Sorbet
At the recommendation of one of the two potential wedding florists I met with yesterday, I checked out a veggie restaurant in Santa Cruz that I've long been aware of, but never tried. It apparently has two names (as cited in my post title) and I'm not sure exactly why, but there you are. Lots of hearty food, including a massive salad...a very economical, tasty vegetarian haven in downtown Santa Cruz! And lots of variety too. I do get a bit tired that the vegan places to be found in my immediate 'hood are all Asian restaurants.I appreciate them, but I'd love to have a Malabar in San Jose!
Breakfast:
Corn Flakes with Organic Sugar and Rice Milk
Odwalla Grapefruit Juice
Lunch (Asian Rose):
Watermelon Pineapple Slush
Rice
Gado Gado Tofu
Pineapple Tempeh
Salad w/Avocado, Beets and Mushrooms
Snack:
Popcorn
Dinner:
Salad w/Romaine, Organic Tomatoes, Organic Carrots, Organic Celery
Baked (or really, in this case, Microwaved) Vegetables, including Fingerling Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, Cauliflower, tossed in Olive Oil, Garlic, Salt, Cinnamon and Nutritional Yeast
Oh, and how did it go with the florists? That's another post!
]]>Last night the S.O. and I were off to see a little theatre, and shock of shocks, it was just the two of us going out. Normally we're part of a crowd.
So, I definitely wanted to do a little dinner beforehand and make an evening of it. Too bad we were arguing all afternoon as we worked on getting our wedding invitations designed and ordered at a site that may have environmentally friendly options, but has the worst web site in the world.
Still, the S.O. readily agreed to go to my favorite vegan joint: Garden Fresh in Mt. View.
They've added some new items to the menu, so I decided to venture outside my Sweet and Sour "Pork" routine and try one of the new dishes (and a dish that I'm always jealous of when people order it in front of me) "Lemon Chicken."
Well, it was good to try it, but I think I'll stick to the S&SP. Because Lemon Chicken is sweet...with no offsetting sour. And it was a bit much for me.
Bit no one can say I am not a risk-taker now, huh?
Breakfast:
Organic "Fruit Loops" cereal
Rice Milk
1 slice of cold Mushroom Soy Pizza (mmmm cold pizza for breakfast is the best!)
Lunch:
More leftover Mushroom Soy Pizza...and yes, still eating it cold
Odwalla Grapefruit Juice and Fresca
Dinner (Garden Fresh):
Tofu Soup
Scallion Pancakes
3 pieces of Sushi
Lemon Chicken
Green Beans with "Pork"
Brown Rice