Rehearsal Dinner Location, Fort Greene, Brooklyn

Today Mr. J secured our spot for the rehearsal dinner. I'm excited. It's not a traditional space for a rehearsal dinner--but then again, we're not traditional. We are having it at the South Oxford Space in Fort Greene (just blocks away from where we first met). I've been to the space for dance/musical performances, they also host a number of creative events, luncheons, and cocktail parties, as well as rehearsal space for the art world.

We can't rehearse at Akwaaba because there is a wedding the evening before ours--so we needed to find a space with enough room to do a full rehearsal, but also sit down to have dinner. As you all know, New York City can be very expensive, especially to have 30 people for drinks and dinner. We looked at restaurants and it was a bit pricey--and we wouldn't be able to rehearse. Mr. J's mother is graciously paying for the rental of the space. We can go in and set up for an hour to make things look pretty, they've got tables and chairs, we'll bring in our own food and probably use sternos to keep it warm. We'll also bring in our own drinks. We'll do set-up from 6-6:45 p.m., rehearsal from 7-8 p.m., dinner, toasts, bridal party gifts from 8;10:30 p.m., and clean-up until 11 p.m.

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Akwaaba means "Welcome," Come on in!

This is more of Akwaaba, which means "Welcome" in the Akan language of Ghana. We had our walk-through with the caterer and I took some more pictures.

Sun porch, I'm expecting all the old folks to hang here.

This is the courtyard--now imagine it decorated, it's pretty raw
right now except for the wonderful trees.

This picture is from the summer, so you'll see

how the trees bloom with leaves
providing full shade.

199 Days...

according to theknot.com, that's how many days there are left until the big day, August 8, 2009. We're getting married in Brooklyn because I'm from BK, it's Mr. J's second home (originally Georgia), and we live here.

We are holding our ceremony and reception at the same venue, Akwaaba Mansion located in Bedford-Stuyvesant (Holla!). This is a beautiful bed and breakfast, that is owned by a married black couple (score, that is 4 B's) that we've rented out, including the 4 bedrooms, inside, and courtyard, for a reasonable price. We're staying in the "Jumping the Broom" room for our first night as husband and wife. And yes, we will be jumping the broom.

This is the only link online I've been able to find of a wedding held at our location. They have a smaller guest list and used the ballroom for their ceremony and courtyard for their reception, but you'll get the gist.

The ceremony will take place outside in the courtyard (there are two large trees in the courtyard that shade the entire area), we'd like to get married right in front of the largest tree. After the ceremony guests will go inside to the ballroom for a musical performance by our friends and some cheese, crackers, and fruit and our signature drink. The guests can also mill about in the dining area, parlor, and the sun porch. After the performance (and the outside has been reset) the guests will go back to the courtyard for dinner, drinks, and dancing.

NO ASSIGNED SEATING. Nope, I want people to mingle like they're at a chill lounge. There'll be cocktail tables and enough seating for all the guests, but I want people milling about. We're going to have hors d'ourves and a pasta station with three different types of pasta, an open wine bar, and cupcakes, yummy.

Working on a spot for the afterparty.