MOH Duties – Let the Countdown Begin

A little over a year ago I was thrilled to be asked by my high school best friend to be her Maid of Honor (MOH)!  I was also a bit worried and nervous that being a few states apart would hinder my MOH game and participation with planning things.  It’s hard enough for me to find my own ME time, that adding in extra planning that’re hours away would be just as hard. Well it’s almost go time, so no more excuses. We are 4-months out from Kates & Travis’ big day, which means there is a whole lot of bachelorette and bridal shower planning to do!

First batter up: The Bridal Shower
The bridal shower is in March, and I am helping her mom with as much as I can (mostly decorations) and hopefully ordering some custom cookies from Snicklefritz Bakeshop. Here are a few of the  decoration ideas I’ve found that I’m going to adapt for Kates’ shower.

Main items needed: Centerpieces | Cute signage for gift table | Signage for desserts, mimosas bar, food | banners | balloons

Of course I am going to adapt and make a lot of these pieces myself – I always love a good DIY.  I’ll also be in charge of wrangling the other bridesmaids to make game prize gift baskets, luckily we will be splitting this up, so it shouldn’t be too painful *famous last words*

Next batter up: The Bachelorette Party
Now I am not one for all of the typical bridal fo-pah stuff, so luckily it’s not me getting married :-)… yet… luckily Kates isn’t really either, so planning a fun weekend getaway for her is more like hosting a party than buying penis straws, cramming into a tight short skirt and going out solely to get drunk.

Originally Kates wanted to keep this SUPER low-key and have a ‘girls night in’ at her own house, I pushed her to explore at least a mini weekend getaway in wine country – it looks like that might be the winner.  Now all we have to figure out is how many people, the house, the limo bus, invitations, the food, the cost, and the rest of the 500 other logistical things I am probably forgetting 🙂   Planning is kind of on hold until I get more deets from my girl, and then it’ll be full swing – this will be in early May so still coming up in the very near future…. as long as winter usually feels, I have a feeling this is going to go by quick!  Until then, I am doing my research and vetting out options along with gaining inspiration to make this a fun and memorable weekend for Kates.

Thank goodness for Pinterest and all the inspiration and great ideas I’ve been getting – it also helps me think of creative, low cost ideas to adapt to make these events super special for Kates!

Let the planning begin!

 

#weekendhangover

What a weekend! It was so busy, and so much fun – so many awesome things happened.

The big focal point around the weekend, was celebrating my aunts’ wedding – yes you read that correctly aunts, plural.  They decided to get married last month, just 2-weeks after the big Supreme Court decision.  So finally on Saturday we got to celebrate their marriage with family and friends.  Family started pouring in for the weekend Friday night with festivities starting early Saturday!

I was the designated photographer for my aunts, so I was busy popping around to all 170 guests making sure everyone was photographed, not to mention the group shots and cake cutting!  The cake cutting was about the only ‘wedding reception-esq’ thing that happened, besides an open bar with endless drinks.

The night ended over at our house, with some more drinks and a smaller crowd of the family – I was happy to host everyone around our dining room table.

Saturday also was a big day for B’s family, his brother and sister-in-law welcomed their first little girl, Avery into the world. She is the first grandchild, so it was a big deal!  We went to the hospital Sunday afternoon to meet her and see the new mom and dad!

The weekend was full of close family, good friends, lots of laughs and more memories to add to the books.  Moz even got to meet her new cousin, Findley (my aunt’s new puppy).  It was a nonstop weekend full of fun. I definitely have a weekend hangover to start this Monday off.

throwback thursday – may 2014

This time last year, we were in the final stages and days before the Rite Aid half marathon… with full weekends before and after, the entire month! And this month, we have had a few busy weekends, but nothing nearly compared to last year.  As much as I complained and wanted a free weekend last year … and as much as I like to keep my free weekends this year, I feel like I am already off to a boring start to the “summer” with no real vacations or trips (just one) in the future sights.

So many great memories and milestones happened a year ago this month; #DazzleCLE, my cousin’s senior prom, B’s sister’s college graduation, our three year anniversary, we ran our 6th half marathon, our friend’s got married, my cousin’s HS graduation party, and B’s first time in NYC.

I’m grateful for all these memories and times, and can’t wait for all the unplanned moments this upcoming year!

Happy Thursday!

Four Weddings.

The wedding season is officially over for 2014. We attended four beautiful weddings over the past seven months, each couple different and each wedding beautiful in its own way. The bride’s were gorgeous and the drinks were a plenty…And no, I am not going to judge these on, dress, venue, food, and overall experience… but I did think about it!

Wedding #1 – 5.23.14
“The Bridal Party“

Location: Silver Lakes Country Club, Stow, OH
Colors: Navy + Grey
Hashtag: #ChechakWedding
Standout: The Steak! YUM

Our first wedding for the season was our dear friends, and B and I were both lucky enough to be in the bridal party! The day was special, and a long time coming for these two high school sweethearts. The night was beautiful and we sent the couple away with a sparkler send off.

Wedding #2 – 8.30.14
“Vermilion Getaway”

Location: The Rose Cafe, Lorain, OH
Colors: Navy + Seersucker
Hashtag: #IdTrappThat
Standout: Campbell’s Popcorn at the end of the night

Next on the tour was B’s coworker and now friend’s wedding. This may have taken place on one of the hottest days of the year, but we were excited for a little getaway in Vermilion, a cute little water town.  With views of the lake at the venue and a DJ crankin’ up the tunes, we helped shut down the reception.

Wedding #3 – 10.18.14
“A Hampel Wedding“

Location: Woodcliff Hotel & Spa, Fairport, NY
Colors: Navy + Grey
Hashtag: #allyouneedisloveSC
Standout: Pumpkin Centerpieces + Homemade Chocolate Covered Apples

This was my cousins wedding… and my Hampel family weddings are always a crazy good time. And this wedding did not disappoint.  The ceremony was heartfelt and tear-jerking and the reception was full of drinks and dancing, it was an awesome time (not to mention my whole family was there and they are pretty fun!)… we definitely paid for it the next day.

Wedding #4 – 11.1.14
“East Side Wedding”

Location: Nighttown, Cleveland, OH
Colors: Navy
Hastag: #TheyDidntHaveAHashtag *frown face*
Standout: Carmel Apple Cupcakes

My brother’s best friend from high school and also best man tied the knot this past weekend.  He was also a second brother to me growing up, and ironically we both moved out to Cleveland the same year for school.  This wedding was not your traditional wedding, but was effortlessly sweet with touches of fall throughout.  It was nice seeing old friends, plus my brother and sister-in-law for the weekend!

Wedding season is always a fun and busy time, but I am happy to have the 2014 wrapped-up, with the next wedding season already in sight.  My best friend since freshman year in high school got engaged last week and asked me to be her Maid of Honor this weekend! I am so excited and happy to be able to be by her side on such a special day, like we’ve both been for each other, for over a decade now. It will be a bit of a long distance, but that just means more weekend trips in to see her and help plan her big day!