His Office Held Hostage - Is That A Wedding Gown On My File Cabinet?

Our house may soon be asked to appear on "Hoarders" I have never seen so many piles of stuff in my life.

Boxes and boxes of flowers, candles (but alas, no gold, green glittery ones), candle holders, tulle, lanterns, wreaths, glue guns, lights, trees, napkins, fake china, my 7th grade science teacher Mr. Dewberry, cups, votives, fabric swatches, olive oil dispensers...the list could go on for days.

And where are all these precious treasures being stored? Why, in the only room in the house that doesn't have squatters someone living in it...the father of the bride's teeny-tiny sanctuary from the world...his office.

Overnight, his office has been transformed into a bargain bin craft store.

Lots of foot traffic in his office lately. Lots of browsing going on. Lots of time spent deciding the perfect spot for each new box that arrives from Ted. Who's Ted? Ted is the UPS guy that we used to see once every 8 months.

Our families are now spending Thanksgiving together this year.

I guess it could be worse. I know that soon, all the boxes will be empty and their treasures will be tucked away for safe keeping (or sold on craigslist). And the father of the bride will have his office back.

I just hope I can send Mr. Dewberry back C.O.D.

And We Have Our Winner!

Congratulations Jessica K!

We're Havin' A Heat Wave! A Tropical Heat Wave...Not Really...Just A Giveaway!

**********Comments Are Closed**********

I'm having a giveaway today just to have one! No bad ideas to guess, all you have to do is just leave a comment! And the topic? What else...weddings!

Leave a comment about weddings. It can be a favorite memory of your wedding or even someone else's. Maybe it's something from a royal wedding or a sibling's ceremony. Your neighbor's granddaughter's wedding or the recent Kardashian circus wedding.

One of my favorite things about a wedding was something special Mark and I did at the end of our ceremony. Before we walked down the aisle, we each gave a long stemmed rose to our mothers. Mark gave one to my mother and I gave one to his. Just a way of saying we were truly family now.

Another special moment happened at our friends Kara and George's wedding. The entire wedding party was in place and before the bride came down the aisle, the bride's brother, who was performing the ceremony, instructed the groom about his new role as her husband. When he finished, he told the groom to turn and "behold your bride". And there she was, waiting to walk down the aisle to him. Wow.

Or seeing the groom's first initial beaded onto the train of the bride's gown. That was pretty neat. Ok, so I wasn't there in person for that wedding.

It was Fergie and Prince Andrew's wedding.

And we all know how that turned out.

But still, I really liked the monogram.

So what's been a favorite part of a wedding for you?

Someone's special vows? The cake being smushed into the groom's face? Cute flower girls and ring bearers? Just name it!

And here's the prize!

(1) one $25 VISA gift card

Just leave a comment (just one!) and when time is up, I'll pick a winner out of the hat. It's just that easy!

Comments will be closed on Sunday, August 28, 2011 at 11:00 p.m. Eastern

Bouquets & Rice: Week 6 - Eeyore's In The House

Some odds and ends from this week....

Came home yesterday and was greeted by three big boxes sitting in the little office at home...slap full of fake flowers. We spend the evening watching the bride prance around the house, holding the flowers like a bouquet.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I never thought I would say this but I'm tired. Of craft stores.

*sigh*

Used to be, I could spend an afternoon wandering up and down the aisles of a craft store, lost in the possibilities of "what can I make?" Not so much anymore.

*sigh*

It's become a quest, a chore, another thing to cross off the weekly list of wedding stuff to do.

*sigh*

Maybe I need some hormones.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My plan to lose 783 pounds before the wedding has lost steam. And the chocolate-dipped cones at McDonald's are not helping. I really like those babies. And they really don't like me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Man, this post is kinda depressing. So let me share some exciting news! I found my dress! And it was right under my nose the whole time...

That would be me, at Halloween (don't ask, it was the early 80's).

I haven't shown it to the bride yet but I think she'll be good with it, don't you?

Ahoy Mateys

from dictionary.com...

mutiny [myoot-n-ee]
noun, plural -nies, verb, -nied, -ny·ing.

noun

1. revolt or rebellion against constituted authority, especially by sailors against  their officers.

2. rebellion against any authority.

verb (used without object)

3. to commit the offense of mutiny; revolt against authority.

Last week I was starting to sense something around the house...a presence, a vibe, a feeling...

Turns out, I had a wedding planning mutiny a-brewin'.

Now at first, I though it was all in my head (which is not an uncommon occurrence among my people, oh the tales I could tell) but I was pretty sure I was right about this one.

All because I began to notice subtle changes around the house. Like...

*The conversations about the wedding that stopped when I walked into the room. (ok, so I knew they were talking about the wedding because I was listening in the hallway)

*The sideways glances at one another when I mentioned picking out flowers for the bouquets.

*The rolling of eyes each time I reminded the happy couple of how pretty those gold, green glittery candles would look on their reception tables.

And then finally the other day, the last piece of evidence that a mutiny was on the horizon reared it's ugly head...

my wedding planner went missing.

Oh yeah. They were coming for me. So I did the only thing I knew to do. 

I tattled. 

I told the bride's dad what I suspected and with a couple of fists of fury he crushed the rising revolt (ok, not really fists of fury...he sat everyone down in the family room and we talked about it). But that was the end of it,  no more wedding planning mutiny. 

And they promised to stop calling me "Capt'n Bligh".

It's Chocolate. It's Marshmallows. It's Graham Crackers. What's Not Too Love?

I like salad bars. And coffee bars. And juice bars. And candy bars. And...well, you get the picture.

And the other day a good friend mentioned having a pizza bar at the reception and she got me thinking, "why stop at a pizza bar? why not have an "all bar" reception? what better way to feed a couple hundred of your closest friends?"

And not only that, but just think of some of the extra benefits to an "all bar" reception...

*We wouldn't need to set up any tables, just set some bars stools out and have at it.

*Put up a few sneeze guards and we could open up to the public and charge by the plate (the coffee bar alone could pay for the honeymoon)

*Make styrofoam to-go plates and hair nets available to all the guests

*Decorating the bars could be a snap. Stainless steel goes with everything

*I could sneak have some Italian Green Beans on the salad bar 

I tried to convince the happy couple that this would be the way to go for their reception. And I almost had them on board. That is until I mentioned the Smores lounge. Yes, a Smores lounge.

Hey if it's good enough for Reese Witherspoon it's good enough for the happy couple. I first heard about the Smores lounge while perusing the waiting room bible (People magazine) at my doctor's office. Mrs. whatever-her-last-name-is-now had one at her recent wedding reception in Los Angeles. And I thought it would be a really cool thing to do.

Alas, the happy couple thought otherwise.

While technically not a "bar" the Smores lounge would have benches or lawn chairs (take your pick) around a fire in a self contained pit with chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows available. Plus sticks for roasting your marshmallows! You can't forget sticks!

When describing the Smores lounge to the happy couple the bride's only comment was, "Open flames, gooey marshmallows and my wedding gown all in the same room? I don't think that's a good idea, mom."

I tried...maybe I can convince the groom to have a juice bar at the rehearsal dinner.

So our correct choices are A and B! And our winner is Angel R.!

It's An Easy Giveaway!

**********Comments Are Closed**********

Oops! I missed the Friday giveaway! But I had a really good reason...it was the maid of honor's birthday yesterday and we celebrated by going to dinner and then for ice cream...

Ok, so I not only had one bad idea this week, I had two. Yes, two (it was a banner week). And it's your turn to guess which two they are...

We've been talking some about the reception this past week and all the details that need to be figured out. And I'm all about easy. Whatever's the easy way, I'm your gal. So which TWO of the following statements were my ideas for an "easy reception"...and what are you playing for?

How about...

(1) one $30 gift card to Subway

can't get much easier for dinner that that!

Here's how you play:

Read the three statements below and choose the TWO you think I actually "discussed" with the bride. TWO of the statements are absolutely true. I really thought they were a good idea. And then they were turned down quicker than Speedy Gonzales grabbing a piece of cheese.

Leave (just one!) comment with your guess of which TWO bad ideas I had (A, B or C) and when times up, I'll put all the correct guesses in a bowl and pick a winner!

so here we go.......which TWO of the following ideas do you think I suggested to the bride last week?

I thought it would be a great idea to...

A. Who needs a sit-down dinner at the reception? How about all bars, all the time...coffee bar, candy bar, pizza bar, cake pop bar, salad bar, juice bar...the possibilities are endless. 

B.  Instead of the wedding cake, have a smores lounge...in one corner of the reception hall: campfire, lawn chairs, marshmallows, chocolate bars (oooh another bar!) graham crackers...the works.

C.  Instead of the wedding cake, I make cupcakes. For 250 people. The night before the wedding.

Comments will be closed on Sunday, August 21, 2011 at 11:00 p.m. Eastern

You're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat

I've shared before about my love for all things coupons. The thrill of getting 50 cents off a can of green beans is almost like winning lotto. Almost.

I mean you don't have reporters surrounding you when you luck upon a box of spaghetti on sale with BOGO coupon. And you don't get a large cardboard receipt instead of a large cardboard check when saltines go on clearance.

Nevertheless, you add into the mix, a coupon for wedding stuff? It can send me into a slight tizzy. For instance:

A few weeks ago I had some coupons for those clicking candle lighter thingies. And the bride and I went to our local big box discount store to do some shopping and we decided to pick the lighters up. But (gasp) the big box discount store didn't have the brand we were looking for but as luck would have it, a store clerk mentioned that the dollar store down the street happened to carry those lighters.

And they were on sale.

As quickly as she said "on sale", something happened to me. I fell into a shark feeding frenzy mode. You know those videos of sharks, eating big chunks of fish, black eyes rolling back into their heads, jaws chomping down frantically on their prey?

Yeah, that was me in the middle hardware section at the big box discount store.

I grabbed all the the coupons I had in my bag, shoved them towards the bride and said, (normal voice...) "Ok, go over there and (voice starting to get a little louder...) Grab All The Clicky Candle (voice starting to get a touch shrill...) Lighter Thingies (and now I'm yelling...)YOU CAN GET YOUR HANDS ON! QUICK!!!"

I must have been flashing back to the one and only time I waited outside in the freezing cold, in line overnight, to get into the big box discount store the day after Thanksgiving. I guess I was afraid I would be be trampled by the stampede of all the other crazed mothers of the brides, all wanting the same coveted clicking candle lighter thingies.

Of course I was the only person in the store looking for them.

I sent the bride over to the dollar store to get them and stayed in the big box discount store, picking up a few groceries as I waited. After about 20 minutes, the bride found me on the bread aisle. She was empty handed, except for the half dozen coupons I had so brutally shoved into her sweet hands.

Sighing and shaking her pretty brunette head, she gently handed me back the clicking candle lighter thingies coupons.

I forgot to give her some money.

Bouquets & Rice: Week 5 - You Light Up My Life

Some odds and ends from this week...

I dreamed about gold, glittery green candles the other night...maybe it's a sign. *sigh* oh, precious...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We've recently purchased some flame-less, scent-less votive candles and every time, without fail, that I pick one up...I smell it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unity candles have been a popular wedding staple for years. And I can't remember any wedding in the last 15 or so years that we've attended, that at some moment during the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom would pause, and as a meaningful song played, light a unity candle.Yep, don't think I've been to a wedding where that didn't happen. Until now...

That streak comes to an end in January.

Nope, the happy couple are not having a unity candle. Or unity sand for that matter. Or even any unity-building games, like the trust fall (picture it, the maid of honor falling backwards from the stage into the arms of the groomsmen) or the shoe game (groom's side of the church versus the bride's side...everyone takes off their shoes, puts them in two big piles and the first side that gets everyone's shoes on wins).

We could even play the human scavenger hunt game...

Oh well, it's been a good run.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The bride and I had a slight disagreement this week over renting candelabras to use in the church during the ceremony.

I want them and she doesn't.

And I can't seem to give her a reason to rent them other than,

"Oh, but they are soooo pretty!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Last week we bought two vanilla-scented pillar candles that are each bigger than a full roll of paper towels.

And I keep forgetting to smell them.

Once Upon A Time...

We were talking about the reception recently and we hit a small bump in the road...

The wedding is being held in the middle of January.

And the happy couple wants the reception in a tent.

Since we live in Florida we won't have snow to deal with, but it will be cold. Or 70 degrees. Or raining. Or foggy. That's pretty much winter here, you never know whatcha gonna get.

So we've been looking online at tents to rent. And surprisingly the selection is pretty varied. But I'm beginning to feel a little like Goldilocks...

this tent is too big...

this tent is too drab...

this tent is too small...

and this tent is...well, hmmm...

Maybe I'll just grab a bowl of porridge and call it a night.

Our Winner!

According to Marie Claire magazine two of the top 11 craziest wedding trends for 2011 are...

*Requiring bridesmaids to have plastic surgery
*Life size bride wedding cakes

So that means our fake wedding trend is A, receptions being catered by fast food restaurants! And our winner is Lori B.! And our prize this week is (1) one $25 gift card to Wendy's!

So be very careful...you could end up at a wedding where all the bridesmaids can't blink because of the botox and your piece of wedding cake may look like the bride's elbow. Bridezillas for sure :)

It's A Miracle, But We're Still Having A Giveaway Anyway

**********Comments Are Closed**********

I didn't have any bad wedding ideas this week.

It's a miracle.

Well, it's not really a miracle in the biblical sense of the word but all in all a week without any bad wedding ideas from me is something special.

But...I still wanted to have a giveaway this week. So in honor of my tiny victory (and much to the bride's relief) this week's bad wedding idea giveaway is all about...

  Wedding Trends

I wrote a post this past week about the latest wedding trends (actually some have been around for a while, it's just when I planned my wedding, the latest trends included wedding dresses like this...

 and bridesmaid dresses that looked like this...)

 

So I'm probably not the greatest barometer of the latest and most current wedding trends. But that being said, I've done some homework and I've found a few wedding trends that are pretty...umm, well they're unusual...

But here's the catch...two out the three trends are true, and you need to pick which wedding trend is a fake, a falsehood, a fabrication, a fable, a fallacy, a fib...just pick the one that's not true.

Leave (just one!) comment with your guess (A, B or C) and when times up, I'll put all the correct guesses in a bowl and pick a winner!

so here we go.......which one of the following do you think is the false wedding trend...

A. Receptions being catered by fast food restaurants.

Instead of your choice of chicken or salmon you get your choice of  La-Nuggets (with all the honey mustard sauce you can handle) or a Captain Pete's fried shrimp sandwich! Toasting with champagne? Naw, cookies n' cream shakes for the house! And that pesky wedding cake? Replaced by fried fruit pies in convenient cardboard sleeves!

B. Required plastic surgery for bridesmaids.

Just thinking how you go about telling someone they need plastic surgery in order to be in your wedding is mind boggling. Good thing my mind is boggled. I think it might go a little something like this:

Bride: Susie, I've know you all my life. You're my best friend. I can't imagine having anyone but you standing next to me as I marry the man of my dreams. Would you do me the honor of being my maid of honor?

Susie: Oh, yes! I would love to be your maid of honor! We have so much to plan! Where do you want to start? Looking for gowns? Choosing your colors?

Bride: How about we start with those crow's feet you've been sportin'. You're gonna have to get some "help" with those babies. I've made you an appointment with Dr. Botox next Thursday.

C.  Having a life size wedding cake of the bride.

Yes, a life size cake, that looks like the bride in her wedding gown. Does the number of guests who get a piece of cake depend on the dress size of the bride? (ouch, kinda catty) What happens if the cake looks better than the bride? (oooh, another swipe, meow) Do you save and freeze her head to eat on your first anniversary? (hiss)

So there's your choices...and what are you playing for? Well, that's a surprise! I'll announce it when I list the winner!

Comments will be closed on Saturday, August 13, 2011 at 11:00 p.m. Eastern

Home From A 24 Hour Vacation

Went fishing and fellowshipping with a couple of good friends the last day or so...and only talked about the wedding once the entire 24 hours! A new personal best! Look for a giveaway later today!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

It's been 26 or so years since I've been involved in the planning of a wedding and like most things in life weddings have certainly changed. And there are so many things popular today that we hadn't even heard of way back then...things like...

*Organic wedding bands*
Now unless its made out of some kind of pesticide-free metal I'm not quite getting organic wedding bands. I did see a wooden wedding band for sale online the other day, but I guess just because something is made out of wood, doesn't necessarily mean it's organic. I just always think that, if it's wood, it's organic...wood, organic...wood comes from trees, trees are natural....

I could hop down that rabbit trail for days.

*Cake Pops*
Being served at receptions everywhere, it's cake on a lollipop stick.
Yep, I'm good with that one.
Throw in some frosting and I'm circling the dessert table like a buzzard over roadkill the rest of the night.

*Save the Date cards*
An invitation telling you an invitation is coming. It's like an early warning device the army might use, except it's designed for the wedding season.

"Warning! There's a wedding invitation coming five months from tomorrow! Here's your warning that the real invitation is coming! Take all precautions! Warning!"

(Warning! The happy couple's Save the Date card goes out in two weeks! You have been warned!)

*Candy Bars*
Tables loaded with free candy. Good with that one too.

*Satin Ribbon Wands, Sparklers, Bubbles, Doves, Butterflies...the list is endless*
What ever happened to throwing rice? Or even birdseed? All I know is that if someone had chucked a dove at me and my new hubby as we walked out of the church there would have been trouble.

*Dogs as ring bearers, ushers, maids of honor*
Fido in a tux, with our organic wedding bands tied around his neck? I don't think so.

Things certainly have changed in the last 26 years, some good, some not so good.

Cake pops and candy tables? Very good.

The Groom - Tennis Anyone?

I've got to hand it to the groom. He occasionally hits the nail on the head. We were in the family room this evening, talking about what else, the wedding and the bride and I were having a slight disagreement. And when we turned to the groom, and asked him to take a side, he very wisely (wiser than most 19 year old's might be) said,

"I'm Switzerland"

A pearl, a nugget, a gem from this guy...

(photo by Jon Fletcher)

That would be the groom on the right, aka John McEnroe

and the bride's brother is on the left, as who else but Jimmy Connors...

they're dressed this way for 80's night at our Vacation Bible School last week...

 and look like they just stepped out of the men's sportswear section 

of the 1982 Sears catalog.

gotta love Switzerland

They're Gold. They're Green. They're Glittery. What More Could You Ask For? (Oh, And We Have A Winner Too)

As we were walking down the aisle of the craft store, we rounded the corner and that's when I saw them.

Hanging on a rack, just waiting for me to discover them. Like Christopher Columbus. Like Lewis & Clark. Like that guy who discovered the Milky Way...I can never remember his name...

Anyway, there they were...

They were gold.
They were green.
They were glittery.

Really, really glittery.

As I reached for the gold glittered green candles (try saying that fast three times...gold glittered green candles, gold glittered green candles, gold glittered green candles...) the bride looked at me as if to say, "What do you think you're doing?"

But feeling a little like Gollum and his ring, I was drawn to them. They were calling out to me. With a wide grin and a glazed look in my eyes, I turned to the bride, and while nodding my head said, "Oh Kaitlin, what do you think of these?"

*sigh*

She passed on the gold glittered green candles. Needless to say, I was disappointed. But I don't think I helped my cause any. When I asked her what she thought of the candles, I was holding them next to my cheek, slightly petting them and by that point had called them, "Precious" at least four times.

As we turned the corner and headed down the next aisle, I looked back at the gold glittered green candles, and for just a second I thought I heard them whisper, "please, please take us with you. you know you want too"

I've got to stop watching "Lord of the Rings" every night.

And that means the correct statement is B! And our winner is Mary!

"Name That Bad Idea" Giveaway - All That Sparkles & Shines

**********Comments Are Closed**********

Okie dokie, it's Friday again and this week our "Name That Bad Idea" giveaway has a little sparkle to it...a little glitz, a little glamour...and of course, totally tasteful (Ha! *cough, *cough oops, sorry...just spit out my coffee)

We've spend a lot of time in stores looking for items to decorate the church and reception hall. And while this isn't unusual, something strange has begun happening to me.

I've become unexpectedly drawn to shiny, glittery, sparkly objects.

Usually my taste runs to the low key (ok, boring) and the bride definitely has subtle taste but this wedding planning stuff has done something to my DNA. Last weekend, we were walking down an aisle in a craft store when suddenly I stopped in my tracks, lifted my nose into the air, took a sniff and said "I smell a Bedazzler two aisles over".

Which can only mean one thing...shiny, glittery, sparkly bad ideas.

So that means you get the chance to choose which shiny, glittery, sparkly bad idea I shared with the bride is actually true. And what is the giveaway this week? Well, how about you pick something shiny, glittery and sparkly for yourself? The prize is:

(1) One $25 VISA gift card

Here's how you play:

Read the three statements below and choose the one you think I actually "discussed" with the bride. One of the statements is absolutely true. I really thought it was a good idea. And then it was toss out like a mirrored disco ball at a square dance. 

Leave (just one!) comment with your guess (A, B or C) and when times up, I'll put all the correct guesses in a bowl and pick a winner!

so here we go.......which one of the following do you think I suggested to the bride last week?

I thought it would be a great idea to...

A. Put shiny satin bows in the bridesmaids hair...orange shiny satin bows

B. Purchase long, green tapered candles that have been rolled in gold glitter (the kind we used for school projects) for all the reception tables

C. Have the bride wear a sparkly top with "Future Mrs. B." embroidered across the back at the rehearsal dinner.

Comments will be closed on Saturday, August 6, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern

Bouquets & Rice: Week 3 - My Laptop Runneth Over

Some odds and ends from this week...

Have I mentioned that the bride finally found her wedding gown? I wasn't sure if I had written a post about it or not...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Top 10 Wedding-Related Items I Googled This Week:

10. olives
  9. green heart-shaped beads
  8. fake china (it was late and I couldn't think of the word "chinet")
  7. Moroccan lanterns
  6. table runners
  5. the letter B (also the letters K and J...don't ask)
  4. peonies wreaths
  3. carousels (yes, really)
  2. battery operated "firefly" lights

and the number one wedding-related item I googled this week:

  1. pickle forks

(thanks Dave L. for the inspiration)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The night before we found "the one" the bride and I were sitting in our family room, both of us with a laptop, trolling page after page of gowns:

Me: ok, how about page 3, top row, middle picture?
Kaitlin: no, too many ruffles, check out page 7, middle section, last picture on the right.
Me: no, that won't work, out of our price range...
Kaitlin: well, then what do you think of the one right below it?
Me: that one's very pretty, what about on the next....

I think the salesgirl was really excited to see us the next day with our laptops.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Been watching a few wedding videos on youtube lately, just to get some ideas about the ceremony...and found this little gem...

Do They Make Wedding Crocs?

Now that the bride has her dress (I'm still pinching myself, just to make sure that it's been purchased and ordered...I've been repeating "it's not a dream, it really happened, they took the check" over and over since last night) we've begun thinking about what we should accomplish next...a new goal...

And that new goal would be shoes.

The bride is a statuesque young lady (at 5'11) and she's never felt comfortable in heels. So she's been considering wearing a shoe in a very low heel or possibly even flats on their wedding day. But whatever shoes she decides on, one thing is for sure...they have to be comfortable.

Because the last thing she wants to be doing on their wedding day is the old lady shuffle. There's enough of that going on around our house when I get up in the morning.

As we've begun talking a little bit about shoes in the last day or two, (I never thought I'd be having a serious conversation around the dinner table in which the discussion starts with, "I was thinking about shoes the other day.") I've started to get a funny feeling that hunt for the right shoes may be as intense as the wedding gown search.

While we were at the bridal store, as the bride (still clipped into her new wedding gown) was taking her eighth "Yay!-I-finally-found-it!" victory lap around the store, I took a peek at the store's selection of bridal shoes.

White shoe after white shoe in every style possible. Heels, flats, stilettos, platforms, pumps, sandals, skimmers, mules, slippers...even athletic shoes with pretty bows and bling. I started to get a little dizzy as I was standing there in front of the wall of shoes. Kinda like I was in a game of Ring-around-the-Rosy. And then this thought crossed my mind,

"I wonder if she'd be willing to go barefoot?"

Let the shoe hunt begin!

Late Breaking News! She Found "The One!"

*cue the theme music from "Rocky"*

This afternoon the bride and I ventured back into the big city, back to the first store, back to the first salesgirl...

and found "the one".


The elusive one, the one that's been hidden in between the silver racks, the one that's been lurking among the reeds, the one that's been taunting us from the dense grove of trees, the one that...yea, ok I know, enough already...yep, we found the bride's wedding gown!

It's perfect for her. And yet not at all what I thought she would like in a wedding gown. Makes sense huh?

We went to the store armed with a short list of dresses she found online, pulled four off the rack and never got to the last one. Lucky number three was it. She tried it on and suddenly there it was. The Look. She hadn't had that look before with any of the other gowns. And then I couldn't get her out of it to go home.

After walking around the store with the gown on for about a half hour, I finally got her to give the gown back by promising to take her to Mickey D's for an ice cream cone. That usually works with Kaitlin. Not so much with Taryn. With Taryn, it usually takes cash.

So...after a few weeks of searching and stressing...

We have a wedding gown. 

We have a veil. 

We have a crinoline. 

We have a sash.

We have a necklace.

We have to tell her father how much it all cost.

The Wedding Gown - Round Three

We went back out on Saturday...another town, another store (actually two stores)...and no dress.

On our ride home, I was starting to feel discouraged and so was the bride. Dress after dress, looking online and in stores, with close to 20 different gowns put on and taken off, our options were starting to look dim and dire.

But then suddenly last night, poking around online, I found it...this could be "the one"...

The latest couture wedding gown, fresh from the runways in Paris...made entirely out of toilet paper.

And I've got coupons!