Disclaimer: You know how you would read comics as a kid and all of the sentences would either end an exclamation point or a question mark? Well this post might feel a little like that.

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Well loyal readers, you can all release your collective breaths – we finally found a venue!

And we have a date!

We will be married August 22, 2009 at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African-American History!

I’d of course considered the museum right from the beginning because it’s in the Cultural District and it’s a beautiful building. I’d immediately ruled it out because the website states, “Absolutely no dancing is permitted in the Ford Freedom Rotunda.” Well, pffftt to that! There’s no way we’d have a wedding with no dancing!

Months later, we saw someone’s wedding pictures posted on Facebook with -get this – dancing in the Ford Freedom Rotunda! Imagine my surprise. So He called up one of the event coordinators to get the scoop. We could rent the space, it was available on our date and we were allowed to dance in the Ford Freedom Rotunda as long as we rent a dance floor. I was at work, so later that night I checked out the other details, like the catering situation. I was all amp’d at that point but He told me, “Let’s not get too excited and shout it from the rooftop just yet. I don’t want to you to get your hopes up again.” So…that’s why I haven’t mentioned it till now.

Anyway, all three event coordinators were on what seemed like a 2 week vacation. Their voicemail said they’d be back today so I stalked the woman He’d spoken to like a hawk. I called her at 9am when they opened and left a message. She didn’t call me back, so I called her again at 10:15. By 11am, we were signing our contract!

We will get married in the General Motors Theater and the reception will be where else, but the Ford Freedom Rotunda.

We do have to choose from one of their caterers but they all have menus and pricing online and at least 3 of the 4 are very reasonable.

One of the most expensive things we were up against is the bar. We really wanted to have an open bar and now we can. The Museum offers two different bar packages starting at a flat $15/person. There is no tax I believe because they are a non-profit organization.

One downside is that we may have to pay for valet parking for our guests. It’s still up in the air, but if we decide to, it’ll come to around $700 for a guest list of our size. Still not too bad. I’ve seen worse.

If you’d like my contact’s information at the Museum let me know. She was really helpful and willing to accommodate our needs.

So, now that I am a completely happy camper, I can move on to the other parts of the wedding planning process. I’m thinking about booking the photographer next. What do you guys think? What should I conquer next, while I’m still feeling invincible?

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