{Warning: Long post ahead — if you’re not wedding inclined, you’ll want to skip it!}
We’re Back — Thanks for ALL your FABULOUS comments! You guys are THE BEST! I’ve read and loved them all. I hope you’ll give me a pass on responding to them all this time — I’m headed to New Jersey in the morning and I’m planning to spend my nights this week in my hotel room catching up with all of you.
The wedding was AWESOME! More than any of us could have hoped for — I think I’ll be using the word awesome too much in this post. Friday, rehearsal day, was just perfect (might be using perfect too much too.) I got up bright and early and made the cupcakes, posted a quick blog entry, picked up flowers and we hit the road — arriving in Dayton with just enough time to pick up tuxes and drop stuff off at the rehearsal dinner restaurant. The flowers were unbelievably beautiful (peek below) considering their price and the fact that they came from a grocery store florist (Fresh Market for you local peeps.) I had 5 centerpieces made and we sat with the tables in an “E” formation with the bridal party on the spine of the “E”, the groom’s family on the top leg, bride’s family on the bottom leg and parents and extra bridal party members on the middle leg. I placed a cupcake at each place setting and they were a HUGE hit (and for those of you who’ve asked, I’ll explain them later this week.) The rehearsal and dinner were lots of fun — I felt SO lucky to be surrounded by such wonderful family and friends!
On Saturday morning TheManoftheHouse and I moseyed on over to the country club to help one of the bridesmaids put candles in the candelabras. We arrived to find a bit of a panic happening — the bridal bouquets (pink and white roses) had arrived with refrigerator burn on the edges and the strawberries (similar to these, but much cuter with some berry showing) weren’t ready to be picked up yet. The bridesmaid rushed out to the store and bought more roses and we re-made the bouquets. We left shortly after noon and the bridesmaid went to pick up the strawberries. She was an absolute peach and SweetiePie owes her bigtime! I thought all the tables looked so pretty in the pink and black — I snapped a quick picture, which was a good thing because when it came time for the real event, I decided to put the camera down and just enjoy myself. There were two photographers there and I know it was the right decision — it all went by so fast and I can’t imagine how much I would have missed if I’d been trying to take pictures.
In the end, all the problems were pretty insignificant and everything worked out. I did learn one important lesson though, for those of you who are soon to have a wedding (and I know there are several of you out there.) SweetiePie had a wonderful vision for the placecard table. As you entered the country club, there was a big round table and she wanted the placecards lined up in rows with fresh rose petals sprinkled in lines between the rows. How pretty! A family friend was lined up to set the table up in the afternoon. By the time we arrived after the wedding, most of the placecards were gone and I was SO disappointed to see that whoever had set up the placecards, hadn’t bothered to place a pretty white or black tablecloth on the table (they were readily available — one only needed to ask — if I’d only known, I would have put one there myself.) The cards had just been set up on that UGLY brown tabletop. ICK! So…my lesson learned is, have a trusted friend (not someone in the wedding party — they’re too busy) who knows just how you want everything and can be at the reception location to make sure everything is just how you want it!
Anyhoo…after the set-up, I rushed over to take pics of the girls having their hair done. Lots of curls and pretty dos!
Then back to the hotel to get ready and then to the church. At the church, I went to the bride’s room to quickly sew a label in SweetiePie’s dress — this was the first time that I had access to the dress since the label was made.
After the dress, I went downstairs to the groom’s room to fix TheManoftheHouse’s tie — it was too small and the rental place said they couldn’t do anything about it since it was the day of the event. (Thank goodness for those cupcake box ribbons that were almost the same width — when I got done sewing a ribbon on, you couldn’t even tell!) While I was sewing the ribbon onto the tie, the cute little wedding coordinator from the church came down to say that The Bride wanted me back in her room (I assumed with my sewing kit) — and by the way, could I please go with her to check the flowers in the chapel first (there weren’t any flowers in the church, so we brought the flowers from the rehearsal dinner the night before.) We hustled upstairs, adjusted the flowers, and I quickly went to the bride’s room. {Kleenex Alert!} Once in the room, SweetiePie gave me a big smile and said that now they could start. She’d waited for me to be there before her bridesmaids dressed her. Of course, when I realized that, I started crying (the official start of the waterworks for the afternoon.) I just can’t tell you how incredibly touched I was — and still am. Now you know why she’s SweetiePie! Watching her dress just took our breath away — she was a beautiful bride. The photographers whisked everyone into a room that had a big, pretty picture window (their hearts must have skipped a beat when they found that room — so perfect for pictures.) They turned out the lights in the room and put SweetiePie in front of the window with all the natural light streaming in. For some of the pictures they gave her a pink umbrella. Oh. My. Gosh. I cannot wait to see the pictures!
So…on to the ceremony. It was wonderful! The highlight for me was when MyDadLovesMeBestSister spoke for a few minutes to the Bride and Groom. Such a touching heartfelt speech — she had us all laughing — and in tears. The night before there had been joking about all the goodies I’d made and she claimed she couldn’t do stuff like that — but she has talents I can’t fathom — there’s no way I could have given a speech like she did. It was another awesome event — thanks MDLMBS!!! Anyway…here’s a pic of the big event (I wish you could see her beautiful dress better (tee-hee):
After the wedding, we had a great time with pictures. The photographers were awesome — they put everyone at the wedding on the steps of the church and we did some fun poses. Then they sent everyone except wedding party and family on their way to the reception. Lots of family pictures. Lots of fun. Then off to the reception. Where it’s all a blur. We had a fantastic time visiting with people we hadn’t seen in a long time and just being with family. There was lots of dancing — even the grandparents were all out there cuttin’ the rug! I was so busy I didn’t even get a close look at the beautiful cake — I ate it though LOL! At some point, a limo picked up the Bride and Groom and whisked them off to a hotel where they spent a few hours before they had to get up too early to catch a plane to San Juan to embark upon a southern Caribbean cruise. The party went on and all their friends had a fantastic time into the wee hours of the morning. Have I mentioned it was awesome? It was awesome! I was just amazed at all the love and laughter from so many friends and family who care about two very special people.
Sunday morning was hysterical. The groomsmen were in a severe state of disarray — they all slept late and were in different rooms with different combos of tuxedo parts. They had to check out of their rooms, so I finally had them all bring their stuff down to the parking lot to sort things out. There were a lot of “I have an extra tie!” and “Hey, I’ve been looking for that” sort of remarks — too, too funny! Then we returned the tuxes and went to breakfast at 2:00 p.m. It was a quick meal for TheManoftheHouse and me though, as we had to whisk TheSecondChild off to the airport so he could return to Sydney.
So, it’s all over now. What a fabulous weekend. We spoke to the newlyweds briefly after they boarded their ship — so excited — it’s a first cruise for SweetiePie and she was beyond thrilled! I noticed a full moon last night and thought of them — cruising along on a ship deck in each others arms, staring up at the full moon. Such a perfect ending to a perfect wedding. What lucky, lucky kids. The best thing is that they both said it was the wedding they had hoped for — that’s what’s most important. No tears. No tense moments. Just perfect!
I hope they’ll always remember this wonderful start to their lives. Especially when things aren’t so perfect. I hope they’ll remember how much they love each other. And how much we all love them. And most of all, like my father told me on my wedding day, I hope they’ll always be good to each other.
Back soon to our regularly scheduled programming — thanks for making it this far!
XOXO,
Anna
Aaaaw…..some!
Loved your little tips for those of us have weddings coming up! I take your sage advice to heart.
Bless your heart as you ponder the wonderful wedding event.
Jody
It all looks really fantastic. What a great moment for you. Wishing the couple many many years of happiness ahead.
See, emergency sewing is a wedding staple… giggling that it was Man-Of-The-House’s tie that decided to be the sticky spot.
The whole event sounds wonderful… and you have a baby girl now! wonderful. They are a beautiful couple.
btw… I’m gonna need that there cupcake recipe, lil’ missy. You’ve set off a pms craving that just won’t quit.
Congratulations on the new family member, and for letting us have a peek into the event. Hope to see you soon. C
how beautiful Anna. I really enjoyed reading that post and wish I could have been there as a fly on the wall. Can’t wait to see more photos and more details of the wedding. You sure did make me laugh.
Anna,
Your words were so beautiful and eloquent. I felt what a wonderful time you had and for a moment…lived vicariously thru you. It seems like it was all so lovely and the decorations, tables, flowers and bride looked beautiful. I love weddings…they remind me of spring and all things good. Waiting anxiously to hear about the cupcakes and the cute boxes they were in…where ever did you find those?
Awesome!!!!! It brought back memories of my son’s wedding. It was so different – much smaller. The wedding venue had to be changed due to weather – that morning. The photographer didn’t show up and they had to get another at the last minute. But in th end it was beautiful and they looked so happy.
Mission Accomplished!!!
Anna – I have really enjoyed reading about the lead up to what seems to have been a perfect day for you and your family. Congratulations!!!!
Don’t forget to let us all see the wedding photos once you have them :-)
Kind regards – Dawn
Oh, I loved reading this! It really touched me, cause I could feel the love you have for your family and especially your new dauhgter! Best wishes for the newly wed! Thank you for sharing this!
Take care!
oh oh ohhhhh……I am in tears, truly!
Such a beautiful and emotional post Anna. I wish I had had someone as capable as you helping me out, you are truly amazing! I could tell you a tale or two about our wonderful day which had a few hitches I must admit, but I will wait and let you bask in the gorgeous warm feeling you have of that special weekend! Good luck to those two beautiful people too!
Oh Anna what a perfect day…brought back so many memories of Josh and Katie’s wedding. The fun is just beginning. Like me, now you have a daughter. It is wonderful!
Oh, Anna! The wedding is so fun and romantic, too. Best wishes to your son and to your new daughter! Now you need to post a photo of the wedding dress for sure. LOL!
I’m so glad everything went so perfectly for the happy couple! All your hard work made memories that they (and you) will cherish forever! And now you can relax and breathe!
What a gorgeous post and aren’t you just bursting with family joy, happiness and pride. I’m so glad it all went so beautifully and you are just amazing – no wonder she wanted you with her at such a special moment! I can’t wait for more photos.
It all just looks and sounds so wonderful!!!!! Thank you so v. much for sharing it with us…
Hope everyone’s travels are safe – xo!
Anna you had me in tears. (I always cry at weddings). I can’t wait to hear about the cupcakes and see more pictures. What a wonderful wonderful wedding weekend! Take care in NJ and (maybe) get some much needed rest too!
It sounds like a beautiful wedding, I’m thinking you could definitely change your career to wedding planner and make a fortune! Have fun in NJ…hope the rain goes away for you. And for me! :o)
What a delightful week end – thank you for sharing, Anna!
May the new couple have many, many years of marital bliss with very few bumps in the road.
It looks lovely!! What a wonderful day for everyone. :) I love all your favors, too!
Super Anna to the rescue!Happy to hear that you enjoyed the day. I just went through two tissues reading your post. Best wishes for everlasting love and friendship to the newly weds.
xoxo
Aw Anna what a nice nice day for you. Those special family moments are framed in time and are important glue to stick us toegether. Your new daughter-in-law sounds like a dear. You are very lucky to have someone like her in your family. Everything sounded special and wonderful like everyone wants a wedding to be. Congrats.
Sounds like the perfect day Anna, and one I’m sure will always bring back fond memories. I do hope you’ll share the wedding photo’s with us when you have them. Now I think it’s probably time for you to take a big sigh and slip into a comfy chair for a while.
I’m so glad the wedding was a success despite the little (and normal) glitches here and there. Everything looks beautiful and I wish the new couple much happiness in their new life together.
A story like that is never too long. Now what will you do with your time? Rest and relax a bit, I hope. You have done a lovely, lovely job.
Oh Anna! I feel like I was there. Thanks for telling us all about it. It does sound PERFECT! And awesome!
XO
Well now Anna I knew I made a mistake by not visiting your blog for a few days. i thought you would have been far too busy to have thought about sharing it all with us!! What wonderful posts and the wedding sounds “awesome” to coin a phrase! All your beautiful work and attention to detail is just breathtaking. I am so happy for you all
Kimx
Well now Anna I knew I made a mistake by not visiting your blog for a few days. i thought you would have been far too busy to have thought about sharing it all with us!! What wonderful posts and the wedding sounds “awesome” to coin a phrase! All your beautiful work and attention to detail is just breathtaking. I am so happy for you all
Kimx
Anna, that is just so touching. It sounds like a great event. :) A perfect day, for sure.
I am so glad that this day turned out the way the bride and groom dreamed it! It was awesomely perfect and perfectly awesome :)
How lovely. Daughter 1 got married 2 years ago now and I still feel it was one of the happiest days of my life. More pictures, please!
That was such a lovely post to read – thank you for letting us share a little bit of the celebrations! And many congratulations to the adorable couple.
It all sounds so perfect – I’m so pleased for you all! After all your preparations it was bound to be fantastic!
Lucy xxx
Hey – Congratulations! All the decorations you showed were just beautiful. Those cupcakes were perfect. I was actually near Dayton this past weekend as well, visiting my sister. Funny.
Glad it went well.
But could MDLMB Sister have written such a great “you are there” account of the great day? Glad everything went so well. Hope they have a long and happy life together. That was very sweet of the bride to wait ’til you were there. She obviously knows she’s hit the M-I-L jackpot…..
absolutely beautiful. congratulations!
Oh wonderful wonderful wonderful!! I am so happy for you and your family to have such a happy celebration go so well. Sounds like you had a great and I am sure it is the beginning of many happy days ahead.
I really enjoyed seeing the pics and reading all the details. (altho I want to see a better picture of her dress!) It sounds so wonderful– I’m so glad it was a great day for you all. I think I’m a little bit jealous of that cruise they’re on too, lol. I remember when we got married, I think I was more excited about the honeymoon than the wedding– it was my first time on an airplane!
ps. so glad you liked your little goodie : )
Her stuff is too cute to resist!!!
Oh Anna – what a beautiful post!! I am so pleased everything went so well – emergency sewing situations aside – and that you all had such a wonderful time! SweetiePie sounds like a perfect daughter-in-law :)
I’m sat here with a little tear in my eye – weddings do that to a girl!
I hope you enjoy a well-deserved rest now!
xxxx
Wow, what a wonderful post Anna. I’ve enjoyed the pictures.
The newly weds will often remind this very special wedding-day!
So happy that it all went so perfectly. A lovely start for the young couple’s life.
What a beautiful time you had and the black with the pink (love that shade) was gorgeous. So, I should start stocking up on kleenex, eh?!!
~Susan
Wonderful post, wonderful pics!! My son is getting married on January 1, so we need all the advice we can get.
Blessings~
Cathy
Wow, look at all those comments…you are loved. It sounds like you were able to handle all the little crisis’ with your nimble thimble. Good thing you are creative and have sewing skills. Sounds like you are good at flower arrangements too.
I’m glad you had a great weekend and that the newlyweds appreciated all that you did for them.
OMG Anna I am in tears after reading this. How unbelievably special this was. I hope to go thru the same thing someday with my boys and there sweetie’s. Thanks for the great play by play of the whole event. It’s like we were there. But you got me when you mentioned them on the cruise and that full moon just the two of them. OMG let me go blow my nose!!!!
I’ve been on pins and needles waiting to hear how things went. Such a special and beautiful couple of days. I couldn’t be happier for you all! Congratulations to the happy couple…and to you, my friend.
I have shivers!! I haven’t been a good blog reader lately due to our wedding next month and I just got sooooo excited when I saw yours is over. Thanks for sharing so much… I read every word twice and am forwarding your link to my daughter so she can read it all too. I am so happy for all of you that it all turned out so wonderfully. I love the idea of sewing in the wedding date, etc. May have to lift that idea from you.
Love to all,
Joni
I truly don’t know how you managed everything, but even with all the work, I know you had a lot of fun doing it – and the kids will have the most beautiful memories as a result. Thank you for bringing us along.
Oh Anna, what a beautiful post! And what a beautiful wedding.
Where there’s love, and I see a lot of it here, everything will work out.
Hugs,
Elaine
Sigh……lovely.
It sounds like a lovely lifetime memory, Anna.
Best wishes to the newlyweds!
What a lovely touching post – glad the day was such a special one for all concerned. I hope my children are as lucky when it comes time to find a life partner! I love all the beautiful things you created for the wedding – those little cupcakes are adorable! Everything looked so stylish.
You are so blessed to have such a wonderful family. Your family is so blessed to have you! Thank you for sharing such beautiful day with us!
BTW, because I can’t resist…
AWESOME!
I must tell you I am having trouble seeing to write this because I have tears in my eyes. It started when Sweetie Pie waited for you to dress, but what really got me was your beautiful last paragraph. You’re right – no matter what life brings our way, we must always be good to one another. It’s true of marriage and of life. Thank you, Anna, for sharing this milepost in your life with such beauty and sincerity. I enjoyed every minute of it…..AWESOME!! (sorry, couldn’t resist)
How on earth did I miss this? I’m so sorry not to have stopped by sooner.
This post has had my in tears, which is not a good thing as I’m at work! It’s so moving and that kiss?! Just so expressive. It sounds like a wonderful affair, so stylish and beautiful.
Congratulations to the bride and groom , I can see they’re going to be very happy together x