the wedding march

 
 
 
It's almost here! The cutest sweetest couple. And the prettiest wedding invitations I've ever seen! (Can you tell I'm partial to the couple here ;)

 
And the wedding... oh, it's going to be gorgeous!

 
The girlfriends shower seems like ages ago already; it's the post I've been trying to sit down and compose for forever now... on a dead run here for the last month putting together the shower and wedding details. I've decided on posting craft projects made for the wedding after the wedding... no more time left for anything else! Doing good to get this up today.

Company is in town and now it's down to the last little details, wedding rehearsal dinner, and the Big Day.

 
 
Our shower gift. If you are ever in the market for a wonderful all-purpose tote, Papaya! online is the store to order from. I've had a Papaya! tote bag for a few years now, and it's been used at the beach, the pool, as an airplane carry on, and as a craft bag. I think it's just the thing for a honeymoon trip to Hawaii. (Ainsley's girlfriends teased her about her crocheting projects winding up at the bottom of the bag, but hey, that's how the Henderson girls roll :)

 

 
I made Hawaiian barbecue sauce over shredded chicken for the main course. And of course, if it's a Hawaii beach theme party, paper umbrellas are very necessary ;)

 

 

 
When it was dusk, we lit Tiki torches around the yard. It was a sweltering summer night (we have so few of them here, they always come as a surprise) and the flowers on the cake melted before I could snap a photo.

 
But it still ate good...

 I fussed around forever to make this double fudge espresso cake for my coffee-loving girl. Two fallen cakes later, I bought a double fudge mix, added extra chocolate chips, a little cinnamon, and two teaspoons of instant espresso.

It worked.

So much for my Cake Boss fantasies...

 
We played a few games after dinner. I won the who knew the bride-to-be best game. Good thing, since I'm her mom. Kinda felt like cheating when I won the prize for first place.

This was my favorite shower idea though. Ainsley's friend, Alicia, the game maven, came up with this one too. Ribbon to wrap the stems of the bridal bouquet (with another layer of wide ribbon over the top of the printed ribbon to cover the writing) with all sorts of advice for staying happily married. Everyone wrote a few bits of advice.

My fav: laugh with each other and not at each other!

(Still can't quite believe my little girl is getting married!)

Be back mid-week next week, after the wedding is over and I've had a day or two to recover.

Wishing you a wonderful week.

XoKelly

(Crossing our fingers and praying for good weather for this outdoor wedding!)

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Deb]

Hi Kelly
Gorgeous Engagement photos!
I love the idea of writing messages on the ribbon and having it in Ainsley bouquet ♥
Sending love & Best Wishes.

[Traci]

so exciting. best wishes to all of you for a fun, beautiful wedding weekend. i love their invitations. so pretty.

[Ainsley]

Thanks for everthing Mom!!! You're pics on here are amazing! You'll have to give me the recipe for the cake when I get home! Hawaii is beautiful!!! Love love :)