Frenchie Kisses: Papa Frenchie’s Speech

As you can probably tell, The Frenchbulldogs didn’t shy much from your typical wedding timeline. Mr Frenchie and I had been to a few wedding while we were dating and took notes on the things we liked and didn’t like. We really like when couples would get the speeches out of the way at the beginning, when you were still full from cocktail hour and happy you were sitting down. So, after our first dance, we went right into the speeches.

Papa Frenchie went first…


I thought about posting his entire speec, but I since I start tearing up just looking at these pictures, I wasn’t sure I could make it through transcribing the whole speech.

My Daddy isn’t a “big talker” like me… or my Mom. He’s more introverted, like Mr Frenchie.


My Dad doesn’t say, “I love you” all the time, but I know how much he loves me through his actions. He bought a book on writing this speech. While we were waiting for my Mom and Sister to arrive at my birthday lunch (2 months before the wedding) he took out a piece of paper and pen, asked me questions and took notes.


He dedicated a lot of time an effort into writing a meaningful speech for our wedding and it showed.

I’ve only seen my Dad cry one other time in my life, and that was when we had to put my childhood dog, Muffy, down.


He brought up his Father and my Mother’s parents not being there that day. He cried and everyone else cried with him.


And, in the end he left everyone laughing when he brought up his love for poetry (totally untrue) and read a poem.


This was especially funny to me because earlier that day when I was pinning on his boutineer, he said, “I look like I read poetry.”

My Dad and my special connection has always been our cheesy sense of humor. He makes me laugh. They say girls marry their father and Mr Frenchie’s cheesy sense of humor is one of the reasons I love him so much.

Please tell me I'm not the only cliché, did you "marry your father"?

So Far...

The Beginning

Gettin' Sassy

Me & My Bridesmaids

Mr Frenchie's Morning

Waiting to go down the aisle

The "I Do"s

The Big 'Oops'

Family Portraits

Portraits with my New Husband

We're Here and We're Married
Birdie Details

***Note: All photos, unless otherwise noted, are by the fabulously talented, and super awesome to know, Ohana Photographers***

SoCal Weddingbee Meet-up in San Diego

Attention all SoCal Bees! Especially those close to San Diego! What are you doing this Saturday?

Do you like wine? 
  
Do you like Dinning Al Fresco?

  
Join us this Saturday, May 8th, at noon for lunch at Cafe Merlot located at the Bernardo Winery.

Weddingbee reader, MsAshleyMarie, and I are itching to show off our wedding venue and brag about our caterer, Toni.
  
Please leave a comment below by 5pm PST this Friday, so we can make a reservation. I hope you can make it :)

Sources: Pic1, Pic2 & Pic3

Frenchie Kisses: The Birdie Details

After our First Dance (P.S. there’s a video here, if you missed it) we sat down and went straight into the speeches. However, I want to show you the details first.

You may, or may not, remember our wedding had a birdie theme. Mr Frenchie was really nervous, once the themed started taking shape, that our wedding would have too many birds. (Is there such a thing?) I really tried not to go crazy, while Mama Frenchie kept finding more and more birdie things to add. I think we accomplished a nice balance of birdies.

Mama Frenchie found these birds at the last minute to jazz up our cocktail tables…

We had complete forgot that our cocktail area would have a few ‘belly bars’ scattered around. Two weeks before the wedding, when we remembered the tables, we were at the end of our DIY rope and couldn’t come up with a single creative thing to do with them. On a trip to Micheal’s, Mama Frenchie found these right after we’d decided to just leave the tables bear. It’s funny how a last minute addition can be such a hit. Here is one of the last things we added (those birds) with one of the first things we added, David Patrone.


Mama and Sister Frenchie worked their booties off executing all my birdie dreams.


Mama Frenchie found the cutest scrapbook papers at Tall Mouse, made templates and pretty much executed all the DIY goodness.


With only a week between finals and the wedding I relied a lot on my Mom and Sister to get all the DIY goodness done, and they ROCKED IT!

As you can see, we named each table after a bird. Some of the birds ‘matched’ the guests they were seated with, like the Oriole table for all my family from Baltimore, MD and the Penguin table for Sister Frenchie (she loves penguins). While others were locals birds or birds with names that fit on the wing. We also numbered the tables to make it easier for the guests (especially the elderly ones) to find.

When the guest’s found their table, we (or my DOC) had already laid out everyone’s place card. We color coded their names with their meal choice. Super original, I know! ;-)

Each place card had a Shrinky Dink birdie and was backed with the left-over envelope liners from our invitations.


There were a few other birds scattered around. Mama Frenchie found this white wooden bird cage, by pure luck, at a local vintage store and we used it as our ‘card box’. What’s a bird cage without a bird? We had to add a feathered friend to the top.


The extremely generous Mrs Gummi Bear, let us borrow her Ann Wood birds.


Mama Frenchie came through again a found this adorable nest for them to rest in. The nest sit atop a metal rod that she stuck in a pot of daisies, my favorite.


And last, but not least, the detail that started the Birdie theme, our cake topper!


We bought this topper before I’d chosen my dress, before Mr Frenchie bought his suit and LONG before Mrs Sea Breeze made my veil. It now sits in our china cabinet and every time I see it, I smile at how much it looks like we did that day.


Does your wedding have an obvious theme? or are you a little more subtle than we were?

So Far...

The Beginning

Gettin' Sassy

Me & My Bridesmaids

Mr Frenchie's Morning

Waiting to go down the aisle

The "I Do"s

The Big 'Oops'

Family Portraits

Portraits with my New Husband

We're Here and We're Married

***Note: All photos, unless otherwise noted, are by the fabulously talented, and super awesome to know, Ohana Photographers***

Frenchie Kisses: We’re Here and We’re Married

After taking our portraits we met up with our bridal party and got ready to enter the reception.

After our guest were all seated, the lead singer of the band introduced the bridal party. Groomsman Joe and his wife, BM Jane.


Groomsman Jer and BM Felicia…


Best Man Brandon with MOH, Sister Frenchie…


We waited for Brandon and Jen to get to their tables and then we were announced, “For the first time in public Allison and Jason French Bulldog.” (I stressed the the band leader that I wanted my name, just like in our ceremony).

The classic bouquet in the air pose!

From this picture you would never guess Mr Frenchie hates being the center of attention.

I however love it!

We decided to go straight into our first dance. We seen this done at most the weddings we’d attended, but mainly because Mr Frenchie wanted to get it out of the way so he could relax the rest of the evening.

Back when Mr Frenchie and I first starting dating (about 4 years ago) we took a dance class at my church. I was SO very excited to be dating a guy that would take dance classes with me and take me dance.

The little old ladies at my church thought we were so cute and even cut in to dance with Mr Frenchie… okay so maybe they thought he was so cute. I will never forget that date.

Fast forward three years, we’re engaged and planning our wedding, I ask Mr Frenchie about taking dance lessons for our first down and he’s not having it. *pouty face* Papa Frenchie brings up the idea that he and I could take dance lessons and Papa Frenchie talked Mr Frenchie into taking them too.

For a couple months I would take 2 dance lessons a week, one with Papa Frenchie and one with Mr Frenchie. Mr Frenchie admitted after the first lesson, that dance lessons were fun AND he’d actually go with me after the wedding. Thanks Papa Frenchie!

I’m not gonna lie, we only look graceful in these photos. You’ll see in the video, that although we took several dance lessons, we are nowhere near ready for Dancing With The Stars. However, I’m very glad Papa Frenchie talked Mr Frenchie into the lessons. Whenever “our song” comes around on the iTunes rotation at home, Mr Frenchie takes me hand and we do our dance.

Don’t worry I still tease Mr Frenchie about only dancing with me at the beginning of our relationship to get me to fall in love with him, once I was hooked he didn’t want to dance anymore.

After our first dance we took our seats at our “sweetheart table”

aka the Lovebird table and it was time for dinner.

Are you planning a choreographed first dance? Did you have to talk your partner into talking dance lessons? or get your father involved? ;-)

So Far...

The Beginning

Gettin' Sassy

Me & My Bridesmaids

Mr Frenchie's Morning

Waiting to go down the aisle

The "I Do"s

The Big 'Oops'

Family Portraits

Portraits with my New Husband

***Note: All photos, unless otherwise noted, are by the fabulously talented, and super awesome to know, Ohana Photographers***

Frenchie Kisses: Portraits with my New Husband

After the family portraits we dismissed our families and bridal party to enjoy cocktail hour while Mr Frenchie and I took our first photos alone as husband and wife. (Eeee calling him my husband still makes me giddy).

We talked around the winery taking places in areas I’d dreamt of taking wedding pictures, since the first time Mr Frenchie and I visited the winery years ago. Of course, we had to take a picture with the winery’s sign.

As I mentioned, there were a couple areas I’d dreamt of taking our wedding pictures, my favorite was this walkway in the middle of the winery.

Source

Our photographers had scoped out the same spot, it was perfect.

I love this picture of Mr Frenchie, it’s his classic trying to look cool, but I know I look silly face.


Mr Frenchie doing a better job of looking cool…


Me thinking he’s cute…


This is one of my favorites of Mr Frenchie…


And this is one of his favorites of me…


Next we moved into the barrel room… or snuck in because there was another wedding have a small reception on the other side. They were still milling around outside and we tried hard to get in and out before we were seen and intruding on their day.


This one is probably our best serious picture… if you haven’t noticed, we don’t do serious well.


Lastly we took advantage of this great light before we ran off to be introduced into the reception.

Although I was bummed we missed the entire cocktail hour, I wouldn’t have traded the time I spent with Mr Frenchie alone before the reception madness set in for anything. Are you planning on taking pictures during cocktail hour too?

So Far...
The Beginning
Gettin' Sassy
Me & My Bridesmaids
Mr Frenchie's Morning
Waiting to go down the aisle
The "I Do"s
The Big 'Oops'
Family Portraits

***Note: All photos, unless otherwise noted, are by the fabulously talented, and super awesome to know, Ohana Photographers***