Money matters...

There has been a bit of talk around the hive lately about money matters -- savings, how to handle finances as you merge your lives as husband and wife, buying your first place etc.

One of the few other blogs I enjoy reading, other than weddingbee, is a collection of blogs called "Team Sugar." There are a number of different "sugars" -- popsugar (all about pop culture fluff), yumsugar (all about cooking and entertaining), fitsugar (to help you live a healthy lifestyle -- what girl doesn't want that?), geeksugar (all about the latest in tech -- they have blogged about wedding websites here), lilsugar (you guested it -- babies), and the newest additions is savvysugar (all about finances, savings etc).



To celebrate the launch of savvysugar they are giving away FOUR macbooks! One each week for four weeks. All you have to do to enter is sign up and comment. Wouldn't it be great to get organized with all your wedding planning or household budgeting with a shiny new computer? Click here to learn more about the giveaway. Good luck ladies.

How to address your new family

I was wrapping Christmas presents for our families over the holiday and started to write a tag for my father-in-law's gift from me and Mr. Onion and I wrote "for Dad" because that's how he would address his father. Then I was writing my mother-in-law's gift tag and without thinking wrote "for [her first name]."



It got me thinking -- what do you call your in-laws and how did you come to that decision. "Mom" and "Dad" just don't roll off my tongue.

Do you call your in-law's

a) Mom and Dad
b) "Jane" and "John" (ie. by their first names)
c) Mr. [so and so] and Mrs. [so and so]

And if you're not married yet, is this something you've discussed with your boyfriend/girlfriend/fiance? Might be an interesting topic of conversation.

Family Holiday Treats

You can't have a holiday meal without family recipes. This year I made a few of my grandmother's dishes for the first time since she passed away almost 5 years ago. It really made everyone think of her and it got me thinking. Our children won't have had the opportunity to know her, but through her food, she will live on.


Sour cream pound cake



Wine Cakes. This is something I have never seen in an Italian bakery, nor could I find a recipe or even a mention of it anywhere on-line. They don't look very appealing, but they are delicious and addicting. They are little dough balls made with red wine, fried and then dipped in hot honey and lemon zest.


"Spaghetti and crumbs". This is a Calabrian dish that my grandmother served as our fish course every Christmas. I hated it as a child (it has anchovies and olives) but have grown to love it.

I also made her almond butter cookies which I forgot to take a picture of, but know that I spend a lot of time baking over the holiday. My mother doesn't bake, but after this holiday she thinks she should buy a stand mixer that I can use while I'm at her house!

It was such a treat to share these special dishes with Mr. Onion. He doesn't have the same connection to them as I do, of course, but he appreciated how hard I worked and thought everything was delicious. My mother-in-law gave me a recipe for her fudge in my stocking on Christmas morning and I look forward to making it for Mr. Onion.

Do you have any family recipes you're excited to use as you build your new family with your fiance/husband? Have you experienced any of your in-laws specialties?

If anyone is particularly interested in the recipes feel free to email me: onion at weddingbee dot com.

Wearing your wedding dress....after the wedding

When you pick your wedding dress you are thinking of how beautiful you will look on your wedding day. You think about what your fiance will think when he sees you. You might think about your daughter wearing it for her wedding. But how many of you think about wearing your wedding dress again?



On New Year's Eve my family hosted a formal dinner party and I got to wear a part of my wedding dress again! My Romonda Keveza gown is actually a top and bottom and it was such a great experience to wear it again.


Photo: Daria Bishop Photography

At one point during the evening Mr. Onion and I found ourselves alone and I smiled and said, "Does it bring you back to our wedding day to see me in the skirt?" He said, "Of course it does," with a big grin and kissed me. It was really romantic.



Happy New Year from Mr. & Mrs. Onion!

Here we are together in front of my parents Christmas tree. And yes, Mr. Onion is wearing his wedding suit! We will both get a lot of wear out of our wedding attire in the years to come. Now I just have to find a skirt to wear with the top of my dress. Or perhaps jeans and my wedding shoes? Do you or your fiance or husband plan to wear any of your wedding day attire after your wedding?

Getting Ready Part III (the guys)

Getting Ready Part I
Getting Ready Part II

While I was getting ready with my mother and mother-in-law at the Aveda Salon in Burlington, Mr. Onion was with his father, brother and best friend (his groomsmen) at The Men's Room getting a shave and enjoying some time together, just the guys. I was so glad our photographer's husband Andy went with the guys so I could feel like I didn't miss anything! It was important to me that Mr. Onion got some papering that morning too so he felt taken care of and special.


Mr. Onion enjoying a face massage after a hot towel. It looks like such a peaceful way to begin his day.



Mr. Onion gets a little trim so he looks his best



A little styling while the guys look on



Mr. Onion's best friend got a shave too and Mr. Onion and his brother look on. Andy was standing on the counter to get this photo from above -- the Bishop's will stop at nothing for a great photo!



A few quick photos before they leave The Men's Room. Mr. Onion gets his genuine happiness and sense of joy in life from his father and you can see that on both their faces in this picture (his father far left and Mr. Onion far right).

I got to get my nails, hair and make-up done with the girls -- I think all grooms should get a little relaxing guy time too! I know this was a great thing for them to do together before the day started rolling.

More to come...

Photos: Daria Bishop Photography

How does it feel to be a bride?

Well, I inspired Mrs. Snow Pea to begin her wedding recap from her stunning August wedding, and she's inspired me to share how I felt on my wedding day instead just sharing the who/what/when and my photos. I hope you enjoy.



This photo really says it all -- I felt happy, calm and ready to get married. Let me back up a little. I am not typically a morning person, but for the days leading up to my wedding, I simply couldn't sleep past 5 or 6 AM. I woke up each morning like it was every childhood Christmas morning rolled into one exciting day literally kicking my feet and squealing while still in bed (much to Mr. Onion's dismay while he was still trying to sleep). Thursday morning we woke up at 5 AM, got dressed, packed the car, and were off at 8 AM for a 300 mile drive to begin the rest of our lives together.

The best part about the weekend, and this will sound like a given, was we just had so much fun -- in everything we did. As long as we're together we can make anything fun, even a 300 mile drive or waiting in line to get our marriage license. We ran all our errands and headed back to the inn to relax before our last dinner date before we were married. On our way back we saw a car and I had to take a picture of the license plate:



It says CHEESE! You've gotta love Vermont :) It made us both laugh so hard. When we got back to the inn I decided that would be the perfect time to give Mr. Onion his wedding gift. Then we got dressed up for dinner and headed to our favorite restaurant in Burlington for a romantic date.

To be continued....

Upcoming Celebrity Weddings

Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelley


Katherine Heigl and her fiance, musician Josh Kelley, met when the Grey's Anatomy star appeared in a video for Kelley's song "Only You" in 2005. Later, Kelley wrote "Katie's Song" for his lady love. "There is really nothing more romantic than that," Heigl has said of the gesture. "It was one of the most thrilling and romantic things that I've ever experienced, and it makes me really like him bad." The couple got engaged in June 2006 and plan to wed before the end of 2007.

Ali Larter (from Heroes) and Hayes MacArthur


Ali Larter and her boyfriend, actor Hayes MacArthur, are officially set to tie the knot. Though the couple have been together for more than two years, Larter knew that MacArthur was the one from the very beginning. "I told my boyfriend after three weeks that I wanted to marry him and that we could do it tomorrow," the Heroes star has said. "He just brought light to my life. I feel lucky every morning when I wake up and see him." While the pair have yet to set a date, Larter is also sure what the future holds. "I look forward to that time when I'm home with babies," she told Cosmopolitan magazine in October.

Jennifer Love Hewitt and Ross McCall


"It's the first time I've ever been in a relationship where you don't have to try," Jennifer Love Hewitt told People magazine when news of her engagement to Scottish actor Ross McCall broke in November. "And I think that's the answer. That's when you know that you're in something really good and healthy and right." The couple—who have yet to set a date—have been an item for two years.

See more upcoming celebrity wedding at InStyle.com.

Wait until you see who Salma Hayek is marrying!