HAPPY NEW YEAR! 
I have so much to catch up on!
October 18, 2005
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Hey~ hi~ hello!
GREY’S ANATOMY
I must start by saying that I love Grey’s Anatomy! I even went on the ABC fan message boards…hahaha! That one scene…where Burke climbed into the hospital bed to comfort Cristina…gosh, my heart just melted…
WORK
Anyways, please indulge me by listening to my complaining about work just for 1 or 2 sentences. I’ve been having a rough time at work…at times it stinks…the long hours, the stress, sometimes the people. Okay, I’m done.
VIDEOGRAPHER
SO…please take a look at this site if you ever have a chance~
Look under “Philosophy” and it’ll show you the diff btwn video, 8mm and 16mm. Then if you look under “Screening Room” they have samples of wedding films. I’ve been intrigued by Fifty Foot for so long now ever since I saw their work on this InStyle Weddings show featuring Scott Wolf’s wedding. I just love film…it looks amazing. The only problem with Fifty Foot is the price~ a decent package which includes sound and a good amount of footage is around $10k.
Does anyone know any good film videographers or just dang good videographers? =)
PHOTOGRAPHER
Geez…never knew it would be so difficult to find a photographer. I think Andy and I are just super picky!
Here are some of the must-haves for us:
- all digital
- want to be able to keep all digital hi-res files
- 2 or more shooters
- all printed proofs
- someone with a fine art or photojournalist background
- a photographer who can create an album that is a mix of traditional and graphically designed layouts
Doesn’t seem like too much to ask…right? I don’t know why it is taking us so long.
For those of you looking for a photographer…
We visited 11 different photographers and have been through soo many dang websites & reviews! Here are the photographers we’ve visited and/or considered. Click on any of the names if you’re interested and please let me know if you have qs! We wanted to keep photography around $10k. Most of these photographers have wide ranges of packages so budgets of all sizes can find what they’re looking for!
- Most likely going with Jenny!
- We were so impressed with her work! The website has good ones but she she’s got so much more in her studio! There’s also this CD that she put together that I wish I could share!
- Ira is probably our #2. He has a fine art background.
- The only thing we didn’t like were his albums – just the traditional one photo per page format.
- We almost went with Jim except that he was already set to sign someone up except he failed to mention that to us during our 1 hour meeting!
- He is really talented…but not a good businessperson. He should’ve told us that he was booked!
- This is Jim’s wife. She’s still in consideration since we really liked Jim’s work and he says they have the same style and albums.
- Paul is soo nice…but his packages are odd!
- He doesn’t like shooting with a 2nd photographer.
- He doesn’t let you choose the images for the album and the only photos he gives you are the ones in the album.
- He doesn’t give you any proofs…that was a deal breaker for us.
- Robert shot Brad & Jennifer’s wedding.
- We thought his work was pretty good but we didn’t click.
- Husband & wife duo.
- They only shoot in film and seemed pretty inflexible.
- They are from the purist school of thought – they don’t even like to crop their photos because then it compromises the integrity of the original shot.
- Husband & wife duo.
- They’re soo nice…such sweet people! They’re really flexible too!
- They’re on the lower end of pricing – I think $2k-$4k.
- We didn’t choose them because their photographic style wasn’t what we were looking for…but if anyone did fit someone’s style I’d highly recommend!
- This guy is funny! He’s pretty outrageous and would definitely keep you laughing the whole time.
- We liked his albums – very creative but then we got the feeling that he relied too much on after-editing tricks. Some people love it though and I did really like some of those “tricks” but he just wasn’t what we were looking for.
- We were turned off by how he suddenly became a high pressure salesperson at the end of our meeting!
- He was sorta stuffy and very traditional.
- He’s the type of guy you’d go for if you’re into the super posed and staged photos.
- Karen is supposedly the most published wedding photographer in the
- I think her pricing was mostly above $10k.
- Her albums were sorta boring.
- Celebrity wedding photographer – did photos for Hilary Swank, Christina Appelgate, many more.
- My buddy used him so please let me know if you’d like a more detailed review! Her photos turned out great!
Oh gosh, I realized there are soo many more on this list and not enough time to talk about each one. Hopefully this will be a good starting point for anyone who is beginning their search!
September 1, 2005
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Hii~! Things have been so crazy busy and stressful I couldn’t update or read my fave sites!! Here’s a list of the ups and downs and all arounds of Skippee’s August…
* My wonderful grandparents are here from
* Bella is going to be a Lexus model~ hahahaha…she’s a model for their new Lexus brand puppy carrier. I’ll let yall know when she’ll be up on the web and in catalogs!
* We chose the Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel~!! We’re going to have it in the Pacific Promenade which is a gorgeous venue next to the hotel…we love how it is completely separate and private from hotel guests. Most of all…we love the views! Yay!
* We’re using Stephanie Lairson as our coordinator…thanks so much to ka_woman and k_bridetobe!!!! It was so stressful for awhile trying to figure out which coordinator to go with…there are so many to choose from. We even had to once go all the way to
* The shady old Korean man who backed into my car can’t be found so his insurance co is going to deny the claim. I might have to go to small claims… *sigh*
* I got Andy a new car! I guess it doesn’t really matter since whatever is mine is his and vice versa!
* There have been some other things going on with work and stuff but I’ll save that for protected posts! I realize that maybe I should post some pics on protected too just in case some people don’t want their pics on the net. Seeing how often I post…who knows if I’ll ever get to protected but check once in awhile if you’re bored!
* Hmmm…I thought I had done a lot more…but guess all the rest of the time I was just working!!
Hello, my name is Spikey…nice to meet you! Spikey & Bella LOVE sharing sooooobak!
LILY…Bella’s new best friend!
Ladies…3 of these guys are eligible bachelors!! Congrats to Sam & Peter on their engagement!
Conehead Bella – recovering from being spayed. Baby car – recovering from being hit.
Family Hawaii Trip – I had to miss b/c of work……… *ROAR* Why does my mommy have to work so much?!
Miss Lexus Puppy 2005! Mr. Handsome Puppy 2005!
Andy’s new car w/ our work buildings in the background!
(His is the one on the left and mine is the one on the right.)
Okie, now it is time for me to catch up with my fave xanga buddies!
July 12, 2005
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We’ve been searching up and down the
(1) The Ritz-Carlton (Laguna Niguel)
PLUS
MINUS
* Breathtaking views of the ocean
* Nice bridal suite
* Nice neighborhood
* The Pacific Promenade ballroom is
completely private and separate building
* Has the right atmosphere I’m looking for
* Location is far (70 miles from
* No good churches nearby
* Not familiar w/ OC vendors
Here is the view from and walkway to the Pacific Promenade.
(2) Trump National Golf Club (Palos Verdes)
PLUS
MINUS
* Breathtaking views of the ocean
* Close to where I grew up
* Nice neighborhood
* 2 great options for churches nearby
* No high-end hotels nearby
* Random golfers might be around for the late
afternoon portion
(3) Walt Disney Concert Hall (Downtown LA)
PLUS
MINUS
* Landmark
* Would be memorable for guests
* Designed by Frank Gehry and catered by
The Patina Group
* No high-end hotels nearby
* Event coordinator is very unresponsive
* No good churches nearby
* No ocean views
* Risky b/c the “out of the box”-ness could
backfire
(4) La Venta Inn (Palos Verdes)
PLUS
MINUS
* Breathtaking views of the ocean & city (the
best of all the places we’ve seen)
* Close to where I grew up
* Nice neighborhood
* 2 great options for churches nearby
* Completely private – only 1 reception/day
* Cute cottages for bride & groom to get
ready
* No high-end hotels nearby (this place isn’t
really an inn)
* The layout is odd – there are 4 separate
areas connected by wide entrances (3
dining and 1 dance floor)
* Atmosphere is “cute,” “quaint,” “charming” –
I’m looking for “upscale,” “formal,” “classy.”
These are some of the places we also considered:
- Hotel Bel Air
- St. Regis (
- Ritz-Carlton (Marina Del Rey)
- Ritz-Carlton (
- Verandas (
- The Beverly Hills Hotel
-
- Four Seasons (
- Four Seasons (
- Luxe Hotel (Bel Air)
- Luxe Hotel (
I’d also appreciate any other suggestions you might have…we want to have an indoor formal evening reception with gorgeous views (ocean, city or mountains)…seems like it would be easy enough to find, right? Nope…we are having so much trouble finding the perfect place.
If you’re interested in any of the places I mentioned then I can send you my pics and any other info you need!
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!!
June 6, 2005
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*EDIT* Bella survived!! I’m sooo thankful to all of you for your prayers! I was feeling really blue this week…so hopeless. I started feeling better when I knew everyone was praying for her…and then I found out she beat the puppy killing Parvovirus! I did have to work from 9AM Friday to 5:30AM Saturday with no lunch or dinner and puppy bills are in the thousands…but still…I’m so happy!!!
Prayer for Bella…
Hey guys…could you please say a prayer for my new puppy Bella? She is really sick and has been in the hospital in critical condition since yesterday. The doctors don’t want to get our hopes up…and they tell us to be prepared for her not making it. I still have hope though and I really believe in the power of prayer. God created the perfect animal in dogs…the unconditional love and unfaltering loyalty that our dogs give us is truly a gift from God. All I can do is pray and hope for the best.
May 18, 2005
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Weekend Update
I just had the best weekend of my entire life!
Birthday Dinner @ M Grill…
Thanks so much buddies! You guys are the best!!!!
Day Trip to Catalina…
SURPRISE~! We’re engaged!!!! It was the perfect day…perfect proposal…with the perfect man!
It was all so amazing and a blur…I think I need more time to let this all sink in! The funny thing is…Andy said there were so many points during the day he was going to do it but couldn’t…so I feel as if we have a bunch of “engagement spots!”
- After our tour of the Casino, he was going to sneak us back up to the balcony with an amazing view of Catalina [but I wasn't up for the trek back up to the top again]…
- He was going to do it at the end of this rock pier we bravely hopped to the end of [but then I got on the phone with Gina]…
- He was going to do it during our massage by the sea [but it wasn't that romantic w/ the massage people waiting for their money outside]…
- He was going to do it on the helicopter ride home [but they cancelled our flight because of the fog]…
- He was going to do it at Pebbly Beach where I’d point out rocks I wanted and he’d run to get them before the waves got him…so he was going to run back with the ring instead of a rock [but it was too wet]…
Then he found the perfect spot – Lover’s Cove - and it really was a perfect moment in time!
I was so surprised with the ring…esp. since Susan and I were JUST talking about our perfect rings and I told her that mine would be this one Harry Winston ring I saw back in Feb but then Andy had already said we couldn’t get that one so I had given up on that idea. I had no idea that he bought it back then and had it all this time! What a wonderful surprise on top of the whole proposal!
More updates to come…
May 10, 2005
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Hanging in
YUMMY breakfast @ Eggs ‘n Things…
Dole Pineapple
Downtown Haleiwa… [thanks thousandthdream!
]
The Wedding Café… [thanks for the tip mecha_groomzilla! it was the coolest place…tons of books and mags all about weddings!]
Germaine’s Luau…
Swimming with dolphins… [amazing~!]
Mike & Monica’s Wedding…
Hanging @ Mandarin Oriental Hotel & Beach…
Hoku’s… [name of one of the dolphins & hotel restaurant]
Amazing scenery…
April 2, 2005
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SURPRISE!
I told the
From: TMO
To: Pomona Family
Date: Thursday – March 24, 2005
Subject: RE: TMO’s B-day!
————————————————–
Thanks everyone. I feel the love. I guess all the pictures that Jenny takes will be of me and Austin. Hey Austin, for my present, can you wear a funny hat in the picture?
No one responded to this e-mail! Poor guy…the whole time he thought no one cared about his b-day. So the days leading up to the dinner…TMO kept saying, “What are just the three of us going to do?”
He was totally surprised!!! The hostess set it up perfectly~ when I said we had reservations under Jenny…she asked, “Jenny, party of 3?” and took us to the VIP Room where everyone was waiting!
Here are pics of Cinespace [they show a movie while you eat dinner and then it turns into a club/lounge/bar]:
It was so fun seeing everyone…I tried to convince them to get Xanga so it would be easier for us to keep in touch. Miny~ Dav~ I know you’re out there…so please start posting!
If you want any of the other pics then just e-mail me…
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