Rehearsal dinner .....

Johnny and I hosted the rehearsal dinner at the 

same hotel as the wedding would be

Because we all had rooms and would be spending

the entire weekend there, it just made sense!

Our only glitch was the dinner was to be outside

under a tent by the pool

Storms prevented that from happening and so early that

day we made the call to move it inside

We decided on a buffet dinner and Jake picked the menu

He wanted to have a good ole southern buffet as

Kayce's family lives up north, so he thought it would be great

to have local favorites to serve

it was delicious!!

we had a cocktail party prior to dinner

beer and wine

Imported and domestic cheese display with grapes and crackers

seasonal fresh fruit 

mozzarella salad w/tomatoes, basil and balsamic reduction

then came time for dinner.......

fingerling potatoes w/bacon vinaigrette

cole slaw

tomato and cucumber salad

iron skillet corn bread with whipped apple butter

mini corn on the cob

pulled pork brisket

rolls

we also added a pasta station for folks who didn't care for BBQ

we had penne pasta and tortellini

with marinara and alfredo sauce

with fresh vegetables

I wanted to have the grooms cake at the rehearsal dinner

as I feel like it kind of gets lost at the wedding reception

So I checked with Jake and Kayce to make sure

that was ok.......and they were good with that!

I had a 2 tier cake that really just looked very ordinary

but once you cut the cake, you saw that it was 

buffalo plaid! 

the significance is........Jake is very well known for his buffalo plaid that he 
wears quite often throughout fall and winter

so much so that Kayce even got a heart tattoo 

that is buffalo plaid! 

Jacquelyn helped me with coming up with the design for the decorations

we had mason jars with mostly baby's breath sitting

on a round of wood
the mason jars had a tag tied with twine and the tag
read "tomorrow will be the best day ever"

then I ran just greenery down the middle of the tables

we had 2 tables that sat 25 people each.....50 people!

it was a fun night

then the storm hit and power went out!!

a few of us went over to the bar and then

ended up sitting outside for a while, enjoying 

some cold beers and a big summer storm

for the names tags I had those little log holders below
I set up what I thought would be the correct seating on the dining room table
and then had Kayce and Jake check it over to make
sure I had it right

as the staff was setting up the tables 

my sweet daughter-in-law and I before the rehearsal

the building where the rehearsal dinner, wedding and reception took place

I told Jake and Kayce to cut the grooms cake as practice for the
wedding cake....then once they saw the inside they were so surprised

the bakery did a great job!

the greenery running along the table

such a awesome thing that Jacquelyn and Bucky's best friends
came from Texas for the wedding
All of us were so thrilled to see them....it had been 4 years!!
when they lived here I always called them my Texas kids
(they are originally from Texas)
as they attended all of our big family events

the flower girl....Avery Grace

bride and groom

another picture of the cake

Jolon wasn't even born when Joe and Melissa moved to Texas
So Declan and Jolon had never met but they became best friends!!

carrying home tons of flowers the morning of the rehearsal
all of the flowers came from my favorite florist, Coleman Brothers

a night we will all remember

later........

Contacts ....

I am 61 years old and trying contacts for the first time

and even though I am going through an

adjustment period......meaning I can't see very well

I LOVE them!!

My glasses were for reading and distance

over the years my distance vision has improved

So we are trying just one contact, in my left eye

and seeing if my eyes will adjust

The first day I couldn't see very well at all, mostly a blur

each day was better and better

They said it usually takes 7 to 10 days

on the 10th day it was pretty good except for one little blur 

I could see and I couldn't see my laptop too clearly

So they ordered a new contact for me

he told me this is probably the only thing left that might work for me
I've had them for a couple of weeks now and though my 
vision is not perfect, I can see and I have no more
trouble seeing my laptop. 
so time will tell if I can keep wearing contacts
I sure hope so, love them!!

I also ordered new glasses to have in case I have a day or so

that I cannot wear my contacts

these are not like any style I have ever worn 
and I love them!

and now since I do not have to wear prescription sunglasses
I get to buy fun, cheap sunglasses!!!
these were my 4th of July glasses
I want to find some bright orange ones for the beach

that's the deal on this old lady wearing contacts....haha
hoping it will all work out!

later....

Random things .....

I guess about 2 months since I posted

well, it's been a very busy summer so far

and now here's August! wow...

see what is happening in my back yard

leaves are changing...

this is the tree that the leaves always start changing color first

fall will be here before we know it

Nicole and Tyler gave me this orchid for Mothers Day

I have never been able to keep an orchid alive

and now it looks like it could possibly bloom again

fingers crossed

my chalkboard for June 

and then I never did one for July but at the

end of the month I did this one

you can find such cute ideas on Pinterest for chalkboards

I have so many pinned for fall, Christmas and winter that

I'll have a hard time picking which one to do!

I have a bunch of blog post scheduled to post each day

so be ready!! haha

later....

Blog anniversary .....

10 years ago today I wrote my first blog post

to be honest, I didn't know a whole lot about what I was doing

But I had started following some blogs that were just

regular people like me

talking about life, family, decorating, vacations, flowers

recipes, grandchildren, work

So I thought wouldn't that be a great idea to just document

my life and one day when I leave this earth, my children,

grandchildren and generations to come will have

a source of reference on our family life and me

I have a small little diary that my great grandmother wrote

in daily. It's not a lot of content, mostly the weather...haha

visiting people, canning, gardening but it is a glimpse 

into her life and I savor and love every word I read

So my hope is my family will do the same.

here are some fun facts from my blog.......

first post June 2nd, 2007

total post 1,281 

post with the most page views July 7th 2011

Source that provides the most blog views - Google

Countries with the most page views.....

of course USA is number one

2. Russia - so yes, they are watching all of us...haha

3. China

4. Bulgaria

5. France

6. Germany

7. UK

8. Canada

9. Ukraine

10. Poland

so to all of the folks who view my pages.....HI

I'm not as good about posting, I blame Facebook

but I try to keep up

we are heading into a fun summer with the wedding

and a couple of vacations so hopefully I can keep up!!

as always.......later