All these things that I have done

A whole lot of nothing to be honest! Things are proving difficult, I have ideas of the things I want, things that are incredibly accessible to me here in Melbourne but I don't know how to find them or find them affordable in NYC.

Gluten and fructose free cupcakes
I can have one or the other but I can't get both! High fructose corn syrup is in everything in the States, it's cheaper than cane sugar so is used as a substitute. In Australia the issue would have been finding pretty looking gluten free cupcakes as they usually look rubbish. Ahhh cupcakes, I think it's easier than a full cake when there will only be 4 of us attending and my MOH said she couldn't imagine us not having them given I'm well known in our group for my cupcake love. I've baked them for a few weddings in the past, oh the stress and the sugary headaches that causes, I wouldn't ever consider baking them for my own wedding. Those ones above almost killed me as the stand shook every time anyone walked near and my heart stopped for a second each time thinking they would fall to the floor.
The only option seems to be sucking it up (you too MOH with the same intolerance) and get glutenous cuppies from our favourite cupcakery, Eleni's at Chelsea Market. They are so tasty, cute and they even have face cupcakes. I'm an adult and with being an adult it's my right to fall out of bed hungover and eat Obama cupcakes for breakfast if I want to!

He tasted like liberty and patriotism-which is exactly what I look for in a presidential cupcake. Face cakes really weird me out.


Flowers:

I know you've heard it before, when you mention the word 'wedding' prices skyrocket. Well, I think I've officially found the winner of the most ridiculous wedding price fleece.

I kind of liked this bouquet of gardenias and hydrangea, but they cost about 75% of the cost of a return airfare from Melbourne to New York! Now, I'm good(ish...) with budgets and when I love something I can usually work a budget to then make sure we have it at the expense of something else-there was no justifying $722 USD for 1 bouquet! That's insane! My original Melbourne bouquet only cost $100 and was stunning (below)

It's difficult to find something similar strangely enough. I guess this is the opportunity to have something completely different, which is pretty exciting in itself.

Okay, I know there are more important things to worry about than cupcakes and flowers but I know that when we officially book the celebrant, photographer and the restaurant for dinner that's closing the door to the dream of having the wedding in Melbourne with family and friends. I know what eloping means to my FH and I know in my heart of hearts that elopement will be all for the best, it's just been a bit emotionally draining.

RIGHT!
No more faffing around with designing spreadsheets, drooling over cupcakes and laughing at crazy priced flowers for now-We're getting married on the 3rd Of July in New York City and I have lots of planning to do!

Elope with me Miss Private

Well, turns out that despite everyone from Martha Stewart to Google having wedding checklist spreadsheets, I'm yet to find an adequate elopement checklist spreadsheet and, by jingo I need one. You see, I love to plan, I love to plan EVERYTHING to a tee-I need to plan, I'm sure FH only proposed because he wanted to play computer games and needed to distract me with a planning project.
Thank goodness I'm marrying my lovely nerdburger best friend- D is so smarts, D is so smarts, and helped me (I stood there dictating what I wanted and he made the magic happen baby!) to create The Ultimate Elopement Checklist *quickly googles to make sure Oprah hasn't got a copy write on that*... Yes, The Ultimate Elopement Checklist for all your/my elopement planning needs can be found here :) I hope this is as helpful for you as it is for me. If you think of anything I have missed let me know and I'll add it, I need the help with this stuff too as I really didn't/don't know where to start.

So, how different is planning an elopement for 4 guests as opposed to a big(ish)wedding for 80 guests? It's surprisingly not easier or more affordable. You see, it took me less than 3 weeks to plan the big Melbourne wedding. We booked a venue, celebrant, photographer, ordered the gown, the flowers, the invites and RSVPs, purchased the bridesmaids dresses, the bonbonerrie candy buffet, the rings, the hotel stay. But in 2 weeks we have only decided on a location-New York, and even then that wasn't my idea, so technically I've not done a thing other than faff around on here.

When the dog bites, when the bee stings...

There were plans, big plans because planning is my specialty and no one loves an excessive themed party more than I and nothing is bigger than a wedding.
A Sound Of Music subtly themed wedding reception, complete with a bonbonerrie candy buffet stocked with raindrops on sugar roses, whiskers from chocolate kittens and a meringue mountain with a lonely goat herd on top. It cost a freaking truck load but would have been totally worth it. In fact, I think I may ask them to deliver it to my house on the 27th of August instead, since it's paid for, and I'll gorge on sweets-party at our place guys!
How could we not want to have a candy buffet? But alas, that dream of wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings has flown like a flock during duck hunting season-the doors are closed to fixing things sadly, and with each day we realise more and more that the decision to cancel the planned wedding is the right one.

Months and months ago, before we even became engaged I had a nightmare that I awoke from in tears. It troubled me for a few days however I brushed it aside as come on, bridezilla wedding day disaster dreams happen once you're engaged and planning right? In the dream plans needed to be changed around our wedding day and at the reception not one person acknowledged D and I, not a glance in our direction, not a card, and certainly not a word of congratulations... Then months later when we actually did become engaged, the nightmare strangely came true-well, part of it. Now, I'm not saying I have some crazy medium woman ability, god I hope not after last nights nightmare about zombie hookers stealing my FH and hooking my MOH up with their zombie gigolo buddy, but that's weird right? ... the wedding stuff but maybe the zombie hoes to lesser extent.

This blog is about us, and bringing the focus of our engagement and subsequently bring it back to being about us, as these once in a lifetime moments should have always been from the start. This is a blog about choosing to take control of the situation and choosing to eliminate the possibility of drama tainting the day-this is a blog about elopement. My goodness there needs to be a blog or a website guideline of how to do that when I'm in Australia and FH has been decided we will marry in New York. Where to start? Where to start?

So, having conversations to resolve problems, planning a wedding for only 4 guests from the other side of the world, and kicking some zombie prostitute butt - these are a few of my new favourite things.