Mini-Moon

Roger and I were only able to take a few days after the wedding for a mini-moon to The Hamptons. Next year we hope to take a longer honeymoon to a more distant locale.

A fantastic breakfast at the B&B. We relaxed, read the paper, and enjoyed chit-chat with another newlywed couple from England.

A Butler's Manor B&B in South Hampton. While here we dined on fine food, heard a free jazz concert in the park, and lazed about on the beach. I was so tired after the wedding, all I wanted to do was sleep...which I did on the beach.

I could not help but do a little celebrity stalking... Martha Stewart's East Hampton house!

We visited Jackson Pollock's house and barn studio in the East End. He and his wife Lee Krasner lived and worked here up until his death in a fatal car crash down the road. Lee continued to live here part-time and the house and barn are largely preserved in the same manner in which they lived.

Self-portrait on Montauk beach.

My husband the very patient Merman.

The Aftermath

After the clean-up at the party pavilion, Roger and I headed back to the hotel loaded down with centerpieces, leftover food, and a lot of beer. Some friends also knew we had food and beer and they showed up too!

Shannon Demarco among others showed up to help us eat up the yummy kababs.

Jack Sprat and his Wife

Stuffed bride... I really didn't eat anything but cake at the reception.

For Your Viewing Pleasure

The pictures are here! The pictures are here! 

Our photographer has created an online photo album for us to share with friends and family.

The password to access the gallery is: gerrie

There are two ways you can view the pictures---

If you want to look at ALL the images, you can click through the thumbnails in each of the 5 separate image galleries. 

If you want to enjoy highlights of the day you can click the link to view a slide show of selected images at the top of each gallery page. The link to the slide show appears above the thumbnails.

Click here to access the online photo album.

If you have any photos to share with us, please send them to Roger or me. We love seeing all the candid shots!

T-minus 24...

As promised, more pictures of the little rehearsal at the Gardens the evening before the wedding. In retrospect, I guess we actually should have really practiced the worst case scenario!

Rehearsal on July 26th

Or... what the Gardens look like when it is not pouring cats and dogs.

The days leading up to the wedding were spectacular! Sunny, warm and dry. 

Pictures from our little ceremony rehearsal. I'll post more as they become available:

Sugar High- Let Us Eat Cake!

I am exhausted! The wedding is over and we are officially newlyweds (for a whole year according to Jewish custom) and all I really want to do is nap. However, I still have some unfinished pre-wedding blogging to do that was neglected in the week or so before the big day. I guess that is what happens when you have all sorts of last minute things to do and house-guests galore. 

One blog worthy subject was our cake tasting session with Stacee. Yummy! She decided that I should not have to pay $600 for a cake that would only taste marginally good and not be made with the blood, sweat, tears and-oh let's admit it-love of a good friend. 

Back when we both lived in Portland, OR, Stacee baked a cake for my birthday that I still drool over: moist white cake with scrumptious caramel frosting which I unabashedly ate out of a bowl in her fridge. That's right, no shame! So I knew I wanted the caramel for filling at least. Knowing that we had to make a cake for about 120 guests, we figured on three plump layers. Plus, knowing that the wedding day would be HOT we needed fillings and frostings that would hold up to the heat of a drive down from the tip of Manhattan as well as a bit of display at the reception. And here is where the tasting came into play.

After much discussion Stacee came up with multiple test combinations of the following:

Cake layers: Moist Buttermilk, White Cake, Banana Spice (in honor of Roger)

Fillings: Caramel, Chocolate Buttercream

Frosting: Traditional Buttercream, Swiss Meringue Buttercream, White Chocolate Ganache

Stacee trucked over to Jersey in her Mini Cooper bearing 9 different combinations. The traditional buttercream looked and tasted too much like butter, the ganache was just a little off and didn't seem like it would hold up under pressure, and the buttermillk cake while moist was deemed a little flat in appearance.  Too many forkfuls later the winning combo Cake Haiku was decided:

Happy Bride Eats Cake

Cutting Layer: White Cake and Caramel Filling

Layer Two: White Cake and Chocolate Filling

Top Later: Banana Spice and Chocolate

Swiss Meringue Covers All

Mmm Yum

*A million thanks to Stacee, Amy and Sarah for their combined cake efforts! It was beautiful and everything I could have wanted in a wedding cake... except just one more piece.  

What's in a Name?

The other day we received our first piece of mail addressed to "Mr. and Mrs. Roger Borg" and I am sure it will not be our last. 

People... I am not changing my name. My mind has been made up about this since I was a little girl. Blame my mom (Hello, Susan Sokoloff), blame my feminist leanings and knowing that women most always get the short end of the stick in many things, or blame my stubborn nature, but it just does feel right to change something that has been part of me for the past 32.5 years. My last name isn't even all that interesting, but at least it is easy to spell unlike my first. And in my defense, I did ask Roger if he would consider hyphenating, but he is as stubborn as I am in this matter, meaning he wouldn't dream of changing his either. 

I absolutely respect those women who want to follow tradition. In many respects I am being somewhat traditional in my wedding: veil, long dress, Jewish ceremony, ketubah, etc. and that is how I choose to honor tradition in marriage. But the name thing for me is pretty arbitrary.

Oh no! What about the kids! - They'll be fine, trust me. Little Borgs, every one of them.

Don't you want to feel like a family? - Yes, that's why Roger and I are getting married. Names don't make a marriage, love does.

Isn't it just easier to change your name? - No, it's not, it is a big pain in the arse.

So from here on out we will be the un-hypehnated Hall and Borg family, and that is fine by me ... Roger however might have a quick retort.

License to Wed

We applied for our marriage license, no parallel parking required! When we walked over to City Hall there seemed to be a bit of an emergency in progress. The fire alarm was on and all the employees were out front. Thankfully crisis was averted... it would have been a real pain to come back. In order to apply we had to bring a witness to attest that we were both mentally competent to enter into a marriage. Thanks Regina for coming in from the Upper West Side! 

Maia and Jack's Wedding

Over the Fourth of July weekend Roger and I flew to Bangor, Maine for the wedding celebration of Jack and Maia Levner. Boy! Do they know how to throw a party! Maia is super organized and the whole weekend was fantastic.

Roger and I practice our smile (and I test my contacts!)

And several key players who will attend our wedding as well:

Shannon and Mike (Decorator and Sound Consultant)

Hilary and James (Hilary will read part of the Seven Blessings)

Stacee and Andrew (Bridal Couture Consultants)

Poofs! Let there be decor

The pavilion in which our reception will be held leaves much to be desired in the aesthetic arena. My friend Amy Smith suggested making Martha Stewart Pom-Poms to help liven the place up some. Here is what they should look like:

Amy was all set to buy a bunch of wholesale tissue paper and set up a "poofs"making sweatshop closer to the date of the wedding.  Little did she know that we'd get some help from Martha herself- or at least her minions. 

While attending a stationary trade show in New York, Amy just happened to be set up very near the Martha Stewart Living booth which had a whole display of pom-poms overhead. The curious and ever scheming Amy approached the fine folks at MSL at the end of the fair and politely inquired what they would be doing with the poofs once the show was done. "Trash 'em," was the reply. No way could Amy let pre-made poofs end up in the garbage! She somehow managed to stuff them into three large bags and save them from utter demise. Across town she trekked and not one cab would stop for poor, little Amy and her large bags of pink tissue paper. They ended up at her sister Stacee's office where they stayed until I managed to pick them up, for a ride on the NYC Subway and then onto the NJ PATH train to my house. And now their caper is done and they await another journey to Rutgers! My fine poofs courtesy of Amy Smith and Martha Stewart:

Let's Dance!

Lest you think the Groom is shirking off any wedding duties, here he is diligently downloading music for our playlist. Cocktail music, dinner music, dancin' music. Never mind the fact that so far he has about 20 Grateful Dead songs on the list and NO MADONNA, he is working hard in his own way... I'll just have to give him a little guidance.

Please send all music requests to the Groom before July 19th.

A Tale of Two Shoes*

* with apologies to Mr. Dickens

They were the best of shoes, they were the worst of shoes (well not terrible just a bit uncomfortable).

For some reason, the color scheme of our wedding has turned out to be hot pink. Invites, napkins, flowers, and then SHOES. I found the cutest pair of hot pink heels on sale at Century 21. A tad small, but perfect for the bride who wants to be a bit off from traditional on her wedding day. "Snap 'em!" insisted Stacee, my bridal consultant. And then I got them home and almost broke my leg walking down the stairs. Roger looked at me tottering around and told me not to kill myself before the ceremony.

Cute though, right....

Pink shoe dilemma on my mind, yesterday on the way home I saw a big SALE sign in an expensive shoe store, known for having some of the most comfortable and stylish shoes around. I admit, I like a comfortable shoe way more than a fancy shoe (please note my collection of Dansko clogs and Birkenstocks). But I walked in and there they were - Ivory, peep-toe satin heals, wide enough for my feet. Miracles of miracles! I trotted all around the house in them last night and Roger said, "Good job... um, how much did you spend on those?"

The perfect shoe...

It is a far, far better shoe I wear than I have ever worn before; it is a far, far better walk I'll walk have than I have ever known.

Chuppah poles

When Jewish couples wed, they stand during the ceremony under a chuppah. This symbolizes the new home that the couple will make together. So sweet.

It can be made of any material on top and is supported at the four corners by poles. I've asked my mom to put her wonderful artistic skills to use and create the chuppah canopy. I can't wait to see what she comes up with. Roger and I took it upon ourselves to find some "meaningful poles".... Yeah, who knew there could be such a thing.
Over Memorial Day weekend we took a tromp though the woods at White Lily Pond, the second home that Roger's family has owned in the Berkshires for over 30 years. After a windy winter, there were plenty of fallen branches to choose from. The forest mosquitoes almost thwarted our plans, but we managed to find some suitable limbs.

Roger secured them to the roof of the car and off we headed back to New Jersey, chuppah poles acquired!

r + g

Shout out! to Stacee Gravelle Lawrence who helped us create fabulous (hot pink) invitations. She turned our r+g vision into reality.

Registry!

Since people always ask, we are registered at...

Crate and Barrel - contemporary classics

www.crateandbarrel.com

Macy's - all the basics

macysweddingchannel.com

Maxwell-Silver New York - online only registry only linked to design stores all over NYC

www.maxwellsilverny.com

Thank you!

Mmmm... food....

Roger and I didn't exactly do a lot of "fine dining" while he was living in the New Brunswick area. When we find a good place, we tend to remain loyal. A few of our favorite places are:

Noa-Noa Mexican Restaurant

114 French Street, downtown New Brunswick

Roger and I were generally the only non-Spanish speakers in the joint. I take that as a good sign!  We love to watch the fresh tortillas get rolled out of the press and then eat a big basket with three different types of salsa. 

Pad Thai

217 Raritan Ave, Highland Park

No, that is not the name of my favorite dish, it is the name of our favorite Thai restaurant. You have to cross the Raritan River into Highland Park to get there, but it is worth it. Funny thing, apparently the family who owns this restaurant also owns another in Metuchen. We stumbled upon it when looking for a place to chow down after meeting with our rabbi one evening. The decor looked awfully familiar and we were quite pleased to find the exact same menu!

Pithari Taverna (Greek)

28 Woodbridge Ave, Highland Park

Although we only ate here once, it was so tasty that I would go back again in a minute. There is a great outdoor dining area. I loved the fried cheese! 

Harvest Moon Brewery

392 George Street, New Brunswick

Good beer...right down the street from the Hyatt...What more can I say?

Where to Stay?

There are not a ton of hotels in the area, but we found two that we hope will be a fine place to lay your head. We have reserved a block of rooms at a special wedding rate, so tell 'em we sent ya when making reservations: 

Hyatt Regency New Brunswick

800-233-1234

$109 per night

Downtown New Brunswick, where the bride and groom are booked

newbrunswick.hyatt.com

Holiday Inn Express

732-548-7000

$84 per night, plus continental breakfast

On Route 1, Edison

There are two other hotels that we can also suggest in the general area:

The Heldrich

866-609-4700

Very nice in downtown New Brunswick (near the Hyatt)

Call for rates

Comfort Inn

732-287-0171

A basic hotel on Route 1

Call for rates

No matter where you end up, please let us know at which hotel you plan on staying. We might be able to hook people up in car pooling situations for the day of the wedding if needed, but you have to let us know!

For those of you who live in the area, you may choose not to stay over at all since the reception will conclude at 9:00 PM.

Location, Location, Location

Thank you for coming to New Jersey, AKA The Garden State, for our wedding. You may find directions to the ceremony and reception site by following this link to the Garden's official website.

http://rutgersgardens.rutgers.edu/directions.html

Don't get lost and don't be late!

Prune

When I told a friend that I was taking a prune to Paris I received, and rightly so, a very quizzical look. Why in the world would you take dried fruit to Paris? Surely you can buy a prune there if needed.

Well in explanation prune is really a lovely made-up name for "pre-honeymoon"... proper spelling is proon, but it is pronounced the same way as the word for a dried plum.

Roger and I have a lot of traveling to do this year: London in April to attend a wedding, Maine in July to attend a wedding, and Mexico in November... you guessed it... to attend a wedding. So it seems highly unlikely that we will have enough time and resources to take a real honeymoon of our own in 2008. Fortunately for us we were able to take three days in Paris for a mini-break in the middle of the first wedding celebration of the year! Thus our prune to Paris (OK, and London, but we would have been there anyways for Dani's wedding.)

OUR PRUNE

Big Ben and Parliament, London

This post is either used for tying-up horses or grooms who are going to bolt before the big day! That is Dan, Dani's now husband, posing with Roger. (click on picture to enlarge for detail)

Notre Dame, Paris

La Tour Eiffel, Paris

Bouquets in Woodstock, England! Gerrie and two friends from Anchorage. Dani the Bride, Gerrie, wedding date July 2008, Liz wedding date September 2008.

Ring Bling

Everybody loves to see an engaged gal's ring, right? That is practically the first item to be discussed after news of the engagement gets out. I have noticed that people don't actually ask you about the man you are going to marry, they ask about the wedding date and the ring, sometimes the proposal story, but that means bringing the man into the picture and who cares about him! Sheesh... poor Roger. Well he did ask and there is an engagement story so I am going to tell it before you get to see the ring, so there!

On December 22nd, the Winter Solstice of 2007, one of my best friends Maia decided to have a calm before the holiday storm brunch at her house.  Roger and I arrived fashionably late and proceeded to eat still warm, Brooklyn bagels, slathered with a fair amount of cream cheese. (Scallion for me please!) Belinis being the drink of choice, the occasion was festive and fun. People started leaving to go on their merry way, perhaps for some last minute holiday shopping. Since we were the last to arrive it was fitting that we were the last to leave. As we sat on the couch, Maia's sister and I got into a conversation about how much fun Maia's wedding will be this summer. (She is getting married 3 weeks before me- wedding madness!) I said something about Maine being a lovely place to get married, so she asks, "Are you and Roger getting married?" With apparently a rather pouty face, I said "no" and looked at Roger in a playfully smirky kind of way. His response was to say, "Ok, let's get married." The rest of the conversation went somewhat like this:

Me: What?

Roger: Why don't we get married?

Me: What? Are you serious?

Roger: Yes, I'm serious, let's get married?

Me: Right now? You are asking me now? (as I let the scallion covered bagel fall from my hand)

Roger: Yes, will you marry me? (Roger getting more emphatic as he sees I am not taking the hint)

Me: What? Really? Ask again!

Roger: Will you marry me!

Me: Yes! Of course!

So at this point I think the other three people left at brunch were just as confused and elated as I was. Roger and I left and I made him ask about 10 more times over the course of the day. Apparently he'd planned to propose later in the evening on the rooftop, but the moment just presented itself instead on Maia's couch.

We decided to use a beautiful family diamond that I had been given by my Grandmother about a year earlier as an engagement ring, but to make it more mine, we looked at various settings and had a unique ring designed to our specifications.

 

So here it is... the ring bling!

The Party Pavilion Needs Help

Roger and I stopped by the Gardens last weekend to check out the wedding and reception site. The wedding ceremony location will be lovely:


The reception site however, will need some spiffing up:

At least we know there will be a place to dispose of trash. We are hoping to jazz up the pavilion to include some sparkly little lights, and cute lanterns to make the atmosphere a bit more festive and celebratory. Not that just having been joined in matrimony to my groom won't be enough for me to dance my tooshie off, but having much more pleasing decor will make it that much nicer. That being said.... um, does any one want to help decorate?

What's up with Rutgers?

When Roger and I were discussing where to have our wedding, we came up with a few brilliant ideas. Alaska, where I grew up, where we could celebrate in the mountains with the moose and mosquitoes was one. Hawaii, which is gorgeous and romantic on all accounts and would make a great tropical vacation for our guests. And Jersey...the last option....the final option...

Hawaii and Alaska, both fun exotic locations but far away for many. Jersey being near and not quite as much of a schlep for most involved won in the end. But it is not without reason that we chose this as our wedding site. As it so happens, my parents were married there 35 years ago. I have heard stories of bees in the punch, a dog crashing the dance floor and grew up looking at amateur photos of the log cabin on the grounds. And here is one of those amateur photos now! Sue and Will, circa 1973.


Roger also has a connection to Rutgers. He not only earned his MFA there, but also just happens to have a sculpture tucked away in the succulents garden. When Roger and I first started dating, we ended up at the garden on several occasions since it was one of the nicest green spots around.We love looking at all the summer vegetables and funky plants in bloom. (*see Gerrie and funky plant below) Several of our plants at home come from the garden - some legit, some ill-gotten gains. That first visit it was so funny for me to be on a date with my new beau at the very same place my parents were married, and I couldn't help but have thoughts of well maybe if we got married from the very get-go.

And so we are getting married at the Rutgers Gardens. The tradition continues. My Mom has long held that it was fate and I think she might be right!

Save the Date!

Roger and Gerrie are getting married!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
New Brunswick, New Jersey at the Rutgers Gardens

Welcome to our little wedding blog. We hope that this will be a good way to communicate with you, our friends and family, about our upcoming nuptials. As most of you know, Roger and I are not the most quickly moving nor organized people (OK, Roger is slow and I am a bit disorganized) so planning a wedding in about 6 months should be a great ride!
We hope to share important dates like the one above- please mark your calendar now, ahem- important information like where the heck you should stay, and post pictures of the planning process. As an added bonus you can comment on all that we are up to, share your wisdom about wedding planning (please oh please), and ask questions and hope that one of us answers.

And when we are all done and married we can continue documenting the oh so exciting lives that we lead.

Check back soon for more r plus g wedding blogging!

Love,
r plus g