I've Been In a Whirlwind!

Two months gone by with no posts! Amazing how time flies when you're in a whirlwind of activities. The trip to Mississippi for Joel's graduation, Rehearsal dinner, Joel's wedding, last week of school, school graduation, graduation parties. Just too much!

So, let's catch up...

Rehearsal Dinner

The Rehearsal dinner that I was in charge of went off very well. It was short and sweet and to the point. Easy set up and clean up with simple decorations.

You would think that the traditional red and white check tablecloths would be easy to find - No Way! So, I had to mix and match. I thought it looked fine. Then I bought a case of large wide-mouthed canning jars and bunches of silk daisies. Small canning jars and white candles were also on the tables (they weren't set out at this picture taking time). 

 

We set up a small table at the entrance to the college cafeteria where we had the dinner. I put the canvas that Joel painted , framed engagement photos, a basket of tissues with labels that said "Joel & Katie - 5/23/10, and on the other side: "For Your Tears of Joy" (http://www.therapy4roses.blogspot.com/ gave me the idea)

We also quickly made a few tissue paper balls, thanks to http://www.allthingspinkandcrafty.blogspot.com/!

Keep in mind that I had to plan all this not knowing what the cafeteria was like, what I would have access to, etc. So I used what was on hand - like the plants and table above.

I had BBQ catered complete with banana pudding and sweet tea!

I think it was a success.

My friend, Jennifer (http://www.allthingspinkandcrafty.blogspot.com/) made my t-shirt! It says, "The Groom's Mama est. 1987 (Joel's birth year). I LOVE that shirt. I want to frame it.

The Wedding

The wedding was beyond beautiful and meaningful and just plain fun! The warehouse where the ceremony and reception was was amazing! Antiques and artwork all over the place! Very unique, very ecclectic, very suited to Joel and Kate.

My pictures didn't turn out very well, but the photographer has over 400 on her site: http://www.hingephotography.zenfolio.com/  Look for Bradshaw/Libramento wedding.

My nephew made the bride's bouquet and the boutineers. I made the bridesmaids pomanders. All out of silk flowers because we made them here in GA and carried them down to MS.

These pomanders were so easy to make and I made them fast! I took a 4 inch styrofoam ball and made a "needle" out of florist's wire. I strung the ribbon through the "needle" and shoved it through the center of the ball. I secured one end and left the other end loose. I cut up some peach colored silk hydrangeas, dipped the ends in styrofoam glue and stuck them in the ball until I covered the ball. When we got to the wedding, we measured each bridesmaid to find how far down we wanted the ball to hang, then tied the ribbon off. Those things traveled to MS and back and are still in great condition! I was amazed.

My friend, Lisa, made all the table centerpieces. They were incredible and she really caught the mood of the warehouse and did a great job!

We had a great time dancing and laughing and being with family that we haven't seen in a long time! There was just so much going on - meeting new family, crying, so many meaningful moments to take in that I can't possibly relate it all here.

When I got back home, I had to hit the ground running. Now that school is out, I'll be able to post more.

Joel's Wedding Shower

I've been too busy to blog! However, today marks the beginning of my Spring Break from school, so perhaps I'll be able to get a few entries in this week.
Last weekend, we had Joel and Katie's wedding shower. It was a success. We had about 60+ people attend. It was a drop-in shower so they didn't all come at once, thank goodness. All the hard work (that mostly Katie L. did) paid off. I really liked how it was all original and artsy and not store-bought typical. Here are a few pictures:

This is a sign that Katie made "Celebrating a new branch of our family tree"

This is a delicious strawberry cake that my nephew Troy made. It's Paula Deen's cousin Johnnie Gabriel's recipe. She owns a bakery in Marietta, 15 mins from our house. http://www.gabrielsdesserts.com/

We displayed the canvas that Joel painted for Katie when he proposed.

I made faux memory boards out of foam board, fabric, ribbon and buttons. I printed out pictures of Joel and Katie's time at college and Katie's family. Most of the people at the shower had never been to Joel's college or never met Katie's family, so I thought I'd give them a peek into their lives.

Since we had sort of a "tree", "growing" theme going on, I decided to give out seeds as party favors. Katie stamped her tree stamp on little brown bags (it was the same stamp that she used on the envelopes for the shower invitations), filled the bags with seeds and filed them in this little box that I made. The sign above says, "Feel free to take some seeds and Let Love Grow!"

I also had some candy/nut dishes that Jennifer made for them. You can find out how to make them at her site: http://www.allthingspinkandcrafty.blogspot.com/

I will post how I made the little box above later.