Love will find a way...

Love will find a way...
This was my wedding theme. And with lots of love from so many people, we were able to pull off this shotgun wedding.

I also bought this personalized print called 'love will find a way' as Juan's wedding present which  we displayed at the wedding. Thanks to the great crew at Uncommongoods.com who worked so hard and rushed the print to us on time. Gracias  to the kind man i spoke to on the phone who made it all possible (and sorry if i was crying :o).

Our wedding on Sunday was... amazing! I have been so humbled by everyone's generosity. Many thank yous owed! I don't think i will ever be able to repay you all of you for your kindness. Like they say at the Oscars... Apologies if i have left someone out and special Thanks to the man upstairs :o).

1... thanks for all the love, support, and patience :o) from my family and friends. Special thanks to my parents for their help.

2... thank you to all the people working behind the scenes.  And I'm sure I don't know about most of it. I know i sound like a broken recording, but I really wouldn't have been able to do this without the help of our third musketeer and my almost Irish twin, Marita... M. Erin Lavelle... who went above and beyond. She really needs to start her own wedding planning business :o) ... Maria too who helped coordinate the hair and makeup for my sisters. Thanks to Colleen and Dana for their services & to Beautiful Brides Philly for accommodating me on such short notice.

And a special thanks to Little Smiles.org... who were very sneaky and paid for so much. P.S. You   need to change your name to Big Smiles :o)

Señor y Señora Dorantes

3... the wonderful ladies at la Bella Moda in Conshy:labella-moda.com who rushed my dress alterations... My dress had SAMPLE written across the lower back when i first tried it on :o)

4... and, of course, my brother-in-law, John, who paid the dress balance off without me knowing. love you. Gotta plug A1 Carpet Cleaners too while I'm at it :o)

5... the anonymous person that bought my necklace and little jacket at Sabrina Ann's

6... I can count the number of times that i've had a manicure in my life on one hand, but i have never had such a great experience as i did at Rittenhouse Nails who provided their services as a gift. En was super sweet and gives the best massages.

A que hora vamos por el pan, papi?

7... Rita & blacktiephilly.com who donated the tuxedos for my father and the groom... Juan looked so handsome; i couldn't take my eyes off him.

8... Father Sam who worked diligently behind the scenes to make all the wedding logistics possible. And St Francis Xavier & Father Paul for accommodating us & allowing us to use their beautiful church on such short notice.


9... Julie for pulling together a gospel choir to sing for my entrance and exit. You never would have known that they sang for the first time together  that day and with only one hour of practice. See... my little sister and I used to think we were gospel singers when we were younger, and our two favorite songs to sing were Go Tell it on the Mountain & this little Light of mine (which happens to be my theme song :o)


10... Omar... for your help translating the wedding vows into Spanish, so i could surprise Juan.

11... all the ladies that made the ballon release to Rylan possible. Video posted on FB.  More to come about butterflies in a future post.

12... the talented Amanda Young from swoonoverit.com who photographed the event for free. We can't wait to see more pix.

13... Jeff & Lauren, the kind videographers that the generous Cate W. sent :o)

14... Potitos: potitosbakery.com to make such a beautiful cake on such short notice. It was delish!

15... WOW is all i can say to Nadine & Katy form Flowers & Company... The most beautiful flowers arrangements and bouquets. And my bouquet came complete with a butterfly for Rylan. The room at Tequilas never looked better :o)

16... Mariachi Flores were the BEST! And they were a surprise present from all of Juan's coworkers at Tequilas. Muchas Gracias! Muy amable.

17... The most AMAZING dinner and service at Tequilas: the best Mexican restaurant in the city! tequilasphilly.com. All courtesy of Tequilas too! And thank you to all of the workers at Tequilas who have been sharing their love and support non-stop. Juan is so lucky to have such a great 'family' here.

18... Did i mention that we also had an amazing after party in South Philly... thrown by Juan's good friend: Flaco, his surrogate sister: Celia, & her DJ husband: Ismael. But it was more than an after party, it was actually like another wedding ... Mexican style. Had lots of fun, and I was running on pure adrenaline. We got in at 4:15am.  My niece and nephew especially loved their first 'real' piñata. My niece broke the chili pepper piñata, & a little while later,
my nephew fell asleep clutching his bag of candy.

Querida Celia, Mr & Mrs Dorantes, & Celia's DJ husband Ismael

today

Muchas gracias to everyone for giving us such an awesome wedding!

As John Lennon said... 'All you need is Love.'
And lots of love to all of you... Mrs. little lisa lollipop


P.S. our timing was perfect... it has begun