This is denhswedding's Pink Wedding!

My, I mean our wedding and reception are taking place on separate dates. Wedding on a Friday evening and reception the following day. So we will be giving out 2 different types of wedding favours.
We just got the 'sample' water bottle and I am extremely happy with the way it looks, cant wait for the final product.

My sister bought me this outfit from India. Its really pretty and I think I may just end up wearing this for my reception party. She purchased it for literally nothing, whereas if I purchased here in Vancouver it would be well over 2k.
I do like the lengha a lot, however I really dont like the colour purple on me. I like the colour but when I have something purple on, I just want to rip it off, not sure why. This outfit the purple has a lot of undertones of pink and gold, and then there is the gold beadwork to it, so its not that bad.
I want to be 100% comfortable/confident the day of my wedding and reception. I love the way this lengha fits me, and my jewelery is perfect, but again, not 100% yet, and not sure if I will be.
The other problem with this outfit is that Im now having to change my colours. I dont think it will be that big of a deal, as I havent even begun with the reception decor (yikes)

All the weddings I've been to I never sat thru because they have all been far too long. I know part of the wedding ceremony the bride and groom walk around the fire 7 times. Never knew what the seven vows meant, and the significance of the fire was... Here is what I've found on the internet about our weddings.

The Hindu marriage ceremony consists essentially of seven steps with seven vows taken in front of Agni (the fire). The Agni, or fire, is very sacred in the Hindu religion as it is considered to be the purifier. The flame of Agni represents the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance. The Hindu marriage ceremony is conducted under a decorated canopy structure, called a Mandap.

Swagat is the welcoming of the wedding party by the bride’s family.

Tilak (red powder dot) is applied by the bride’s family to the groom as a sign of honor and to welcome him.

Jayamala is the welcoming of the bride and groom by garlanding one another with fresh flowers under the Mandap.

Ganesh Pooja The priest chants a prayer to Lord Ganesh, the lord of affluence and obstacle removal, requesting Him to remove any obstacles which may arise during the wedding ceremony. This is the first ritual in all Hindu ceremonies.

Madurparka (Rare Honor) A member of the bride’s family gives a rare honor to the groom by washing his feet and hands for him.

Kanyadaan is the giving away of the bride by the bride’s parents.

Hast Milap The parents of the bride join the couple’s hands as the couple declare that their hearts have been united, and they vow to remain entirely devoted to each other. The groom assures the bride that she will always be respected and honored in their home.

Mangal Fera The couple offer prayers to the fire, which represents God serving as the couple’s witness as the two are joined in marriage. Prayers are offered by placing ghee, rice, and flowers in the flame. The couple then walk around the flame four times while holding hands.

Satapadi a pink cloth is draped over the bride’s shoulders and tied to the groom’s shoulder cloth. Then the couple walk seven steps together, reciting vows which express:

Let us take this first step vowing to keep a pure household; avoiding things injurious to our health.

Let us take this second step vowing to develop mental, physical, and spiritual powers.

Let us take this third step with the aim of increasing our wealth by righteous means.

Let us take this fourth step to acquire knowledge, happiness, and harmony by mutual love and trust.

Let us take this fifth step to pray for virtuous, intelligent, and courageous children.

Let us take this sixth step for longevity.

Let us take this seventh step to vow that we will always remain true companions and life-long partners.

Jalsinchanam The priest sprinkles holy water onto the couple, praying for them and blessing them.

Rudaya Sparsha The bride and groom touch each other’s forehead or heart symbolizing mutual love and affection.

Sindur Daan The groom places vermilion (red powder) on the bride’s forehead and into her hair for long life for both. Also, he fastens the Mangal Sutra (sacred necklace) around the bride’s neck.

Prasad Khilana The wedding is now celebrated. The bride’s mother brings some sweets for the couple. The bride and groom feed each other, signifying their duties to each other and their families.

Ashirvada (blessings) The religious part of the ceremony is caped off by the blessings of the officiating priest. The relatives and friends join in to throw rice and flowers on the couple and express good wishes for the couple. The newlyweds seek Ashirvada, the blessing from the priest and parents by bowing down and touching their feet.

I wasn't brought up with religion whereas my FI was. Im trying to wrap my head around this entire hindu wedding thing and I am just so overwhelmed, and half the customs just dont make any sense to me...
Anyhow, we dont necessarily have to get married in a hindu temple ( mandir) but you have to get married under what they call a Mandap. So I have found my mandap.
This is what I have learned so far:
The mandap or wedding canopy is the focal point of every Hindu wedding ceremony, a sacred structure supported by four pillars under which the bride and groom are seated and exchange their wedding vows. It is within this sanctified edifice that the auspicious ceremony takes place witnessed by the sacred fire.
The four-pillared structure is said to represents the four Vedas as well as the four goals of a fulfilled Hindu life (Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksha).
The symbolism of the mandap goes further with each pillar being understood to represent the four parents of the couple, without whose support, love and blessings, the marriage would not have come to take place. Such is the sanctity of the mandap that a special ritual is held the day before the wedding to bless the inauguration of the mandap, known as Mandap Mahurat or Mandap Ropan.

Why Why Why are both of our families so BIG?
My mom's family is mainly in the states and I think I can get away without inviting them, well I dont want them there. They all annoy me. My dad's side they all live here, so I feel a bit more obligated to invite my aunts and my cousins, but I dont want to invite my cousins kids. For the most part I think they will understand, if they dont honestly I dont care. Im not all that close to my family ( not sure if you can tell or not) Now this is if I have it "MY WAY" not sure if my mother will let me get away with it.
As per FI's family. He easily has 100 immediate family just on his dad's side ( that's not including his cousin's kids) and the thing is they all are close. Every Sunday ( football season) they are at my FI's parents house watching the game. Not just that, they all are cool. Unlike my family. Ugh!
Anyways, how do we butcher the list?

Ok, So I feel as thought I am the one that has been overlooking, researching, negotiating pretty much everything with this wedding of MINE, not Ours but mine,lol.
As per the cake I still think its a photo op and I still want to do simple yet elegant. We havent decided on anything yet, it was actually something way on the bottom of my TO-DO list, but today in the mail a package was sent. My fiance ordered a cake topper. WTF was he thinking? We both are hindu's but we have nothing concrete set ( i.e if we are having a tradtional hindu ceremony or a western ceremony) but at the same time this is the ONLY thing he actually has expressed interest in so I will let him have his cake....

Still shopping around and trying to figure out things. I've always thought of wedding cakes just as a photo op, so if I can cut the cost there I will. But if we do decide to have a cake it will be simple, I have a few in mind. Im really like the whole monogram thing, so if we have monogram cards then why not a cake to match?

So Im opting out of the traditional mendhi ( red) just because I dont like the way it looks when it starts fading.
Im going the non-traditional route and having coloured mendhi that can just wash off! Woo-hoo, Im getting excited!

I have always thought about "when I get married" or 'this is what my wedding is going to be like". Now that I actually an engaged I cant help but to think, is this really happening? Oh the stress... Why is everything so @$*** expensive??
I am a self proclaimed BRIDEZILLA , lol!!
In all seriousness, I cant wait to marry Neil, however, we have opposing views as to how we are going to get married. He wants something very low key- actually we were going to elope, but then I gots to thinking and we changed or minds. I really do want my family there for my wedding ( Im a bit senitmental) so now Im doing the planning, and the researching, and I feel like Im pretty much doing everything. I need to learn to not be so anal about things.