springtime

"Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'" - Robin Williams

"No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn." - Hal Borland

"In the Spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt." - Margaret Atwood



Spring has surely sprung in Louisiana.

See? Some years, the azaleas hang on until around Easter. This year they're...eerr...a little early. Like a MONTH. But I'm not complaining. These pink beauties brought with them the most incredible weather which causes me to drag myself [kicking and screaming on the inside] into my windowless office. So you know where to find me on my lunch break. I call these "sunroof days." Louisiana averages about 4.5 per year. We'll take what we can get!

I greet Spring 2012 with some anticipation. A best friend becoming a mother, D graduating, tackling the second half of the first year of marriage, moving. And all the changes and experiences and lessons that come with those circumstances. Just as Winter makes me want to curl up and slow down and reflect, Spring causes me to increase my pace, make changes, and embrace newness.

And who couldn't love Spring? I say this until we're back up into the 90 degree weather. Then I'll complain about my hair falling as soon as I step outside or sweating from my car to the office. But, until then, let's bask in all the freshness Spring brings our flannel-and-firewood-filled eyes.

place setting / toile / pillow / bouquet / rug / dress / dinner party / pants / ice cream

shower inspiration

Some of my favorite memories of our entire engagement time will be our showers. I will always remember a phone call with Abs while we were both engaged when she, as she often does, took the words right out of my mouth. She told me how she was overwhelmed with the thoughtfulness and provision that she experienced through showers and parties and other ways friends and family provided for them as newlyweds. I couldn't have agreed more. It is as if those family and friends are standing beside you saying that they want you to survive and thrive, that they believe in this union, that they want you to be a part of this giant leap into a new phase of life. Knowing what a blessing that is, it makes shower-throwing much more than flowers and mini quiches punch bowls. Not that I don't love those things. I do. And pretty tea napkins, too.

So, with some betrothed as well as about-to-pop friends, I made myself baby and bridal shower inspirations boards. Enjoy - and feel free to leave more ideas below!

invitation / baby's breath / cupcake bar / drink flags / brown paper menu / punch / arrangement / tablescape 

cupcakes / book signing / onesie / breakfast food / silverware / cookies / popcorn / tablecloth / embroidery

The excitement I feel when planning a shower or party is equal to this [prepare for a mix of my favorite SNL skit and some Jessie Spano]:

I'm not kidding. This is not an exaggeration. When we move to South Carolina, I've got to make some engaged and pregnant friends STAT.

wedding wednesday: moving and a shaking

I spent my weekend in Ruston [aka the wedding-planning mothership] for the main purpose of adding some checks to that to-do list. It was suc-cess-ful!

Over the past several years, I've saved over 1,000 photos in my "Wedding Ideas" folder. I'm a little more embarrassed of that now that I read it out loud. It's just because I've been wedding-obsessed since I was little bitty. Well, very young. I was never actually little bitty.

You can imagine that I wouldn't want to include that many ideas into one wedding, so I had to majorly scale it down into one concise vision. Which is super fun, I might add. So, I thought I'd give all you faithful readers a sneak-peek of some of the ideas we chose to incorporate. None of them will be exactly like the inspiration pictures - got to put our own vintage spin on them, of course. And it won't ruin a surprise on the big day [which is officially less than two months away...WHOA]. 

1. Lots and lots and lots of candlelight 

2. Lots of beautiful girls in a beautiful neutral platinum 

3. Blush, "ruffly" flowers, as we call them

4. Vintage hang-tag programs - really excited to get to make these!

5. Old family photos to remind family and guests of their big days

6. Bread bread bread - thankfully, our awesome caterer just spent a couple months in Italy and fell deeper in love with my favorite food

7. Door letters - the next item on the DIY list

It's also safe to say that we'll have enough mercury glass to use it on every surface of our home...for the rest of our lives.