Wedding YIKES!!!

[miraclesrule]

My daughter is not sending out traditional invitations with reply cards. The invitees have to go to her internet site to RSVP and choose their entree. I boohoo''ed and said that I was supposed to be getting all the replies and keep track of the menu choices and blah, blah, blah...

So she said "Mom, do you want to get the RSVP''s to your inbox?" Um "Yeah"
Then she says "Do you want to create the auto reply to the respondents?" Um... "Yeah"

She says "Okay, write them up tonight. One for the "Yes" group and one for the "Regrets" group.

 

[miraclesrule]

Okay, So I am sitting here with the pen and the paper but no words are on the paper.
The only words I can think of is...

Why in the world did I say "Um...Yeah"?

 

[oobiecoo]

.

 

[CaféHummingbird]

Thank you. Your ________ for the X and Y wedding has been received

ETA: I didn't know what to put there. Reservation seems too clinical.

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 6/19/2008 12:51:43 AM
Author: CaféHummingbird
Thank you. Your ________ for the X and Y wedding has been received

ETA: I didn''t know what to put there. Reservation seems too clinical.

I know...it''s hard isn''t it? I have to control myself from breaking out a "Madonna" imitation and writing

"Celebrate, Good Times...Comeon!! We''re gonna have a good time that night...."

 

[JulieN]

response

 

[Octavia]

For the "yes" response, I''d put something like:

Thank you for your response. We are so happy you will be joining us, and look forward to seeing you on Date XX!

For the "no" response:

Thank you for your response. We are sorry you won''t be able to join us, and wish you all the best/hope to see you sometime in the near future/something else that fits here (can''t really think of an appropriate phrase right now).

This way, even though it''s an auto-response, it seems a little more "personal" rather than robotic.

 

[miraclesrule]

Thank you Octavia. I needed a spark to light my flame. I definately want it to be a reflection of the same anticipatory feeling and joy and/or sorrow that I imagine I would be experiencing while opening envelopes. I have never been a fan of "computer generated" letters. I like the personal touch.

I have been adjusting your suggestion with different words or form of the words. I just did this exercise when we were creating a mission statement a few weekends ago. So far I like:
delighted, joy, pleasure, pleased, thrilled....I have crossed off a ton of other words that sounded cheesy (giddy, tickled, elated, ecstatic)

For the regret:
remorse, heartbroken and regret is pretty much all I can think of to use for the feeling.

I think I can come up with the rest of it now. I just needed someone to give me a place to start.

Thank you...

 

[miraclesrule]

Okay, I just got my daughter''s snail nail invitation today, which means that the a good portion of the invitee''s will be getting them today as well, so I have to get this done pronto.... Any tweaks or suggestions would be appreciated (Don''t you love the way my kid tells me about this at the last minute people....ugh!)

For the "Yes" folks:

Thank you so much for your RSVP.
We are delighted that you will be (among us...or...joining us) to witness the marriage of C-- and D--.

Please let us know if you have any special dietary needs or requests so that we can accomodate you.

We look forward to celebrating with you on July....08 at 6:00. p.m.

Blessings,
MOB

The "No''s"

Thank you so much for your RSVP.
We are heartbroken that you will be unable to join us as celebrate the marriage of C---and D---.
Your presence will be missed and we hope to share fond memories and photos with you in the near future.

Blessings,
MOB


For the No''s that I am grateful for: ::::wisebutt comment:::::::

Thank God, I would have had to take an extra Zanax just knowing you were coming..

 

[Gypsy]

Well.

Um.

First: "with us" gets my vote.

Second, I wouldn''t ask about dietary or special needs. I have a sinking feeling you''ll be sorry.

Second. I''m not a fan of heartbroken. Do we not like "sorry"?

 

[Neveah]

Date: 6/19/2008 10:48:53 PM
Author: miraclesrule
Okay, I just got my daughter''s snail nail invitation today, which means that the a good portion of the invitee''s will be getting them today as well, so I have to get this done pronto.... Any tweaks or suggestions would be appreciated (Don''t you love the way my kid tells me about this at the last minute people....ugh!)

For the ''Yes'' folks:

Thank you so much for your RSVP.
We are delighted that you will be (among us...or...joining us) to witness the marriage of C-- and D--.

Please let us know if you have any special dietary needs or requests so that we can accomodate you.

We look forward to celebrating with you on July....08 at 6:00. p.m.

Blessings,
MOB

The ''No''s''

Thank you so much for your RSVP.
We are heartbroken that you will be unable to join us as celebrate the marriage of C---and D---.
Your presence will be missed and we hope to share fond memories and photos with you in the near future.

Blessings,
MOB


For the No''s that I am grateful for: ::::wisebutt comment:::::::

Thank God, I would have had to take an extra Zanax just knowing you were coming..

Sounds great but I would consider changing "heartbroken" in the NO response... you don''t want them to feel bad they can''t attend, just want them to know they''ll be missed! I would cut that out and just say "Thank you for your timely response. Your prescence will be missed at the marriage of C and D.... blah blah"

 

[miraclesrule]

Well, I do like sorry. I was just trying not to make it seem so curt. But you're right, I probably won't be that "heartbroken" about most of the regrets, so it's disingenuous.

I just did the dietary needs, again, because I didn't want extreme brevity, but then again, considering the cake layers my daughter chose i.e chocolate peanut butter, I guess I was in risk management mode. lol.

I can definately take it out.

Thank you Gypsy!!!
You know us legal types....we like an overabundance of words and caution.

(At least I didn't say "Please advise if you or any one you know, has or has ever been known, to have an allergy to ......)

 

[Gypsy]

I totally understand Risk Management. But I think the greater risk at this point is MOB gone a bit crazy because Great Aunt Fannie''s special request is a " an organic meal and seat by a window with a breeze (what were you thinking having a summer wedding!), and not near Uncle Larry either!"... and Uncle Larry is her husband.

 

[miraclesrule]

LOL, that would only come from the *absent* parent side of the family and we dont'' have any contact with them. But it would make for some interesting wisecrack comments from my darling daughter''s friends who love to banter with me. The rest of my fractured family is on the east coast and they won''t be traveling to the west coast. One because she is dirt poor, and the other because she won''t even take an escalator....she has issues. I swear sometimes I was switched at birth.

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 6/19/2008 11:05:21 PM
Author: Neveah

Date: 6/19/2008 10:48:53 PM
Author: miraclesrule
Okay, I just got my daughter''s snail nail invitation today, which means that the a good portion of the invitee''s will be getting them today as well, so I have to get this done pronto.... Any tweaks or suggestions would be appreciated (Don''t you love the way my kid tells me about this at the last minute people....ugh!)

For the ''Yes'' folks:

Thank you so much for your RSVP.
We are delighted that you will be (among us...or...joining us) to witness the marriage of C-- and D--.

Please let us know if you have any special dietary needs or requests so that we can accomodate you.

We look forward to celebrating with you on July....08 at 6:00. p.m.

Blessings,
MOB

The ''No''s''

Thank you so much for your RSVP.
We are heartbroken that you will be unable to join us as celebrate the marriage of C---and D---.
Your presence will be missed and we hope to share fond memories and photos with you in the near future.

Blessings,
MOB


For the No''s that I am grateful for: ::::wisebutt comment:::::::

Thank God, I would have had to take an extra Zanax just knowing you were coming..

Sounds great but I would consider changing ''heartbroken'' in the NO response... you don''t want them to feel bad they can''t attend, just want them to know they''ll be missed! I would cut that out and just say ''Thank you for your timely response. Your prescence will be missed at the marriage of C and D.... blah blah''

that was my first thought...but then I thought...what if it isn''t timely...will it seem pissy? Besides, who are we to talk about timely. Dayum, the wedding is 7/25 and she just sent the invites out yesterday.

Thank gawd for STD''s----------only>

 

[Neveah]

Sounds like you got it together... just curious....... what about the people (read: older, computer illiterate) that don''t have or use the internet?

 

[pocahontas]

Date: 6/19/2008 11:21:18 PM
Thank gawd for STD's<----------only here is that an okay statement.

Miraclesrule - this made me laugh out loud

I had the same concern as Neveah regarding the computer issue and the possible challenge it may pose for some guests.

ETA: It looks like we were posting at the same time. Sounds like everything is covered then - yah

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 6/19/2008 11:24:06 PM
Author: Neveah
Sounds like you got it together... just curious....... what about the people (read: older, computer illiterate) that don''t have or use the internet?

My thoughts exactly...but then again, there aren''t a lot of those coming to the wedding. My daughter and her groom are very hi-tacky...errr, I mean Hi-Techie...Hi-TECHIE!! <----I never said that...I swear I never said that...

Seriously, his family is very computer savvy and they comprise the majority of his guest list. Her friends comprise the majority of her guest list and she majored in Information Technology. The only one who isn''t really very computer savvy is ...guess who? Moi.

 

[Neveah]

Date: 6/19/2008 11:28:35 PM
Author: miraclesrule

Date: 6/19/2008 11:24:06 PM
Author: Neveah
Sounds like you got it together... just curious....... what about the people (read: older, computer illiterate) that don''t have or use the internet?

My thoughts exactly...but then again, there aren''t a lot of those coming to the wedding. My daughter and her groom are very hi-tacky...errr, I mean Hi-Techie...Hi-TECHIE!! <----I never said that...I swear I never said that...

Seriously, his family is very computer savvy and they comprise the majority of his guest list. Her friends comprise the majority of her guest list and she majored in Information Technology. The only one who isn''t really very computer savvy is ...guess who? Moi.

Ha!!! You are too funny! I think they''re just "way ahead of their time" Before you know it, that will be the norm!

 

[miraclesrule]

Nevaeh: You are sooooo right about it becoming the norm. When I was searching for examples I ran across an article in USAToday about the new trend of electronic wedding invitations!!

You can personalize them, chose from different templates, do a combination of both....oh vey. But then again, they also pointed out that in the "old days" nobody ever sent "response cards" as it was expected that an invited guest would handwrite and send their RSVP in response to the invitation. Gotta embrace progress I suppose.

Thank gawd I still have a paper invite to show to my future grandchild who will probably look at it and scrunch their eyes and say "Huh.. what's THAT!?!?!?!"

 

[surfgirl]

I dont understand...it's your daughter's wedding, yes? Why not let her do it the way she wants to do it?

ETA: I guess I dont get it because if your daughter had printed RSVPs, you wouldn't send a response back to the responders when they RSVP'd, right?

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 6/20/2008 2:28:05 AM
Author: surfgirl
I dont understand...it's your daughter's wedding, yes? Why not let her do it the way she wants to do it?

ETA: I guess I dont get it because if your daughter had printed RSVPs, you wouldn't send a response back to the responders when they RSVP'd, right?

No, she sent out traditional paper invitations, but they didn't include response cards...meaning NO printed rsvps. The invitations directed the invitees to RSVP through the website they created. I didn't particularly like the thought of a robotic template computer generated"auto-reponse" to go to each guest after they RSVP on the website. So I was asked if I wanted to create the wording for the auto-response that is generated when an invitee completes the RSVP on the website. Because I am hosting the wedding, I wanted to be able to have the auto-response be more personal and written by me instead of some pre-programmed computer generated response that was not customized. It is her wedding, but it is an inclusive family event, not a bridezilla event, which she would never want to be part of in the first place. This is the way she wants to do it. If wouldn't be the way I would chose to do it, or would like her to do it, but I have always raised my daughter to make her own choices and I support her, even if I wouldn't have chosen to do things the way she does. I am a very different type of Mom...we have a very different type of relationship than most Mom/daughter due to our unusual life together. She is very happy with the arrangement and we have already had over 25 responses in the first day that the invites were received.

Unfortunately, the computer site does send a generated auto response to allow the person to know that their rsvp transaction went through. Electronic confirmation is a whole different world and operates differenly than a traditional invitation, response card event.