RANDOMNESS #1 - The Rehearsal Dinner was held Friday night at the Gardendale Civic Center. Because of distance, we decided to have the dinner in town and rehearsal was held on a makeshift aisle in the back of the suite...
And it worked out pretty well, I think.
Now it is confession time.
I love tablescapes, but I am not very good at creating tablescapes.
I can copy tablescapes if someone gives me a very large picture of it as a go-by...
And someone else goes to Hobby Lobby and buys EVERYTHING needed to recreate the tablescape...
And someone else provides the table linens...
And someone else remembers to bring the matches to light the candles.
Or, I could just ask Debbie Lindsey, a talented friend of mine who has posted a few pics on Facebook of her beautiful tablescapes.
When she said, "Yes. Yes, I can," I was giddy with relief.
Giddy, I tell you.
She did a beautiful, beautiful job.
What did I tell you?
Elegant, tasteful and a feast for the eyes.
I did good asking Debbie to help me, didn't I?
And then there was a little matter of a party favor.
My friend, Cam, and her husband, Jeff, made these Bride and Groom Pretzel Rods for each and every place setting...
And they were a huge hit.
A better party favor has yet to be given at a Rehearsal Dinner, I am sure.
You are probably wondering what I, The Enchanting Belinda, did to contribute to the Rehearsal Dinner.
And that is a good thing to wonder, I guess.
Since we had decided to have Jim 'N Nicks cater the event months earlier, I had to think really hard to come up with something to put my mark on the party.
And then it hit me.
A Family Dessert Bar.
The women of the two families made homemade desserts and filled a table with very tasty treats.
The Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Sheet Cake made an appearance (thanks to Melia's Mom, Lisa), as did cobblers, pies, cookies and other cakes.
It was a very good thing.
Melia.
Roxie and Josh.
Roxie checking out her official Wedding Day flip flops!
Zac, Katie, Stephanie, Brad and Zac Smith.
Tommy and Bev.
Brad, Austin and Zac Smith... just a couple of the groomsmen.
Melia, Austin, Brad and Stephanie.
Melia, Austin, Zac and Katie.
Grandpa, Grandma, Austin, Melia, Jared, Lauren, Brandi, Aunt Becky, and Uncle Guy... and Matthew down front.
Lauren and Brandi.
Lauren was our Flower Girl...
And just so you know, she didn't come to the party in her pajamas, but she certainly left that way.
Melia, Austin, Roxie and Hunter.
Kayla, Melia and Cassie.
Kayla and Cassie are Melia's friends from WAY BACK.
Since birth, I think.
They were two of the lovely bridesmaids.
Austin and Josh.
I don't know if Austin, Josh and Roxie discussed it, but gray was obviously the color of choice for the Faulkner siblings Friday night.
Sara, Melia, Kaitlyn and Tabitha.
A few more of the bridesmaids!
Melia, Austin, Mike and ME!
Melia's fam... Tim, Melia, Austin, Lisa and Payton.
Tim, Melia's Dad, made a wonderful DVD of pics of Melia and Austin from birth until NOW. We had it set up in the corner so people could come and go and watch.
I LOVE this DVD.
RANDOMNESS #2 - The following pictures are of some of the "details" of the wedding day... mainly the flowers at the Chapel.
I know I'm just a tad bit biased, but the flowers were out of this world beautiful.
We left the house in two separate cars, and Roxie had to tell Austin "see ya later" one more time before we headed to Columbiana.
Keep in mind, pumpkins, hay and a bunch of mums had not been set up when I took these pics...
And I thought it was perfect when I saw it.
Can you even imagine how pretty it was when Melia walked down the aisle.
Hopefully, Friday I'll have some pictures of the finished product and you won't have to imagine!
This cross was my favorite part of the Chapel decorations.
It just made me happy all over.
Lisa, Melia's Mom, made this wreath for the wedding and for their home.
Lisa is one of those chicks who can probably create unbelievable tablescapes.
It's good to have her in the family!
The flowers.
Oh... my... goodness...
The flowers.
This was Austin's...
And this was Melia's.
This is Melia with wedding hair...
Minus the wedding dress...
And holding the wedding flowers.
And then...
RANDOMNESS #3 - Wedding News - In the grand order of things, this is where I would now display the pictures of everyone in their fine wedding garb...
However, I did something unprecedented Saturday, October 25, 2014.
I put my camera down in the Bridesmaid Room when everyone started getting dressed...
And I didn't pick it up again until we were getting ready to leave for home.
I took a deep breath and left the picture takin' to the professional... Karen Waters.
Fun fact for you... Karen was Austin's 4th Grade Teacher at Snow Rogers a few years back. She was an excellent teacher.
And guess what... She is an excellent wedding photographer.
She was funny, sweet and she just made the picture takin' part of the day very, very easy. Most of the time, we didn't even know she was in the room.
So now, I am waiting to see all the photos she took that day, and hopefully, I'll be able to post a few on Friday's blog.
Something to look forward to, Folks!
RANDOMNESS #4 - More Wedding News - Austin and Melia arrived back in town last night. They took a short "mini-moon" to Gatlinburg and are taking the actual honeymoon during Spring Break.
They were happy, refreshed and eager to start their new lives as husband and wife.
And I was happy, refreshed and eager to see them starting this new chapter.
Blog Linkage - Go to www.kellehampton.com to see her pics from the wedding she attended in North Carolina a few days ago.
Beautiful, beautiful.
Way Back When...
This post was first written in October of 2010.
A Zumba Story
I had every intention of attending the Thursday afternoon Zumba class. Unfortunately, I had also set up a doctor's appointment for 2:00 p.m. downtown. I was headed to a new doctor at a different doctor's office. However, after ten years working downtown, I had no qualms about finding the office. I had the address. I was familiar with the area, etc., etc. I had plenty of time to go to the doctor AND make it back for the Zumba class at 4:30. Uh... WRONG!
As I made my way to the address, I couldn't find the name of the doctor's office on any sign. However, UAB Hospital was sitting where the doctor's office should have been. I made the perfectly practical assumption the office must be INSIDE UAB Hospital. I made my way to the 6th Avenue South Parking Deck.
Fun fact for you... The Big Gold Van is not an easy vehicle to park unless you happen to be a licensed bus driver (which I am not). It doesn't bother me. I park one to two miles away from any and every event and walk. (My walking regimen is one of the reasons I am so adept at picking up Zumba and other complicated dance/aerobic exercise classes! Just saying.)
Parking decks are not my friend. Especially old, downtown parking decks. They are extremely narrow, dark and even if I find a parking spot, I cannot fit into it... EVER!
On the fifth floor of this parking deck, I started calling the doctor's office to see exactly where they were located in the Hospital. Guess what? They were not located in the Hospital. They were not located downtown. They were not located anywhere within a 30-mile radius of where The Big Gold Van was driving in very tight quarters.
They were located off I-459.
Let me break it down for you. I had to get OUT of the crazy, narrow parking deck (preferably without hitting a doctor's Lexus), make my way across the downtown area, and jump on Red Mountain Expressway. I then had to go across the big curvy bridge and get on U.S. 280. That's right! I said U.S. 280.
Once I made it to the junction of U.S. 280 and I-459, I had to go to the Acton Road Exit. The doctor's office was located behind McDonald's.
I knew exactly where the office was now because they had given me THE one landmark with which I was 100 percent familiar. I know where EVERY McDonald's within 100 miles of my home is located. No. I'm not brilliant. But when I need a Caramel Frappe', I NEED a Caramel Frappe'. Thus, I have dedicated all McDonald's locations to memory... and it has served me well.
By the time I left the deck, I was 32 minutes late for the doctor's appointment. But they were gracious. They told me if I could be there by 3:00, they would still let me keep the appointment.
Surprisingly, I did make it by 3:00. As is the universal doctor's office custom, I waited the minimal time of 33 minutes in the waiting room and 17 minutes in the office itself. I then met with the doctor for 13 minutes. If you're keeping up, it was now 4:03.
Ignoring the many, many "NO CELL PHONES ALLOWED OR THE BUILDING WILL EXPLODE" signs plastered on the walls, I made a sneak call to Joan, my Zumba buddy.
"I'm about to leave the doctor's office off of U.S. 280. I'll try to make it to the class. Find my orange sarong and have it ready for me."
She laughed... a lot. "Unless you're Mario Andretti, you aren't going to make it to class in 27 minutes."
"I don't have to be Mario Andretti. Have you forgotten I'm driving The Big Gold Van?"
She laughed some more and said good-bye... in a way that made me think she didn't plan on seeing me in 27 minutes.
And she was right. I pulled into our lovely little city at 5:17. And I missed Zumba. And I was sad.
But there's always Saturday morning... and I do NOT have a doctor's appointment Saturday morning off of U.S. 280. I should be able to make the 1.2 mile drive from my driveway to class with no interruptions!
NOTE - In case you don't remember, Zumba is no longer my friend, AND I no longer attend the classes.
Zumba and I parted amicably.
Have a tremendous Tuesday. I'll be back Friday with more pics from the past weekend, Weekend Happenings and much, much more.
Take care, and I'll talk to you the end of the week.
Sincerely,
The Enchanting Belinda (a/k/a Mother-in-Law Extraordinaire)
Great pictures. Lookin' forward to Friday!! Thanks for sharing this wonderful wedding with all of us. ~Andrea
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