Wedding flowers, as promised

Well, I sincerely hope to be able to post some of the pictures that the professional photographer took at the wedding last week, but as these are all I have for now, I will share them with you.  My greatest regret is that I didn't get a single picture of the stunning bride with her bouquet of white peonies and roses.  My goodness, she was a vision!

The ceremony was held at First Baptist Church, which is a huge sanctuary, so the arrangements have to be pretty big to fill the space.  This one was 8 feet across.  Hydrangias, lillies, roses, orchids, daisies, and much more.

A 6 o'clock wedding, so you know candles are a must.

 I just got a few pictures at the reception hall before I lost the light.

 The bride had set out the wedding pictures of the parents and grandparents at the entrance.  It was such a unique idea and I know the guests enjoyed seeing all of them.

There were several different sizes of centerpieces for the guest tables

Even the food was beautiful!

As always, I had amazing help.  My husband, sweet mama, mother-in-law and several good friends pitched in to help keep me on schedule and keep me sane.  A difficult task on my best day.

Even thought I do love being at home full time with my children.  It is such a great 'vacation' from the hard work of caring for them when opportunities like this come my way.  I had so much fun and hope I'll be doing it again soon!

p,h,f,r- gearing up for a wedding

Poor neglected little blog.  I have not forgotten you!  I have my mind on bigger things.  Really big things, like over 1,000 roses that are waiting for me right now in a giant cooler while I sleep stress out over how I am going to get them all trimmed and twisted and put in their place for the biggest order of wedding flowers I have ever done.  

Well, since there's nothing I can do tonight (short of breaking and entering)  I will put my nervous energy into a quick {p,h,f,r}.  So let's see what was on my camera this week.

One of my favorite {happy}s.  I love that my kids love books and I love that they have a daddy who loves to read to them.

So you may know this about my girls, you may not.  They got off to a rocky start.  Zadie was not sure she wanted a baby sister.  She was a girl with her mind on her Mommy and her Mommy on her mind. Okay, lets be honest.  Zadie did not acknowledge Rosie's existence for at least 3 months.  Didn't look at her, touch her, or want anything to do with her.  She just kept saying, "put some milk and a bottle and give the baby to Daddy."
Well, I am quite happy to report that times they are a changin'!

Yep, here are my {pretty} girls.  Look they're sitting together...

Holy cow, it's a hug!  I keep singing that song from Signing Time With Alex and Leah
 (ps I love that show) that goes, "My puppy is nicer to me than my sister... but I've got a feeling that she'll be my best friend someday... guess we'll wait and see, see, see."

{Funny}

It's funny how no matter what else is going on, all I have to say is, "I'm going out to water the flowers, anyone want to play in the hose?"  And they come running like they just heard the ice-cream truck.

I never have {real} pictures.  I guess I just never feel like grabbing the camera when things are amiss.  But here is one more sweet shot of Zadie soaking me with the hose, hey maybe that counts!

If I have enough energy left to push down the shutter button on my camera after I turn First Baptist into the garden of Eden, I'll be posting flower-pa-looza pictures soon.

Thanks for stopping by and head over to ourmothersdaughters.blogspot.com for more {p,h,f,r}

Wordless Wednesday: Sisters

beach vacation- part 2 (Andy goes to camp)

Well, I'm just getting used to being a mom of a boy.  Yes, I know he's nearly 8, but being a mom to a baby boy, or even a preschool boy isn't that dramatically different than being a mom to little girls. (At least it wasn't for me).  But now, oh boy.  Baseball, broken bones, Ninja warrior.  Summer camp.

Yup, just left him with a whole herd of little male types for 3 days of playing in the dirt, shooting at things and telling scary stories.  Who knows what else goes on when little boys are left to their own devises.  I shudder to think.  When I went to camp we braided each other's hair and made keychains.

Don't get me wrong, I'm really excited for him.  He spends a lot of time with his Mama and two baby sisters.  He needs a few days off from hearing, be gentle, be still, be patient, be quiet!

Well, I did hang around camp for a little while to make sure he was settled and had what he needed.

Here the boys are heading down to the lake for a swim test.  Poor Andy, I didn't pack his crocs so he'll be hiking everywhere in socks and tennis shoes.

Here they are, Hunter, Colby, Andy and JT.  They look like they're planning on behaving themselves, right?

 Here are Haleigh and Macon, the coolest chaperones a kids could ask for.  Was I really that young when I started taking kids to camp? Andy and Macon are in the same color group for the week.  Hope Macon's prepared for a very enthusiastic shadow.

Andy and Colby taking their swim test

All smiles.  Swim test passed, now for a green bracelet and the freedom to swim out to all the cool places in the lake.

Well folks, this is where I left him.  Just waiting for the fun to begin.  Yes, I'm worried a little, and miss him a lot.  But I hope he has as much fun as his Daddy and I have had at Blue Lake over the years.  I'll let you know how it all went after I pick him up.

Beach vacation- part 1

In an attempt not to dwell on the fact that Dave is out of the country for my birthday, and July 4th, and Andy's first trip to camp,  okay, I'm dwelling.  Anyway, the kiddos and I are finding some lovely distractions to pass the time until Daddy returns to us.  We've gotten to spend some time with one of my dear friends from high school and her family, along with my sweet mama.  Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the week so far.

Zadie and Nanny on their way to enjoy a little Pompano Joe's

Zadie, Hannah, and Andy checking out the Gulf

Look, it's me.  

My favorite picture from our visit.  Zadie and Rick Allen are so sweet together!

A little ray of sunshine.

My sweet little fire-cracker

Emma Harper; lulled to sleep by the surf

Kate's beautiful children, Rick Allen, Hannah Madison, and Emma Harper

Sorry to just put up a bunch of pictures with no fun stories about the mischief Kate and I used to find in high school, or the mischief the children are sure to find together now that they vastly outnumber us.  I'll take a walk down memory lane once I'm home and have chores to avoid.  For now, I'm at the beach.  Believe I'll go have a piece of birthday cake.  Happy Independence day!

Wordless Wednesday

Andy's first swim meet

Those of you who know our Andy know that he likes to stay busy.  And keep me busy.  All. The. Time.  His latest endeavor is the swim team.  He missed the beginning of swimming season with a broken wrist, but he was so excited to jump right in when the cast came off.  Plus it's a great way for him to get that wrist moving again.

So Friday was his first meet and he was a bit nervous, not knowing what to expect.  And let me tell you, it was loud, and hot and crowded in that pool area.  Once we had his events written on his arm in Sharpie and he made his way to the blocks, he stepped up like it was old hat.

It was getting dark by the time he swam and I didn't get great pictures, but you get the point.

Andy swam a few Freestyle distances and one backstroke.

Well, he didn't win any of his heats, but he came in 2nd or 3rd each time.  I was so proud of him for trying something new and for not being too disappointed.  (Andy can be a bit competitive)  I know it'll be even more fun as he gets to know the other kids and learns more about the sport.  Besides, I don't think you can break anything in the swimming pool.  Guess we'll find out!