Progress!!!

well, that escalated quickly!!!

So, from the last slightly exasperated post, to now (tbj is complaining that i'm not updating regularly enough, and maybe he has a point!) things have moved on rather significantly -

Venue

Where did i leave off? the abortive Brighton trip? the enormo-argument about my "vision" for our wedding? well, we got over that reasonably smoothly and things seemed to settle down when i mentally settled for the Isle of Wight as our base. Being the pretentious arse that i am, i still tried to look for alternative venues on the island (your loss, Ryde Theatre!) but they weren't particularly forthcoming. So the job of finding somewhere a bit more normal was kind of done for me...

Things got pretty organised for a weekend of visiting - i've got good at phoning people (not at speaking, obv) and we had a full day of venue hunting with help from TBJ's mum. To say that she was helpful is an understatement. When all i could do was think about late licences and how pretty it was/wasn't, she seemed to ask all the very sensible questions :O)

Going into the weekend, i had a reasonably secure idea of my preferred option. and needless to say, as seems to be the way with wedding organising, i ended up loving one of the least-likely ones! The run down of the day -

Lakeside - one word: brown. brown in a very pretty setting with very competent staff, but brown never-the less.
Priory Bay - Crikey, the dude who showed us around was NOT a happy rabbit. it all just seemed to be a bit of a fuss for him, and we didn't come away with a good feeling about the place. which is a shame as the photos had lead us to believe it was a fairy tale option (not that i was bothered about that - i just thought it might do the job) but it just felt like it would be an almighty palaver. and the dining room was some awful rag-rolled pink wall of awfulness...
Appuldurcombe - when tbj said it was a shell, i thought he was exaggerating. but he wasn't. we'd have to supply our own floor! it was a thing of beauty though, but as i've said to quite a few people, it's only really possible to have a wedding there if i had a million pounds, and no job. and i have neither of those things. ah well. to be pragmatic too, it wasn't really a space to have relatives in either - it would have taken a lot of effort to make the place cosy, so that was a super-no to that one.
Hermitage - we'll come back to this one...
Royal - one of the most cherished hotels on the island, and don't you forget it! i very much felt like i was expected to consider it a privilege to have my reception there, when i've always assumed, when parting with significant amounts of cash, i should be made to feel the other way around. and frankly, it wasn't all that! unless your idea of all that is pretend old portraits on the walls of the dining room (i don't care if they're real, they were ugly and the experience upset me) and ming-worthy carpet *harrumphs*. On the plus side, the rooms were beautiful. but i'm not having my reception in a hotel room. silly people.
Ryde Castle - we only had a look around as we were staying there (the place has always intrigued me) and whilst it was impressive and i know people have had fabulous and happy weddings there, it just wasn't what was in our brains. Very snobby of us, but there you are.

We left the island with 2 options: Lakeside, and the Hermitage. Very different venues. Lakeside coudl fit everyone we've ever met and would be very professionally run. Hermitage however, was teensy (56 people including us) and would feel much more like a partnership endeavour (famous last words). the difference between the 2 wasn't money. it was atmosphere and experience. The Hermitage was cosy but also contemporary in places, and we got a feeling from the management that they'd do whatever they could to help  us have an awesome day.

So, after checking with my Mum that she wouldn't mind if i didn't invite the large majority of my extended family, it was all systems go!!!!!! Hooray!!!! i said i'd have it sorted by the 1st April and i did!!!! so we just had to sort a date out....

13th August!!!!! MUTHA HUBBARDS!!!! it's this year! in less than 5 months!!!!!

The road to agreeing this date is fraught with drama, which i shall leave for next time (along with the accelerating dress hoopla), but i am so excited and super chuffed it's happening so quickly. We've had to mess a  few people around in the proceedings, but everyone's been amazing. this is exactly what i wanted - getting on with life and enjoying the thrill while it's all still fresh. Just need to make everything bend to my will, which is entirely feasible!so much to do in such a short space of time, but it will be fine. we have an enforced break in a few weeks when we go on holiday for a fortnight (i'm not sure how i'm going to stay still for those 2 weeks...) but it's full steam ahead!!! An old work friend got engaged in September and doesn't get married til November. WHICH MEANS I WIN!!! YAY!!!!