Teresa, I'm not real sure about how well the cuttings I took of the spirea will root, so I dug up some suckers for you. Just a reminder to all - there will be no kitchen or restroom facilities available. There is a McDonald's, Burger King, and a Starbuck's nearby.

You should get the date to out of town relatives and close friends, but you don't have to send special save the date cards if you don't want to. E-mail, phone calls, or letters are perfectly fine, especially if you don't have a zillion to do, and a lot cheaper. If you are writing to or calling any of these people anyway, just mention it in that communication. To me, informal contacts like that are preferable anyway. But save the date cards are common and won't offend any out of towners. The important thing is to get the date to them ASAP. If you do send out cards, I suggest skipping the kind of bossy wording "Save the date!" in favor of something like "We wanted to let you know that we have scheduled our wedding for [date], and we hope so much that you will be able to attend." Don't send save the date cards to local people who won't have to travel, though. Look through old strings on this forum, and you will see that many people see that as pushy (as in, "I control your calendar; you now have no excuse for planning anything else that day" or "send us an engagement gift"). It's fine to mention your engagement and wedding date when you see or talk to them, though. If you do send out special save the date cards, be sure to save that list, because of course you must send all those people invitations. Congratulations!

Grout does not have to get disgusting! Mine isn't and never has been! I have had tile countertops all my life and they clean up just fine. My beautiful artisan tile countertops (complete with trim, but costing more than stone) in my new kitchen clean up just fine. One does have to actually clean up after oneself, though... Tile is a wonderfully functional and easy on the planet choice. Route66Services, I agree that 4"x4" tiles are a more retro look than 6"x6", but either will be fine. Another traditional look is to have contrasting trimwork. That part comes from the fact that stores only tended to stock a few colors. The "8 week backorder" that LWO referred to regarding trim pieces is actually a "we have to make those up for you and it's going to take a little while" thing. Don't let it sway you. Just plan ahead, and give yourself some leeway because tile companies over promise on delivery dates. If the tiles don't pass inspection, they have to start all over again. And sometimes, they have to wait a month to finish a big run before making your tiles. This is the big boys. It's the same with the artisans, but they're more forthcoming with the time frame. Most of all, however, it's important that you get a really good tile setter who knows how to do countertops. You can't just glue the tiles to the underlayment with thinset the way some people do with backsplashes. The best backing is an old fashioned mortar bed, though there are some backerboards that I think are appropriate for counters. Done right, with wet mortar, also takes time, because it has to cure. But it's worth it. I have a feeling a lot of the horror stories about tile come from people whose tile wasn't set correctly. BTW, good quality tile made from good quality bisque, set correctly, is very hard to break, and shouldn't do so just from random stuff falling on it. It should take the equivalent of a sledge hammer in full swing. Even that might not break it on first try. If you're interested in going artisan, I can recommend Architerra-NW. Gorgeous tile, amazingly good bisque, and all the trims you could ever want. Daltile, however, is mass produced (i.e., faster) and their plain, glossy tiles should give you that retro look you want.

I also was married the day before Mother's Day (15 yrs ago next May.) At the time it seemed like a lovely way to honor our mothers. I wound up having a newborn by the time the next Mother's Day rolled around, and in retrospect wondered if I'd committed a terrible faux pas. But no one complained at the time, we had no trouble with florists or other vendors, and as far as I could tell everyone had a great time. My mother died less than 2 yrs later, and it seems comforting that her final two Mother's Days were spent at her only daughter's wedding (which she loved planning) and then with her first grandchild. Moral of the story for the OP -- go with whichever date works best for you and those closest to you, the universe will make it all right.