A Very Mindful Wedding- Where Is My Guru GP!

The wind is howling outside our apartment. It's a bit more than what we expect, but we still have power and, well, it's always windy and howling in Halifax.

The wind often makes me feel a weird combination of at home and powerless all at once. It was fitting that on our wedding two years ago we also received the tail ends of a tropical storm- home and chaos fit perfectly in those last few days and hours with my emotional state.

A month ago, Heather from Namaste Heather and Where is My Guru, contacted me asking if I'd like to do a blog post on "A Very Mindful Wedding" as the founder of WIMG Jess's own wedding is happening shortly. After two years I felt like I was finally ready to reflect and share a few thoughts on what I felt a "Mindful Wedding" could be.

"A Very Mindful Wedding"

I hope you enjoy it and that you are all keeping safe and warm during the windy chaos.

 Strength and Healing to all those who are affected by Sandy.

A year already...

One year down, forever to go.

A Framable Wedding 'Guest Book'

It has been over five months since Andrew and I were hitched... and we finally got our 'guest book' framed and hung up. I thought I'd take a break from the boring politics to share with you our version of a wedding guest book.

A bit of background: I've never enjoyed the idea of having a random book that people wrote vague and ambiguous best wishes for our future life together. I knew I wouldn't just leaf through it over the years, and that house guests really weren't interested in knowing that my Tante Denise wishes us 'La joie et...' well you get the picture. Of course our guests wish us well, that's why they were invited.

We also didn't want a 'Wish tree' where guests write well wishes on little cue cards and hang them up on branches of a fabricated tree. What were we going to do with those little pieces of paper after?

It all just seemed like a colossal waste of paper and energy.

Until- I read about the 'Wedding Tree' online. Guests would put their thumbprint as leaves, sign under their 'leaf' and abacadabra we have a guest book that is framable and wouldn't collect dust somewhere in a drawer. Since our wedding was in Autumn it was even better- Fall coloured leaves!

I bought fancy schmancy water colour paper at a local art store, some gouache water colours and a paintbrush. A couple of hours of penciling in what I thought the tree should look like, three hours of painting the actual tree and letters and we were ready for the wedding. Hah, I had no idea that actually creating this guest tree would involve almost 5 hours of actual art-y work.

 Tree post paint+our seating chart 'Value Village' frames. Each table was named for places Andrew and I had been together- this one was at Lorenzo's Restaurant in Enderby BC.

 The printing in process! My wonderful friends had handy little diagrams all ready, the paints were in Value Village tea plates- yay! The frame behind (an old one from home) explains how in lieu of favours Andrew and I donated money to the Canadian Cancer society in memory of our family members who fought against Cancer (the most recent being my Uncle Walter a few months before our wedding).

I was SUPER worried that with both of our mostly old fashioned families would balk at having to dip their thumbs in paint to 'sign' the tree. So much so that I stationed two of my lovely 'BTA' (Bridal Team of Awesomeness) to stand guard, explained the deal and make sure everybody signed. Overall, they assured me that it was very well received (and the fact that we had bowls of water, a wash cloth and a bathroom nearby was helpful).

Four months later we finally got it framed. It wasn't until I saw it framed in it's beautiful shadow box that I realized how happy I was that I did all that painting. We love our 'Wedding Tree'.

Every time I see the signatures and careful thumbprints I think about our family and friends who were with us that day to share in our love and commitment. Seeing the ridges and shapes of their thumbprints, something I'm sure many of them haven't done since they were children, makes me smile. It's like having a tangible snapshot of that person's presence during that moment.

Happy Sunday!


article and photographs copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

A slight break for my favourite photos

(my boots, all ready to be worn outside our cottage at Oceanstone)

Slight break from environment and yoga to share some more wedding-y stuff....

(really shows how the sun came out *only* for the 20 minutes of the ceremony, rain and cloud before and after)

Like a magical fairy path

Our rings, my band and opal engagement and Andrew's band

A fun shed dealy! Andrew looks so calm and cool

Love... :)

Our professional photos have come in and here are my favourites! Our photographer was amazing and if you're in the HRM area (and I think beyond, she travels) Heather Crosby Gionet is worth every single penny. :)

My Favourite Moments

My favourite part? 

This. The ceremony. We had huge grins from the moment I walked down.

Reading our vows to each other. I will always remember *that* moment.

10 minutes alone together immediately after becoming husband and wife.

My dad giving his speech and crying the entire way through.

 

Breaking my Tante and Uncle's crystal wedding knife on our locally made organic chocolate cake. (OMG).

We are MARRIED!!! WOOT!

Happy Full Moon eco-yogi(ni)s!

photographs copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

The Final Count Down and Eco-Recap on this Wedding

T-minus one sleep until wedding weekend, 54 hours (as of right now) until we say 'I do'....

So I need to confess that the next few weeks may be a bit sparse on the posting. Although we don't have the big bucks for a honeymoon, a stay-neymoon is what's in the books.... and I'll be honest, after the ridiculously terrible experience this planning has been so far we'll need it.

So, our last 'eco' count on what we managed to do to make our wedding as low-footprint as we could...

- out of town eco-packages: homemade organic granola (with fair trade organic chocolate yum!) that I made last weekend, fair trade organic coffee from JustUs! both things that are in small mason jars we picked up from Value Village and friends. A local free newspaper, the Coast, apples and pears I bought from a local farmer at the farmer's market.

 

our coffee and granola!

- invitations: post consumer recycled paper printed at home and designed by yours truly :)

- minimal rsvps, rest by email (which actually didn't work.... phone calls were made)
- flowers are being picked up by the BTA (Bridal Team of Awesomeness) tomorrow from a local flower grower dude. I'm making my own bouquet (cannot wait!)
- ceremony decorations include Value Village ginormous mason jar finds with beeswax candles that the BTA and I made together.
- The Maid of Honour and Best Man are wearing clothing they already had... so no new 'never wear again' dresses or suits.

- our rings are both locally made and beautiful. (and conflict diamond free).
- The 'Guest Book' is a 'Guest Tree' that I painted and guests will put their thumb prints and sign their names as leaves with water-based paint. We're going to frame it afterwards.

Our Guest Tree and the table Enderby frame with the recycled paper Enderby sign (and Kitten).

- table decorations are wine bottles (choosing wine based on the shape and colour of the bottle really isn't the best idea for taste lol) local flowers and vintage frames bought at Value Village with pictures of us and places we've been together. The tables are named after those places (i.e. 'The Enderby Table, The New York Table').
- In lieu of favours we've donated to the Canadian Cancer Society in memory of those in our families who are survivors and those who have passed. We have a framed (old frame from my childhood room) sign for this (on recycled paper).

- We also encouraged guests to donate to either the Canadian Cancer Society or the David Suzuki Foundation in our names instead of giving gifts. This has already happened from my coworkers- so just that makes it worth it.
- on that same theme, our 'game' to get us to kiss is guests will have to donate money in a mason jar to the Canadian Cancer Society. Hopefully we'll be able to raise even more money :)
- We're having yoga that morning, breakfast will include homemade muffins by friends, homemade bread by Andrew and homemade granola by moi :) my father is making lobster chowder from lobsters he's kept (alive in huge holding traps in the ocean) for lunch.

- The reception is a black box- the Chef went out shopping this week for local fresh ingredients that he'll use with our chosen protein- chicken (he emailed me last night to say how excited he was to do this! the hors will also be as local as possible).

- The wine served is all Nova Scotian and yummy.
- My mom made 6 apple pies from local apples and 6 pumpkin pies for dessert.
-The cake is made with fair trade organic ingredients by a local baker.
- We're playing RockBand after a bit of dancing (ok, not green, but I'm SO excited about it!)
-homemade gourmet s'mores that evening... probably inside since it's going to rain. but that's ok.
- The venue recycles and composts... and so do all the cottages. No paper or plastic plates or utensils, all will be 'real'.

ummmm. I think that's it. I think.... stuff is kinda blurring together on crunch time.

We're off today to buy an umbrella, as LOTS of rain is headed our way. Perhaps I'll buy some cute rubber boots- I need them to walk to work during rainy days anyway. A Nova Scotian wedding could not be complete without rain and fog....  and the ocean!

Much Light to you!! I'll miss you for a few weeks, but the rest is MUCH needed. :)

How to have an Eco-Conscious Bachelorette

Quick Quick, post before we take flight, our first flying trip to the states (we even have american cash, which looks like monopoly money! hehe).

My bachelorette was environmentally conscious... and still pretty darn bachelorette identifiable. This is because I have amazing friends who planned the heck out of the entire thing and thought of everything. I feel so incredibly blessed.

Don't think it's possible? Here's a quick synopsis:

Saturday morning included yoga in the park. Although not specifically bachelorette, it was something I stuck with and was well worth it.

I had made some pretty firm statements about not wanting penis plates, balloons or ridiculous pink sashes so I was very laid back in what I wore- a going out shirt and jeans that I already wore. Good enough. My one goal was to hang out with my fantastic girl friends, not hanging condoms on my shirt.

 doesn't that look amazing??

 

Those awesome girlfriends had brought a beautiful food spread, all local and from the farmers market. Including grapes, strawberries, cheeses and bread. We drank local wine. 

 me getting the crown tied on!

Oh I am so happy... lol

And... in a cute small paper bag tied with ribbon was a beautiful hand made tiara made by my friend Jen (from Funenployment DIY). It was perfect and will function as a really cool necklace (or a crown whenever I feel like wearing one).

 yum yum!

 There were actually TWO plates of fruit rinds left over...

 

A while later Heather surprised me with these phenomenal, no plastic, shooters. Yep, they were these delicious fruit wedge shooters that she had created. More on how to make these in another co-Heather and Lisa post.

oh man, they should not let me near that cake

Top that with my friends sweet talking a local bakery into making my absolutely favourite cake of all time, the Chocolate Hazelnut Torte from Jane's Next Door (which they actually don't make anymore...). Made from local ingredients this cake is absolutely delicious and only found at Jane's on the Common in Halifax, our favourite local restaurant.

 chillin' out while we waited for the next fantastic maritime-pub song :)

 

When we were warmed up enough from wine and shooters, we walked down to the Split Crow, a local pub, drank beer and danced (well, jumped up and down) to the local band. 

It was an absolute blast.

I am so lucky and thankful for such wonderful and awesome friends. :)


article and photographs copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

From Dr. Horrible to EcoToes

What I did this weekend:

Survived an entire day without power. Yep, no internet, television or stove. We ate hotdogs on our friend's BBQ and hung out. Cleaned the 20-odd wine bottles with the help of JenP and our scrubbing power. Note for all those future wine bottle cleaners- soaking them in hot water for three hours in the tub is not enough to remove glue. Unfortunately, in order to save our sanity, WD40 was used.

A lot of really terrible wine was drank as for a while I kept choosing wine for the perfect green bottles...

Went to Dr. Horrible Sing along Blog- stage adaptation at the Fringe Festival with friends. The only musical I have ever liked. Ever. Haven't seen it? Neil Patrick Harris in a comedic musical tragedy. Need I say more?

Yay my cute shoes! I heart them.

 

Received my extremely cute and environmentally friendly eco-toes wedding shoes/slippers from Infusion Fibres (etsy store, website). The insides are lined with certified organic cotton and the soles are recycled twill. I love that Abby, the textile artist was so willing to work with me on selecting fabric and colour choices. It was easy and they are beautifully made. I cannot wait to have comfy, cute shoes on my wedding day! She also makes gorgeous clutches and purses.

The finished product, two hours of work later. 

Free-hand penciled and then painted our Guest Book "Tree". Idea stolen from this wedding, I thought it would be a shame to buy a print of a tree and decided that I would paint ours. Umm. Since I am not really an artist, I forgot just how difficult painting a tree can be. My wonderful, genius Maid of Honour suggested that I take the trees on our bedspread as a guide. I couldn't trace them, but my free hand turned out pretty d*mn nice if I do say so myself.

Small, non toxic water based paint gouache circles in different fall colours (green, yellow, orange, red, brown) will be placed in small value village tea cup plates. Heather, my BTA (Bridal Team of Awesomeness) will act as guide for all those confused guests, helping them find their inner child, squish their thumb in the colour of their choice and make a leaf on our "Loved Ones" tree. After a quick wash with a cloth and water, a small signature finishes the deal and voila, we have a framable guest book.


Now if I can only figure out how I'm going to write "Andrew and Lisa,  October 16th 2010". I have terrible paint-font skills.


Happy Labour Day!


article and photographs copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Eco-Wedding Invitations

Countdown to Eco-Wedding: 6 weeks. It is crunch time and my checklist has caused some stressful moments. In the middle of these 6 weeks Andrew and I will be going on a 'pre-wedding honeymoon' to New York City!! I'll definitely try to check out 'Yoga To The People'- after all the chatting over at 'its all yoga, baby' I'm definitely curious to see what it's about!

Our invitations were created, cut and sent a few weeks ago and I can now share them with you!

Although there's pressure to have fancy, letter pressed invitations, I just couldn't wrap my head around spending that much money on a piece of paper that was just going to get recycled (hopefully!). So, for two years we searched for our perfect wedding graphic. We had a tree with our letters carved in, followed by a tree with a heart in the middle... 

And then I found a tandem bicycle graphic- free download. Andrew fell in love with this invitation. A few hours of playing around with the wording, fonts and colours and voila! A Tandem Bicycle invitation to represent our brand new Life Journey together.

It was essential that I find a sustainable paper solution. Fortunately there are a lot of post consumer recycled cardstock options out there now and I easily found beautiful ivory sheets for not too much money. I would have preferred forest stewardship certified paper.... but I didn't really give myself enough planning time. We sort of needed invitations to be made and mailed in two days time (haha, yep we were *that* organized).

The actual sizing and cutting of the invitations involved much more swearing, beer and frustration. We used box cutters, glass picture frames and a ruler. Several hours of intense staring, measuring and frantic cutting later and we were good to start addressing. Note to self; borders are extremely helpful when printing two invitations per page.

Full invitation and rsvp card

I was so proud of those invitations and of course we received minimal feedback (or even email rsvps.... but then our wedding is small enough we knew mostly who was coming anyways). We even made ten special rsvp cards for those people we knew weren't computer savvy. Why anyone would spend a fortune and ridiculous amount of hours for such a minimally noticed aspect of the wedding is beyond me.

Close up of the invite! :)

 

Next up; the weekend program of events. After spending a chaotic weekend at a friends wedding (which was lovely), I realized the importance of letting your guests know just what the 'plan' is for the affair. Since we'll have many guests staying two nights, a short Weekend Program will help guide expectations and decrease the need for constant timeline with bride-groom verification. 


It's fine when the bride and groom are super laid back about details and events, but guests really do need to know what the deal is in order to figure out timing and weekend expectations. 


As a result, our wedding website has tourist resources for our out of town guests, accommodation options, thoughts on what to wear (i.e. October can be chilly, the ceremony will take place outside so shoes should be able to handle grass etc). As most of the family have so nicely reported that 'why no, we didn't look at the website yet!' my paper-saving plan has gone down the composting toilet.

Wedding programs test-print

 

Alright, a printed 'program' it will be. I found another funky bicycle graphic and spent an hour typing up the basic weekend events. I sourced a paper supply that was back ordered and not being used (so reclaimed paper? lol) and will print two programs per page to maximize paper use. 


Done and done.

Eco-Wedding; Wish Lanterns and Greenwashing

Recently a reader emailed me about something called 'Wish Lanterns'. She had been considering them for her small wedding and was wondering about their 'eco-cred'; were they safe to deploy over water?

This is a fantastic example of greenwashing and the complexity of choosing 'green'.


For those of you non-wedding obsessed like moi, Wish Lanterns are cylindrical dealies made of some kind of paper with a hot air balloon like bit in the middle. You light it up, make a wish and send it floating away in the night. Very cool and after taking a peak at the pictures I also had a 'wow, that would be fun for our wedding' moment.

 image taken from Wish Lanterns website

On the official site, Wish Lanterns claim to be 99% biodegradable, will not harm the environment and will 'float gently to the ground' once the wick has burned out.


Although there was some information on the website as to what materials are used in a wish lantern, I really was looking for specifics on what they consider '99% biodegradable'. So I sent them a quick email requesting specifics on materials and treatments used. My response:


'Materials used are rice paper, bamboo and a thin piece of metal wire. The fuel cell is made up of cotton, paper and wax'


Nothing regarding exactly how they get the rice-bamboo paper to be flame-retardant. I responded by requesting specifics regarding chemical paper treatment a week ago. No response.


I considered the possibility that rice-bamboo paper was somehow magically naturally flame-retardant. A quick wiki search confirmed my doubts- no magical rice oil flame stopper. 


With this information, disregarding claims, let's look at the eco-scale of a wish lantern:


- 99% biodegradable really has no meaning. Everything has the potential to degrade into smaller versions or portions of the whole. Some pretty scary pesticides and chemicals can 'biodegrade' into smaller and more toxic chemical versions. Without any sort of follow up, this label is useless.


- Creating rice-bamboo paper actually involves resources, chemicals, water and energy. There is no guarantee or information regarding where the paper is sourced, whether the bamboo or rice was taken from destroyed rainforest land (sadly, the spike in bamboo interest has resulted in some pretty scary deforestation for bamboo plantations...)


- Paper+fire=combustion. In order to stop this from happening they would need a flame retardant treatment. As their website states, wish lanterns are 'non-flammable' which logically means they've been treated by flame retardant chemicals. Unless they are using funky new treatments (which would jack up the price, so probably not) commonly used flame retardants are considered extremely harmful to the environment and human health: not exactly something I'd like to leave out to break down into our soil.

- Finally, metal may be considered a natural substance, but it definitely isn't something that would break down quickly. Depending on what kind of metal, it may not even be safe to leave in soil. Recyclability is unknown as well, certain areas only take some types of metal to recycle (like aluminum). 


Final verdict- Wish Lanterns are not, in fact, a good environmental choice, but a pseudo-green choice. Which is kinda sad, cuz I think they would have looked uber cool at our wedding..... 


Ah well, we can always write up small 'wishes' on scrap pieces of paper (we'll have enough recycled-paper cardstock bits lefts over from our invitations!) and 'send them off' via bonfire that night :)


Blessings!


article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Overshare: The Eco-Crazies, I am sure I have it

Setting: Oceanstone Inns, afternoon wedding tasting. It's drizzly out (big surprise in Nova Scotia), I have this weird 24 hour nausea and we're expecting big things for the couple hundred dollars we dropped for a *tasting*.

I look out the window and imagine practicing yoga right -there-, the spot of grass cushioned by trees and on the ocean shore.

The 'Wedding Captain' (yep, that IS her title- but she's sweet so I forgive her. Plus I don't think it was her choice) cheerily brings over two different 'signature martini' options that she has conveniently left unnamed... Um. 

Since I think signature drinks are... lame... I took a deep breath and smiled up with a 'sure we'll try them!'

They tasted kinda like gasoline. The former bartender me sipped and judged. My inner (and perhaps whispered to Andrew, I'll admit) dialogue went like this: 'UGH, these taste like crap. I could make better martini's than these. In fact my Green Apple Martinis were kick ass.... unlike these.' Très unyogic.

The food was... meh. However, I think the chef was trying to impress with two lobster options. Little did he know that I'm kinda a lobster snob- what with being a fisherman's daughter and all. After two lobster dishes with the cartilage left in the claws and meat that was either frozen or extremely overcooked (i.e. dry) lobster was vetoed from the menu.

At this point I am seeing the value of having a tasting- no signature drinks, no lobster and that's RIGHT Lisa is the fussiest person on the face of the planet. Thank goodness that I'll probably only eat little bits anyways, since I'll be wayyyy too nervous to be tempting the stomach issues on that day.

Enter specific talk about wedding day stuff with the Wedding Captain. She was fantastic and was actually pretty supportive of our 'we're playing Rock Band, and collecting our own local flowers, and using beeswax candles, and having our own wine bottles for random said flowers...' and so forth.

But... we were getting to the really anal 'eco' stuff that had been plaguing my thoughts for a while. Kinda like when you go to Subway (when I used to go to Subway)  and wonder if it was too bonkers to ask the 'Subway Artist' to change their gloves and knife because they *just* had their hands elbow deep in tomato-mayo-onion-pickle juice from the previous sandwich. Ya know, uncomfortable 'are you really asking me this' looks and everything type of questions.

I took a deep breath and: 'Speaking of cottages, is there composting and recycling available for our guests there?' pause and lean back...

I did get the impression that I was probably the first person to ever really care about this aspect with regards to a wedding... but she answered me quite matter of factly and almost didn't even blink when I said I'd consider leaving an instruction sheet helping guests use their organics bin and recycling system. Although I said it was out of my control whether or not they actually used the huge, at the back of the property composter... and she agreed... silently I thought- 'I really really hope they use the composter. I would hate for all that waste to be because of our wedding. Maybe I could include little brown bags and old icecream buckets for ease of use. And make diagrams with pictured instructions.'  Insert guilty feeling pang.

.....

Now that was a moment of Overboard Eco Overshare. For all you Eco-Peeps who silently have over the top eco-thoughts and immediately think: 'I am crazy'. No? Only me?

and... off to my BFF's wedding for the weekend! Happy Natal Day Weekend everyone... hopefully some yoga will help ease the eco-crazies :)

article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

No longer an 'eco' wedding, but an Honest Wedding

Countdown, T minus uhhhh, wait gotta do the math-just under 4 months. Oh dear Goddess. I am getting married.... for REAL.

Hah, well I know what you're thinking. But after being engaged for almost two years, the whole wedding planning thing kind of loses it's shiny sparkly appeal, along with it's sense of reality. After a period of 'I will just ignore all this wedding crap until the FUN gets put back into Wedding-Fun', we had a crash re-introduction back into the planning storm.

Planning an environmentally friendly wedding has definitely been very interesting and not at ALL what I expected. For some reason I thought that planning a 'different' wedding would mean that the two year engagement would be kick bum. That I'd need all this extra time to source my eco-STUFF.

Haha, 'stuff'? Looking back I can see I really have come a long way in my environmental journey. I assumed I needed to find the cheapest, most eco-friendly wedding everything and that we would buy or DIY. *shakes her head*

At this point, with friends who are planning, I feel like I'm forgetting something. Friends are scurrying around, frantically getting everything together. And I'm well, alright. We just decided that the most important aspect of our wedding was the fact that we were getting married.

Basically the essentials are in place. I have my 'made in Canada' dress (being altered as we speak), we have a meeting with the Minister in July (yes, God is making an appearance, in French AND English!), our invitations are basically done and hangin' out in the mac's 'Pages' waiting to be printed on recycled paper, a venue and a guest list.I've decided that I'd leave decorating to the lowest priority. Sounds a bit crazy huh? It's what most brides obsess over- the details. But I figure, I really would drive myself crazy and I already have enough white wine bottles for random flowers. I also found about 16 HUGE mason jars at our local Value Village, perfect for the handmade beeswax candles that will circle our on the ocean alter. My mother agreed to making apple pies and freezing them for the wedding with local apples instead of cake (sigh, she makes such YUMMY apple pies).

I'm thinking of purchasing some handmade slippers for shoes on etsy... Favours? After both of our recent family experiences with cancer, we decided to donate to the Canadian Cancer Society in their names instead. Our venue should be decoration enough- ocean, fall leaves... what more could I ask for?

Last weekend my mother came up and together we found a beautiful dress for her to wear and she looked fabulous. The icing on the cake? It was made in Canada.

All my 'we're having a sustainable wedding' really has changed into the realization that we're having a meaningful and honest wedding that reflects us and our values. Instead of buying 'eco' things, we're leaving all the extra 'stuff' for what really matters. Of course getting Andrew's brother to donate his Guitar Hero (and possibly playstation3) and Rock Band for the reception is also honest and meaningful. Cuz who DOESN'T like rockin' out?

Blessings! article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Being excited about 'Us'; our eco-wedding update

The countdown has commenced (many thanks to 'the knot's monthly reminders... why did I ever sign up for them anyway?), in less than 7 months Andrew and I will be official. Married (ack!). No really, I'm excited :)


As I alluded to briefly, I had some definite 'moments'... so for about three months I took a complete wedding break. No planning, no discussion, no excitement. Although I'm not still 100% back to being super excited, some eco-wedding bits are coming together!


Our wedding bands have had their first 'fitting'! Since my engagement ring is kinda a large opal that won't fit another band (Andrew's response was 'What, you need TWO rings??' haha), we decided to have a combo ring made. 


We found Rita from Seaglass designs, this lovely woman who makes beautiful jewellery from silver and seaglass by hand. Upon our visit to her studio to plan our rings and design, we saw the buckets of organized by colour sea glass that their family had gathered from our Nova Scotian shores. She doesn't tumble them or alter them, as that would defeat the purpose of ocean smoothed glass.


I chose a tiny aqua seaglass from the group her mother had collected from the shores of Cape Breton. It will sit right on top and function as a combo wedding band-engagement ring. Andrew requested a 'pass' on having a stone on his band... lol. Check out her beautiful blog, it's filled with her lovely creations :)


Next, our wedding website and electronic 'save-the-date' emails have been sent. Basically, our STD's (hahaha, seriously) were emails pointing people to our wedding website, which is simply a wordpress site with links, a few stories and pictures, maps and the details. So far, I'm really excited about being able to help people plan their trip and stay this way.


My dress has arrived for it's fitting (which actually was extremely anti-climatic) and looks beautiful. It's made in Canada by a Canadian designer with slightly more sustainable materials. I'm actually not that super excited about this part... I haven't quite figured out why yet... I'll probably be MORE excited when I find funky blue blue comfy flat shoes to wear. Or fun flip flops, haven't decided. :)


We've chosen our food- Andrew was in charge of the meal selection. We actually requested a 'black box local' menu, which the chef was completely pumped to do! Essentially, he will have a skeleton menu (veggie, starch etc). The week of the wedding he'll make a trip to the local farmer markets and create our menu from the produce available. How fantastic is that? 


My favourite part though, is desserts. We've decided on having home made apple and pumpkin pies instead of cake- one per table. This way friends and relatives (my mom makes a wicked apple pie) can make them with in season apples and pumpkins and freeze them super easy! Also, gourmet s'mores (handmade marshmellows, graham crackers etc) for the campfire fun after the reception- Yay! We'll serve apple cider in mugs while people grab a seat outside (October in Nova Scotia can be chilly!) and I'm hoping to score some blankets.


We've decided to donate to Cancer Research in memory of our family and loved ones who are survivors or who have passed instead of favours (who needs trinkets anyway?). We really haven't put much effort into a registry, and on our website we've strongly encouraged guests to donate to one of our three favourite charities (linked there) so that our wedding can actually bring Joy and Hope to others. I hope this works... and people actually follow the links :) 


I've basically given up on flowers and table decorations in general. It all seems pretty wasteful and a huge expenditure of energy... A few coworkers have offered to lend me a bunch of vases, and we'll probably go twig and flower hunting the day before (or I'll delegate to a few adventurous friends). 


Really, what I have begun to consider is that our wedding is so much more than simply this random large party. Table decorations, flower choices, colour schemes... really are non-essentials. Our wedding is about our marriage and public commitment to each other. Our celebration of our love and our families. Worrying about invitation designs seems silly in comparison.


I thought that after a wedding-break I'd return to this planning feeling the same excitement over table decorations as I did before... Instead, I think I grew somewhat. I'm more excited about practicing yoga with Andrew the morning of, seeing friends I haven't seen since our move from BC, listening to our vows and readings during our ceremony... you know. *that* stuff.


So, I have decided to stop worrying over the fact that I really don't seem to care about our invitations. Or our flowers. It will all come together. The important part is that I'm excited about US.



(Our first dance...)


Blessings!


article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Accepting My Hyperventilating, Panic Attack, Yogic Self

I have always envied those that could chose one theoretical construct versus another. It was a hallmark of studying in Psychology (and Speech Pathology), each prof and their selected students had a different set of underlying explanations for their world view- behavioural, cognitive, neurospsychological, social-psych... At the time I was very much a: "well of course it's not that simple, it's a combination of all".

I still view the world this way- Autism isn't simply a neurological disorder, it's a combination of genetic vulnerability, environmental factors (i.e. pollutants, family dynamics, mother's health-age during pregnancy) and neurological infarcts (i.e. anoxic birth, difficult delivery, prematurity, drug exposure etc etc). The research is slowly catching up to what academics have been suspecting for decades... but then how can you conduct valid research studies with SO many variables? Hence the confusion, researchers pick one because that's what our scientific model recommends, and we get one narrow slice of the child-individual's world.

I find yoga to be this way sometimes. Depending on your "style" of choice, you can focus here as if the answer lies ONLY in Iyengar-Ashtanga-Bikram-Vinyasa-Baptiste's method. The idea of a "pure yogi" or "what is yoga" can permeate and (for myself) cloud what is important until all we discuss are things like how *old* is yoga. Why waste the energy? After such heated discussions, I leave feeling empty, drained and frustrated. I've been careful recently where I go and what I read (and there are many blogs whom I visit and will continue to leave comments because they are wonderful :) ).

Similar stuff has been happening with the Wedding community. So many people feel so impassioned about what their worldview should encompass, that any sense of understanding or respect is lost in words. Pair that with the PRESSURE of traditional society on what it means to be a "bride" and "woman" and you've got a nice group of blogs and commenters that just sap the normalcy out of the experience. (of course there are a few that are wonderful, if there are any readers here that are bride-groom's to be- I highly recommend this, this and this blog!).

After a frustrating commenting weekend, I've decided to stop. No more heated discussions, or commenting my (valid) opinions. There is always someone who will disagree. And really- why go through all that? Obviously, the sensitive soul that I am isn't going to harden up and "not care" what other people think. And I don't see why this is something I should strive to accomplish. I like who I am as a person.

Who I am includes my sensitivity. If I love myself, than I love and accept parts of myself that may bring me pain. If I respect myself, I can avoid certain (unnecessary) situations- such as reading silly wedding posts about something ridiculous another blog has done (did you KNOW there were fake wedding photoshoots on design blogs touted as "weddings that are styled"?.....).

This also includes heated yoga. Which I attended again today. You see, I don't like *not* liking one style of yoga- it feels very closed and "unyogic". Like, if I just try harder, or "let go", or "suck it up" than I will be open to more styles and learning.

After I finished cleaning the studio today during my second energy exchange I found a few quiet moments. The studio and building was empty and the yoga-cd was playing a song by Deva Premal. One of my favourites, although I have no idea the name of the song. I walked into the empty studio, placed a mat and with the music surrounding and embracing me, I practiced. Slow, steady and with Love. Flowing through the Sun Sals, a few forward bends, halfmoon... none of it felt awkward or stiff. For a half hour I had Space to focus on my practice, connect with myself and Spirit. It felt like Yoga.

An hour later I returned to the studio with a friend to practice a 90 minute Baron Baptiste Power Flow. I sat too close to the heater and mid practice I took child's pose. I hyperventilated and cried, tears streaming down with my face pressed against the mat trying desperately to "get it together". I couldn't breathe, I thought I was going to throw up, and I was SO disappointed in myself. What kind of yogi has a panic attack in a heated class surrounded by 40 others who seem to be just fine?

I finished the practice, and for this I am glad, but I do not assume for a minute that the experience was worth it. I am willing to believe that physical challenges and being humbled can provide positive learning experiences but anything that places that much mental and emotional angst is not a healthy.

So I need to accept and respect my body AND my emotional and psychological Self. Heated yoga, like crowds, have potential to result in a panic attack with my Self. Which does not make me less of a yogi. What I practiced during the Baptiste class was not, during that specific time and emotional-physical place, "yoga". It was a reminder to accept and love this Person that I am.

(the person that successful cleaned the entire studio with water-vinegar-tea tree oil-broom-bucket-rag!)

The half hour, solitary and spiritual practice after I had scrubbed and mopped the studio, in my yoga pants and regular undershirt and bra, THAT was Yoga.

Blessings!

article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Our "Eco" Venue!!!

As frivolous as this may sound but: The Knot has announced that I have 12 months until our wedding. Sigh. Why did I sign up for The Knot in the first place?? (right, to help a colleague who wanted the silly lists they have on that site). (the view from the balcony)

Andrew and I went to our *new* venue with my parents last weekend. And as per my experience on Thursday, a migraine was my added bonus. Yay! Thank goodness the drive was beautiful and I only became mildly angry at slow tourist drivers and buses (not one fist shake!). Peggy's Cove truly is phenomenal and although I muttered at the tourists stopped at the edge of the road in my head, I really should have stopped to take some pictures. The view wasn't the lighthouse, but the funky glacier dropped boulders, peppering the landscape. Alli over at Ocean's Treasures has FANTASTIC pictures from her August hike- go on over to see!

Finding Oceanstone was a little bit less straightforward than I expected. We had previously google mapped it (which of course off-estimated the time by at least 20 minutes) and didn't bother printing off the directions. You go on the old highway until you get there. It's past Peggy's Cove, check. Seems that every single bed and breakfast and Inn was named "ocean+something". Turn the bend and OMG/ess, TURN!!!! Needless to say I was took several swigs of my coffee from my mug in the car, wishing it wasn't rude to bring it along the tour with us.

The place is gorgeous. All the cabins are close to the main property and nestled within the maritime forest. All we could hear were birds and the ocean. We could smell the ocean as well, good thing I think it smells like home as I could see that at low tide it would be a little stinky... (the reception area set up for a wedding that day! the ceilings are vaulted)

The main hall is so perfect, round tables and big windows facing the ocean. The conversation with the on site planner was a friendly reminder that we will have to clearly explain our "eco" wedding from the very beginning. She was friendly and sweet and didn't seem to understand that when asked about colours, we really didn't have any. No really, we don't have a theme. "So you'll just tell me about your colours, probably reds and oranges, and we'll set it up just for you!" Umm.... lol. How do I explain that even her, although well-meaning, comment of putting up candles for a "minimalist" type decor makes me cringe? I will have to start collecting some beeswax candles for the following year!

When she finally seemed to have an inkling of what I was implying (she didn't really acknowledge that I said I was successfully growing succulents at home- "so the reds and oranges?" said succulents waiting to be propagated) she informed me that "at least!" we need to have a gift table. I didn't have the heart to tell her that we were going to encourage guests to donate to a charity and try to decrease actual gifts (the wrapping paper!!! ack). I've already begun created a list of "eco" questions which will probably scare the poo out of her, but she's sweet I'm sure she will manage.

Our ceremony will take place right on the ocean- the grounds meet the stony beach one foot from where we will be standing. Of course, fisherman's daughter that I am, my first thought was we'd have to look up when high tide would occur and plan accordingly (Currently tides in that area reach 7.2 feet in height). (the twig-trellis which we can take down and the shore at mid-tide)

My absolute favourite part of the venue though is the fire-pit. YAY for having a place to roast marshmallows and spider weiners while drinking some beer!! The perfect way to spend the pre-wedding night with immediate family members and friends. The cottages allow for easy stumbling to bed access after! This also decreases driving under the influence (which is a common occurrence in rural Nova Scotia) and emissions between ceremony and reception.

Although we are currently on "frugal-mode" as I will currently be unemployed come January (cross my fingers that it won't actually happen!), I am excited that we found this as our *new* venue! The fact that it has space for yoga, the ocean AND a fire pit seems like FATE. As you might remember, our previous venue fell through in August and after crazy traveling + fighting with the in-laws over our co-name change we decided on Oceanstone based solely on....gasp... the internet. (the chairs are all around the fire-pit!!!)

**Update on the in-law- we can't believe our son will hyphenate his last name with yours- situation. After our venue fell through we asked that they stop calling to "discuss" the situation as we were stressed and didn't want to handle one other thing. Since then, I still haven't spoken to them over the phone, and they haven't officially apologized, but they have completely dropped the issue from all conversations. I know it will come up again, but at least they are letting it be for now and hopefully they will become more comfortable with the idea in time. Hopefully. :)

Blessings!

Article and photo copyrighted by EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Eco-Weddings are time consuming to plan!

Oh my, these past five days have been ridiculous! Warning: wedding eco-stuff to follow...

(the drive from Guysborough to Truro- furry hills!)

On Friday a venue was investigated in Chester Nova Scotia (beautiful!) and my dress was finalized and... I paid a downpayment. DONE. I can't say too much, but let's just say that no slave labour or shoddy factories in China will be had for this one! Woo!

Saturday, we ventured forth into the Halifax market for the first time in months. I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but I DETEST the farmer's market here. I know- how could I say that? Seriously though, the Halifax Farmer's market, although extremely picturesque in the old Alexander Keith's 1700's brewery building, is so crowded. I can only handle about 10 minutes before becoming so angry, jostled and panicky that we have to leave. In any case, we went super duper early that morning (8am) and it was only beginning to get crowded. So doable. I tried my first white turnip and it was YUMMY! Our reason for being there was to check out a local artists' jewelery.

Catherine Sutherland creates beautiful pieces out of recycled silver and broken glass from bus stops and they are gorgeous. She also dips local birch bark into silver! Stunning really. Unfortunately, she was slightly over our budget and what we wanted.

Sunday Andrew and I made the scary leap of driving further north in Nova Scotia than either of us had before... to Guysborough just a hop from the Cape Breton Causeway. The drive was beautiful, filled with miles and miles of untouched forests and rolling hills. Who knew that mainland Nova Scotia had hills?? We were checking out another possible venue which was also beautiful (but very isolated, so ultimately a no-go). A huge bonus: the Chef had his very own garden and he used mostly local and if possible organic produce and meat for the tasty tasty menu. Also, Andrew would like that I mention that he got to drive a golf cart for the very first time... lol.

(the sign indicating that instead of going left we had to indeed TURN RIGHT)

Today Andrew and I made a decision on our new venue: Oceanstone (ignore the creepy music on the intro hah). Yoga AND ceremony on the ocean (perfect!), a campfire already set up (YES!) and a Chef who also uses local and sustainable food. Hopefully my empty wine bottles/water recepticals will make it into the decor!

(the Chef's garden in Guysborough, filled with squash, mint, edible flowers and other such plants)

Finally, we met with Rita from Seaglass designs and designed our wedding bands! She's a sweet and kind lady who was very accomodating. We met her family and her dog and cat! I even got to sift through a ton of sea glass (really only a small portion of what

she had in her workspace!) and chose "mine" for my ring. A beautiful aqua mermaid's tear (sea glass) that was picked by her parents off the shores of Cape Breton. Sigh. So although the silver isn't recycled, it's hand made and the sea glass most definitely was "sustainably harvested" lol.

(Captain Golf Cart at your service!)

Update on the parental unit drama with the last name combination: after a week of daily "lecture" phone calls we kindly requested a pause for now, as the venue drama was enough stress. They have complied and Andrew had his first, non-awkward positive conversation with them today!

Blessings!

Article and photos authored by Eco Yogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com