Our Indiana Reception

Since the wedding was in Pennsylvania, most of my family couldn't make it.  So, we also did a reception in Indiana.  I don't think I posted this on my blog, but this is the invitation that was sent out for that:

Well, not exactly.  I obviously blacked out some information so that you can't go stalk my parents!  :)

The reception went really well.  It was calm, which was exactly what we wanted.  My dad roasted a hog and we had salads and sides and such.  And my mom ordered some sheet cakes from a local bakery.  Everything was delicious.  And we got to see a lot of my family and friends from Indiana (and Philip got to meet most of them for the first time!).  There weren't really set times, so people just came and went throughout the day.  It was nice that way because we could spend a little time with people before they'd leave and then new people would come in and we'd spend time with them before they left.  And so on. 

I don't have a whole lot of photos from that day.  I think we mostly forgot about photography and just had fun.  But, here are some photos that we did manage to snag.

Mom set up some of the pics that she had taken of the ceremony and reception and displayed them here.  There are also some leftover vanilla favors up there.  And our photo frame card box.  :)

This cake was far less expensive than the wedding cake, but somehow they were able to decorate it better -- smooth, not half-assed, doesn't look like it was done in 5 minutes before the delivery... I'm not even a big fan of frosting flowers, but the cake is pretty.  :)

This one makes me laugh because it could have been awkward.  Philip and I are sitting at a table with my high school sweetheart's parents and grandparents.  ;)

It was an absolutely beautiful fall day.  :)

Yeah, great photo right?!  I mostly just wanted to show what I was wearing that day!

My dad and his brother playing horseshoes.  :)

Technically, this was after the reception had ended, but Philip is just too cute for me not to post this.  ;)

Those paper lanterns and string lights (along with the rest of the decor) got used again at the Indiana reception.  We wanted it to look as close to the Pennsylvania reception as possible.  Mom and Dad even bought a tent (they'll get plenty of use out of it for future parties!). 

And, there you have it.  There wasn't any drama.  It wasn't formal (or even semi-formal).  It wasn't over the top.  But, it was wonderful.  

The Things I Would Have Done Differently...

With all that went wrong, I honestly wish we hadn't done a wedding.  If I did have to do it over again, I would have changed a TON.  There are lots of things that didn't go as I had hoped.  Here is a list of things that I wish I would have done differently:

1.  I would have had the wedding in Indiana.  We had the wedding in Pennsylvania so that Philip's family could come which meant that a lot of my family couldn't come.  And, then a ton of Philip's family couldn't make it anyway.  And Philip's dad and stepmom left the reception early (despite them being the whole reason we had the wedding in PA).  I wish I would have done what I wanted to do originally and just had the wedding in Indiana.  Then I could've at least had most of my family there. 

Some people think that that would be selfish because then a lot of Philip's family couldn't make it.  Well, they say a picture is worth a thousand words:

That, my friends, is every single family member that I had at our wedding.  That's my dad's sister and her husband, my parents, my sister, and her boyfriend.  So, only 4 of those people are actually my blood relatives.  I know if we would have had the wedding in Indiana, at least 4 of Philip's relatives would have been able to come.  What's unfair?  Especially when you consider that I am a lot closer to my family than Philip is to his! 

2.  I wouldn't have chosen the wedding party so soon.  I let tradition guide me in choosing the ladies next to me right after we got engaged.  If I would have waited a while, I would've seen that I didn't have to choose women to stand beside me.  My sister still would have been my maid of honor, but I probably would have chosen my "big brother" Brandon and another of my guy buds to be my bride's men.  

3.  I would've made sure to express my distaste for all things pink/girly to the photographer.  I certainly made it no secret that I hated the Pepto Bysmol reception photos.  I thought that it would've been clear from the burlap and books, the creamy colors, the whole look that I went for (!) that I wasn't a pink bride.  However, I guess that it wasn't, so I wish that I would've made sure that the photographer knew not to use pink flash lighting.  And made sure that he ate dinner with us so that he wouldn't miss getting photos of the speeches!  

4. If I had to do the wedding in Pennsylvania again, I wouldn't have done it at someone's house.  It made it just too easy for people to hide in the house instead of celebrating with us in the tent.  It also left us dependent on someone else (when to break down the tent, etc.), and I hate that.  Don't get me wrong.  I am thankful that Philip's aunt and uncle opened their home to us.  I would just do it differently if I had to do over again.   

5. I would stand up for myself.  I let too many people walk over me on my wedding day.  I wish I wouldn't have been so nice.  I wish I would have said, if you can't arrive on time, you don't get photos; if people want to leave, they are welcome to do so -- the cake will be cut when it's scheduled to be cut; etc.  

6. I would remember to unbustle my train for the ceremony!  I bustled my dress for the pre-ceremony photos and the first look so that it wouldn't be in the way.  Well, when the ceremony rolled around, I completely forgot to put it down!  It's not really a big deal, but I do wish I had some photos with it down!  It really is beautiful!  

7. I would have arrived earlier than Thursday night.  We had SO much to do in basically a day and a half.  I wish we would have had more time to get everything done!  I was really stressing in the days before the wedding!  And a lot of what I had prepared didn't get used/put out (bathroom baskets, toasting flutes, etc.).   

8. I would have pushed harder to get things done on time.  Our photos were rushed because we were running behind.  Especially the first look.  Even if we were running late, I wish we would've taken our time with those.  In the end, it didn't matter that we were on time since family was late for photos anyway.   

9. I wish we wouldn't have spent so much time, money, and energy.  Yeah, it really was beautiful, but in the end, it really was just one day.  Oh well!

BUSY!!!!

That's my response whenever anyone asks me how I am lately.  Originally, I was supposed to take all of the wedding crafts and the dogs to Indiana this Friday (the 16th).  Well, plans changed when Philip got an interview in Chicago for this past Tuesday (if you want to know more, you can check out my other blog).  It was decided that he'd just take everything since he'd be heading that direction anyway.  

Well, that pushed the trip up by a week which meant that I had to finish all of my projects in about 2 days instead of a week.  And, I also had to shop for the honeymoon, pack, and get everything boxed up and put in Philip's Pilot.  It was exhausting!  But, I managed.  My house is so quiet without the dogs though.  I miss them terribly already.  They don't bark in the house, but it's so weird to not have them under my feet all the time or hear four sets of dog feet running down the stairs to greet me. 

Philip with Cody the day before they left -- they were wrestling.  Obviously Philip was winning.  ;)

On top of that, I also took on a ton more responsibility at work and have been crazy busy there (and working longer hours).  Have I mentioned lately how much I'm looking forward to the honeymoon??  ;)  

Speaking of the honeymoon, I got some Euros today from the bank.  It's just to get us through the travel and first day or so (when we can't use our debit card).  It's exciting though because I think it's the last thing we had to do for the honeymoon!  That means that it's REALLY close!  Eleven days until we leave!  :)

Anyway, I got a bunch of projects done, so I'll be blogging about them soon.  Thanks for bearing with me through the insanity.  :)

Luminary Table Numbers

Next, we worked on the luminary table numbers.  Unfortunately, this was a bit more complicated than the Tears of Joy.  

The Dollar Tree here in Colorado has stopped carrying the 4x6 frames that I originally bought for the mock-up of the table numbers.  My mom went to her local Dollar Tree, though, and found black 4x6 frames.  Well, they weren't exactly the same as the ones I had.  They had mats in them.  It wouldn't have been an issue if the mats had framed the photos right... but they didn't.  They cut off too much around the edges of the photos.  And, without the mats, the photos were too small for the frames.  Gah!

So, my mom decided to take matters into her own hands and cut down the mats so that they would fit the photos correctly.  She did an excellent job!  Meanwhile, I took apart all of the frames.  They had some foam things around the edges of the frame and I had to pull it all out so that the photos and mats would fit in the frames correctly.  It was a little time consuming, but both Mom and I prevailed!  

Once we had the frames and mats ready, Mom glued the photos to the mats (gotta love hot glue!) and I glued the mats to the frames.  And here they are in all of their beautiful glory:

We opted to not put them together in their triangle form yet.  They're much easier to transport this way (they're much bulkier when put together!).  And, it's just a few pieces of duct tape that holds them together.  It should take us just a few minutes to get them put together when we're setting up the rest of the tent.  

It feels good to have yet another thing crossed off of my list!  

For Your Tears of Joy :)

After an absolutely wonderful weekend in Indiana, I am back in Colorado.  It was quite an adventure getting back here (you can read about it on my other blog if you care), but I made it.  

We had an incredibly productive weekend.  Saturday, Mom, my sister (and MOH), and I worked on a few projects.  First up, the Tears of Joy:

Once we figured out a design that we liked, it was really pretty easy.  My mom and I stuffed each of the glassine envelopes (bought from eBay) with 2 tissues.  I bought the tissues from Dollar Tree.  I probably could have just bought a box of tissues and folded the tissues to the right size, but it was easier to buy the pocket size packs that already had the tissues folded to the right size.  My only complaint about those tissues is that there weren't always exactly 10 tissues in each pack.  It was strange, but not a huge deal.  

After that, we put the labels on the pieces of card stock that I'd cut out earlier.  When Tonya arrived, we put her to work with the hot glue gun (the most interesting task!).  She hot glued the ribbons to the right length.  Then Mom wrapped the ribbons around the envelopes.  And, then I put the labels on the ribbons/envelopes using some double sided tape.  

And, that's about it!  They were super simple.  And cute!  I think we were all pretty pleased with how they turned out.  What do you think?

A visit to the Hoosier state...

(Source)

I have my flight booked.  By this time in 2 weeks, I will be in Indiana visiting my family!  There are a few things happening while I'm there.

First, we will be working on the DIY table numbers.  I can't find any 4x6 frames at the Dollar Tree here in Colorado, but my mom found a bunch in Indiana.  That actually works out better anyway (I won't have to cart those things along with me to Indiana in September -- more room in my car for other stuff!).  If I think of any other DIY stuff that they can help me with, we'll probably do that, too.

Next, a shower.  I don't know when this is happening.  I've just been told that it will be while I'm home.  I'm excited because it means that I will (hopefully) be able to see some family members that I don't get to see very often.  :)

And, lastly, I will be getting my alterations started.  My dress is currently hiding in my dad's enormous gun safe.  It is hopefully being guarded from any form of destruction!  I will actually be getting my alterations done by the mother of my best friend from Kindergarten and first grade.  :)  

Before I knew that she could do the alterations, I was in a bit of a panic.  I've seen so many alterations disasters.  I really don't know what I would do if my dress got destroyed during alterations.  I don't even want to think about it!  But, I'm actually feeling much better now that I know that she will be doing my alterations.  My dress will be in wonderful, gifted hands.  :)