Sunday, July 17, 2011

Sweet Tales from the Wedding


After months of planning, and countless hours of work on the part of innumerable people, Kristen and Peter’s wedding went off beautifully. I didn’t take very many pictures as I was busy with so many other things, and we had a photographer, but I hope to post pictures when they become available.

In the meantime, here are a few random stories from our weekend that I wanted to be sure to share.

1. Miracles of Miracles!! There were two miracles I witnessed this past weekend. The first is that my back held up through all the work and stress. I have a bad back and usually when I am in a highly stressful situation, or having to do a lot of physical work, my back flares up and I end up flat down in bed. This time I didn't have any serious back problems until the very end of the reception. But even then I made it through all the clean up!! Truly a miracle.

The second miracle was the weather!! It has been very hot here in Phoenix--about 105-110 degrees and somewhat humid. However, on the day of the wedding, I walked outside early in the morning and felt COOL air!! We had some pictures taken around 7 and additional pictures afterward and we never felt terribly hot. It was such a blessing!!!

1. I #2. A League of Their Own. I had a vision for the reception and worked for several months to make it a reality. The day finally arrived for us to set up and while my husband and several others tackled the drop ceiling, I went to work with two friends to create a faux gazebo where the musicians would perform. Before going to the church, I put together a box with everything I could think of that might be needed. I had string, wire, wire cutters, scissors, duct tape etc. I was so pleased with myself for being so prepared and proudly displayed my box to my friends. Sonia Holmes looked in it and then asked, “Where's the chocolate?” A big oversight to be sure. But soon Sonia and Michelle Hill were pulling out screws, screwdrivers and ladders from their supplies, and I quickly realized I was out of my league on this one. I was so glad they were there, and even happier to leave the construction of the gazebo to their capable care. They both were awesome and stayed many hours making sure everything was perfect!!

And here is a little sneak preview of how it looked. This was taken before the centerpieces arrived but gives you a basic idea. The structure in the back is what Michelle and Sonia put together using Kristy's 8 foot posts and 5 gallon buckets.

#3. DIY to the Extreme! I really wish I had a picture of the wedding cake!! Kristen did not want to serve cake and she did not want to pay for an expensive cake that wasn’t going to be served. So, being the resourceful, thrifty person she is, she decided to make the cake herself—with fondant frosting. Now she had never used fondant before, but she had seen several you tube tutorials, so she felt perfectly qualified. Unfortunately the frosting was very hard, did not roll out well, and consequently was rather impossible to smooth over the cake. In some places there were folds, and in other places very noticeable gaps, leaving the chocolate cake exposed. No problem! Ribbon and silk flowers rushed to the rescue. Personally, I voted to throw it out and replace it with something from the store (especially when a pink substance started oozing from one of the gaps in the frosting), but Kristen insisted on putting it on display. (Much to my chagrin. :-)When it came time to cut the cake, they could barely get the knife through it, but in the end they did, each took a bite, and after the reception I happily threw the poor little cake into the garbage

#4. Secret Elves . . . I am so grateful to the many, many people who helped set up for the reception. They truly were a little army and did an amazing job. Wes and I worked from around noon to 4:30 but then had to leave to attend the wedding dinner—the night before the wedding. Our friends kept working, however, and when we returned around 9:30 there were only a few minor detail things that were left to do. Since we had an early day ahead of us, we went home around 10, leaving the mess from setting up in the cultural hall, with the plan to return after the wedding to clean it up. But when we returned the next day, we discovered that everything had been cleaned, the floor swept and the halls and lobby vacuumed!! I honestly started to cry. Thanks so much to the Carlini family and Doug Nelson for all their hard work!! It was very much appreciated. Thanks also to Doug for spending so many hours fixing the electrical problems so we could have all the lighting!!

4. And speaking of thanking people . . . thanks to Lisa Nelson for sewing the cute table cloths, Suzie Jones for the darling aprons, the entire Sheffield family who came to set up, Kristy Rose and family for the posts we used for the “gazebo”, as well as the lights for the ceiling, Jodi Poston for the plastic used for the ceiling, David and Vicky Goss for the backdrops, my daughter in law, Kali for the cute floral swag she made and the other decorations she borrowed from her cousin Becky Stone, Susan Hunter and Jenny Carlini for the food table display, Connie Purtymun for her table cloths, Bryan Purtymun for all of his help with the ceiling along with his son in law Andrew Darrow, Phyllis Leber for loaning me her chair covers, Matt Bullock for serving as Emcee, Jen Collins for the beautiful flowers used by the wedding party and Jackie McAfterty for the gorgeous centerpieces—as well as a thank you to all who helped set up, take down and donated greenery, cut up fruit in advance and served the food at the reception. Whew!!!! ( I have more thanking to do but will save it for other posts.)

It was a wonderful, beautiful day for our family, and there is no way we could have done it without all of your help!! How blessed we are to have you all in our lives!

We love you all!!

7 comments:

Momza said...

Wow! Camille and I were just talking about your talents as a party planner...you are amazing, Lori! So much work! I too, was in charge of decorating for a wedding Saturday. It was outdoors at a park, with a gazebo in the middle of a little lake. It was nowhere near the work you put into yours--we just used potted florals and boston ferns around the gazebo and tulle with floral garlands on the bridge rails. And that was it. Seriously, the set-up took exactly one hour. lol We didn't have to decorate for the reception tho--and you did an outstanding job! Congratulations to your whole family. Can't wait for the pics to come. And you also have a load of true friends in your life. Which I think, makes celebrations like these even sweeter.

Susan Anderson said...

I'm glad everything went so well. It's amazing how all the hours of work and planning seem to come together and create the perfect memories.

Can't wait to see more pics!

=)

Lisa @ Pulsipher Page said...

It looks awesome! Can't wait for more pictures! They look so happy!

The Crazy Coxes said...

It sounds truly amazing! I can't wait to see more pictures. I'm sure it was perfect! Congrats!

LeAnn said...

What a lovely post and what awesome friends. I will look forward to more pictures; it looks like a delightful wedding. We had to do 6 receptions for our children. 5 of them were in our back yard or home and one at the church. I really had great friends to help me or I would not have made it through it all. One year I had a reception in July for a daughter and then reception for our son in August. It was wild.
Take a deep breathe and then just relax for a few days.
Blessings to you!

Connie said...

Decorating and planning for receptions can be so time consuming and stressful! I know, I'm in the middle of it right now! Yours looks absolutely gorgeous! My daughter's colors are the same as yours, yellow and navy blue.
How wonderful to have so many friends to step in and help. I'm excited to see more pictures.

I'm sure you're glad it's behind you.

CB said...

I knew I would be out of town when you posted this.
I have been waiting :-D
I am soooooo happy that everything went well - it looks absolutely beautiful, I cannot wait to see more pictures.
It sure sounds like you worked very hard and that you had alot of support - That is a wonderful thing for sure!!
And to find that friends had cleaned up is also a wonderful blessing because as Mom you are just so incredibly tired after.
I hope you have had a minute to relax and catch your breath.
Good job!