Weather.com has a neat tool that acts sort of like a Farmer's Almanac for the cities they provide weather forecasts. I didn't even think about looking at the weather for April! Then again, it is California, and there's a very good chance the weather will be nice.

Here are the typical temperatures for Rancho Palos Verdes, California:

And it looks like there's a pretty small chance of rain, but I've heard it's lucky to have rain on your wedding day:

Sunday my friend Maggie and I went to a wedding fair on the Queen Mary. I have to admit - I was kind of more excited because I'd never been to the Queen Mary, more than the show.


We started by cruising the different vendors. There were a full three floors of photographers, makeup artists, cake samples, stationers; just about everything you could think of! We saw just about every single one, but I was a little disappointed. I thought a lot of vendors would be from the Long Beach area, and therefore perfect for us, but most of the vendors I talked to were from quite a distance (except for a certain Mary Kay saleswoman who wouldn't leave us alone). After watching a little bit of the fashion show (and an adorable two-year-old flower girl model), we got a free tour of the ship and the ballrooms! The captain led us through three or four rooms, set up for events, before inviting the group to roam the ship. I'd seriously considered the Queen Mary for a reception - it'd be so unique, and I do like art deco design. But the rooms were too big, failed to impress, and smelled kind of funny. It was great to check it out and we took some fun pictures, but not quite what I had envisioned.

After the tour, we headed out and passed the Reef restaurant on the way. I've heard good things about their wedding receptions, and we're planning on going for dinner some weekend. It's a little bit of a distance from the chapel than the places we visited the day before, but they offer a lot of the things I had imagined for our reception.

Andy and I pooped out the day before, so we didn't get around to looking at the Long Beach Museum of Art. Since it was on our way back, we stopped in! Claire's Cafe is in the Anderson House next to the museum, and it was busy. The courtyard was set up with a tent and chairs for what looked like a wedding ceremony. As our last stop of the day, Maggie and I agreed that this was a good contender for the reception.

Last Saturday we spent the better part of the day looking for a reception site. I've spent a lot of time researching places online, getting quotes, and getting familiar with the area. We planned to visit at least three places on my list.

Los Verdes Golf Club
Our first stop of the day (after visiting the chapel). The banquet hall entrance is to the side, away from the golfing, and was pretty secluded. Since they were already setting up for a wedding, we didn't feel like we could pry to check it out. But, from the windows overlooking the course, it looked nice inside. We couldn't tell how large it was inside, but the courtyard where ceremonies are usually held seems like a nice place to have hors d'oeuvres or cocktails. Another bonus is it's fairly close to the chapel.

Harlyne J. Norris Pavillion

I saw this on Here Comes the Guide, and it seemed really unique and fun at the time. But, it's across the street from a mall, and reminds me of the studio at the Krannert Center. It would be a nice open space that you could really go wild with, but I have to admit - I don't really want to design the decor from scratch! It made me realize that I'd really like a hall or room with windows overlooking the shoreline or ocean, which would be pretty during sunset and into the evening.

La Venta Inn

The La Venta Inn was our final stop of the day. We couldn't even drive close to the building because of a sign that said "Private Party, Invited Guests Only." But the view even from the road was amazing. We also witnessed a bus full of guests arriving! Andy got some good pictures from the side of the road, and although it was a bummer we couldn't get in, it was nice to see somewhere as amazing in real life as it is in the pictures!

Ultimately, the only problems we had during the day were that the roads in Rancho Palos Verdes are very windy, so there's no direct way to get from one place to the other. Also, California doesn't really have a "wedding season," so we couldn't get a good look anywhere because they were all hosting weddings! The upside was we got to see what the chapel is like during a wedding.


No decisions yet, but there's definitely some places I'll need to investigate further!

Today we picked out a cute closeup photo of us on the Wedding Bench at Wayfarer's Chapel for the save the date cards.