We've found a venue!

As you can see, I've done an awful job at keeping this site updated... but here's the latest news:

Matt and I went to visit The Irish American Heritage Center one night in December after a recommendation from a friend. The building is an old school, which has been converted in the IAHC. (This was one of the first reasons why I liked it, sight unseen). The center has a neat little pub in the bottom floor, where we decided to go for some food and drinks prior to checking out the space.

We were eventually shown the brand new banquet room on the second floor & I immediately fell in love with it. Inside is a huge mahogany bar that looks as if it belongs in a pub in Dublin. There's a stage for a band or dj that isn't too imposing. There are a couple of projectors built into the ceiling, with 2 screens that are also built in. There's a state-of-the-art sound and light system (not that I understand how that works).

In any case, as it is with most decisions I make, I decided I really liked this place and hoped that Matt did as well. Luckily, he and I have similar tastes in most things. Now, it was on to convincing Matt's parents this was the place.

The IAHC is located just off the expressway in the middle of a neighborhood, as most schools typically are. As I already said, it's an old building as well. I wasn't sure how Bob and Fran would feel about that. We met them for dinner and drinks after they visited and they couldn't have been more excited for us, which in turn made me excited all over again.

So, this brings us to the date. We had hoped on getting married on October 9, 2010 (one year to the date of the engagement), but the room was booked that evening. So, after checking the Illinois football schedule (who knows why, since they're awful), we decided on the following Saturday, October 16, 2010.

So, there you have it. Matt and I are going on Monday the 18th to sign the contract and put down the deposit. Holy moly, it just became more real.