Our Wedding Day

Our Lady of the Holy Family Catholic Church

Ceremony

The  Old Post Office

Reception

Winter

Our Wedding

Our Story

Photos

Estefania Gibson

Matthew Advani

Natalie Moreno

Brandon Steele

Wedding Party

JW Marriott Chicago

W Chicago - City Center

Palmer House a Hilton Hotel

Staypineapple, An Iconic Hotel, The Loop Chicago

Kimpton Gray Hotel

Travel

Our Favorite Eats in Chicagoland

<a href="https://sabrosochicago.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sabroso Mexican Grill</a> Our favorite items: horchata, enchiladas de mole, burrito de carne asada, guacamole. <a href="https://salstrattoria.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sal's Trattoria</a> Our favorite dishes: the burrata dish, the chicken parmesan, and the bucatini fra diavolo. <a href="https://mild2spicy.net/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mild 2 Spicy</a> Our favorite dishes: samosa chaat, bhendi masala, daal makhani, chicken madras, vegetable biryani, and mango lassi. <a href="https://www.sochikitchen.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sochi</a> Our favorite dishes: lemongrass pork sparerib, shortrib claypot, and slap mama crab fried rice. <a href="https://eatcba.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chicago Bagel Authority</a> Our favorite bagels: egg mcmahon and eternal sunshine. <a href="https://www.oldfriendchicago.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lao Peng You</a> Our favorite dishes: pork and chive dumplings, cold noodle, dan dan noodle, cucumber salad, and xi'an bing. <a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/johnnies-beef-elmwood-park" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Johnnie's Beef</a> Italian beef, dipped, hot and sweet peppers.

OUR FAVORITE THINGS TO DO

<a href="https://www.fieldmuseum.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Field Museum</a> The site of many of our first dates. <a href="https://www.artic.edu/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Art Institute of Chicago</a> We like the Thorne Miniature Rooms. <a href="https://nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">National Museum of Mexican Art</a> Grab some tacos at Quesabirria Jalisco Tacos a few blocks over after. <a href="https://www.havecommondecency.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Common Decency</a> One of our favorite bars in the city...just mention you know Nick.

Things to Do

Registry

Parking/Estacionamiento

If you will be parking at the Old Post Office for our reception, please follow these instructions: When guests/vendors/etc. come to the garage, they will press a button at the gate to obtain a physical paper ticket. On the front of the ticket is a QR code that they will scan when they leave. On the back of the paper pass, there is a little square that says "place sticker here" -- that is where the pre-purchased validation stickers will go. You will receive the validation stickers from our wedding coordinators on the day of our wedding. Si te vas a estacionar en el Old Post Office para nuestra recepción, por favor sigue estas instructions: Cuando los invitados lleguen al estacionamiento, presionarán un botón en la puerta para obtener un boleto físico en papel. En el frente del boleto hay un código QR que escanearán cuando salgan. En el reverso del pase en papel, hay un pequeño cuadrado que dice "coloque la calcomanía aquí"; ahí es donde irán las calcomanías de validación compradas previamente. Recibirá las calcomanías de validación de parte de nuestras coordinadoras el día de nuestra boda.

Q + A

Traditions for the Ceremony

El Lazo A significant Mexican wedding tradition is&nbsp;el lazo, which translates to "the lasso." It is part of a unity ceremony representing the newlywed couple's union. The lazo is typically a decorative silk cord or a large rosary draped around the couple during the ceremony. In most cases, the padrino and madrina (sponsors) present the lazo as a gift to the couple. The couple keeps the lazo in their home as a symbol of unity, faith, and love.

Los Cojines For a traditional Catholic mass, there will be points during the mass when the couple (and the guests) will kneel. Catholic churches include padded kneelers or hassocks for the guests in the pews. For the couple, the padrino and madrina typically give them a set of white pillows decorated with lace and embroidery to kneel on during the ceremony. The couple will keep these pillows as mementos of their wedding day.

Las Arras Matrimoniales One unique Mexican wedding tradition typically included in a Catholic wedding ceremony is las arras matrimoniales (the marriage coins), an ornate box filled with 13 gold coins. The coins represent Jesus and his 12 disciples. The box and the coins are another gift usually given to the couple by the padrino and madrina.The priest will bless the coins during the ceremony before the groom presents the box to the bride. The coins represent the groom's commitment to supporting his bride financially and otherwise. It also symbolizes the couples' relationship with God and dedication to each other.

Presentation of the Bouquet When the ceremony is over, many Mexican couples present an offering of the bridal bouquet, or other bouquets, to the&nbsp;Lady of Guadalupe&nbsp;. The bride usually kneels before the Lady of Guadalupe's icon, prays, and leaves the flowers. This offering usually happens before the couple walks out of the church. If the bride uses her bouquet as the offering, a second bouquet is usually available for pictures.

Traditions for the Reception

La Vibora de la Mar La Vibora de La Mar (the Sea Snake Dance) is a song and dance where the bride and groom stand on chairs opposite one another and form an arch, which guests pass through while holding hands and&nbsp;dancing. The goal is to not break the snake formation, and that gets harder as the music gets faster. For an example, feel free to watch on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZHeUh6TcZc" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Youtube</a>!

Adapted from <a href="https://www.shineweddinginvitations.com/blog/a-guide-to-mexican-wedding-traditions" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"A Guide to Mexican Wedding Traditions"</a>

Andrew & Lizbeth

Andrew & Lizbeth

Registry