Wedding Wednesdays: Memphis Shower Re-Cap

This past weekend, several of my mom’s elementary school friends (yes, elementary school) threw me a LOVELY wedding shower. Despite my nerves and stage/crowd fright, I had a wonderful time and I couldn’t have felt more loved.

It was so sweet to see all the ladies that helped raise me all in one place (and I know Momma had a great time with all her buddies, too). We had a devotional (such a nice touch), played games, ate YUMMY food, and opened waaaaay too many presents (if there is such a thing). The Boy even got to join me for the gift part, which made it much more enjoyable.

I wish I could bottle up all these memories and feelings for the days when wedding planning really gets the best of me. They really do make all the crazy and the stress seem silly and far away.

Now, without further ado, the fun part: pictures!

The Decor

The ladies are aware of my slight obsession with fall and did a BEAUTIFUL job bringing that to life for the shower. Burlap, pumpkins, leaves, lace - all there. Isn't it pretty?!? The gown hanging in the background is an old dress one of the hostesses daughters used to play dress-up in. It was a sweet touch. 

Oh, and those cupcakes! Goodness me were they yummy. Mrs. Lisa made 'em - pumpkin with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. She commented that Mrs. Sheila had given her the toughest jobs: 1) reading in front of people (she did the devotional), and 2) making cupcakes for the "cupcake queen." She had nothing to worry about - they were amazing. 

The Food

I love shower food in just about any form, but this spread tops the list: tea sandwiches, meatballs, sausage balls, cheesy artichoke dip, spinach tarts (thanks, Momma!), some amazing pumpkin dip with apple slices, all sorts of sweet treats, and a coffee-punch concoction that I can't even begin to describe. I mean really, look at this!

The Games

We played two games (neither of which I won...despite The Boy being the judge...boo). For the first one, we had to place a sheet of paper on top of our heads and draw a bride. The photos we got out of that might be more fun than the game itself. 

We also played gift bingo. We all filled out our bingo cards with items we thought I'd get, then checked them off as I opened gifts. Mrs. Karen, who brought an ENTIRE TRASH CAN full of gifts, won...I call shenanigans seeing as she could have filled her whole card with just the stuff in that can ;)

The hostesses also asked all of the guests to bring an apron with a story behind it to share at the shower! Aprons are one of my favorite things, and I loved hearing all the history behind all these. Plus, I got a new one to wear, too! 

It was so much fun - I'm so grateful for the ladies who took the time to put it all together. I had a blast seeing everyone (particularly some old friends from high school and my amazing Maid of Honor who now lives 6 hours away from me). I wish we could do this every weekend! Thanks again, ladies. I'm so blessed. 

Wedding Wednesdays: Shower Time!

Wedding Showers. A wedding element I've both anticipated and dreaded.

Anticipated because I love spending time with my family and friends, because I love shower food, and because, well, presents.

Dreaded because I get nervous around lots of people, because I'm uncomfortable being the reason for a party as opposed to the planner of a party, and because, well, presents (I hate opening gifts in front of everyone...I always feel so much pressure to react appropriately...and I can never seem to find the right balance between "OMGYAYSOEXCITED" and "Thanks.")

Anticipated or dreaded, however, they've begun.

And so far it's been awesome!

The sweet, wonderful ladies at work threw me my first shower a couple weeks ago. We all met up at a restaurant near the office (one which happened to serve margaritas) and spent a couple hours hugging, giggling, and munching on yummy food.

Plus, I got some FANTASTIC loot - new knives, wine glasses, stuff for our bathroom, tons of fun gadgets, the most adorable salad servers, the BEAUTIFUL butter dish we asked for...you get the idea.

The ladies were so thoughtful - they had the room decorated with pink burlap (yes, two of my favorite things IN ONE), brought in treats from Rick's ("nothing with their buttercream" because they listen and read my blog!), and they had the guests leave "Words of Wisdom" for Paul and me as we begin our marriage. I'll share just a few:

• Paul is always right.
• Commit to never, ever give up!
• Before you fight, decide if it's worth it. It's not.
• Love is a choice...the feelings will follow!
• Make him put the seat down from day 1!
• When your wife has a problem, she wants you to give her your ear, not a solution.
• Do not stop to ask for directions. Let him find it. 
• Hold hands and say the Lord's Prayer together every night.
• Nothing good comes from a prideful heart.
• A man needs respect; when he gets that, his love is overflowing.
• Laugh at his jokes no matter how lame.

How sweet is all that?!?

I have my next shower this weekend - and Paul gets to come with me this time. It's in Memphis, so it'll be all the ladies that I grew up with. Can't wait to see everyone! Plus, isn't the invite adorable?

It's so nice to be loved like this. I can't fully express my gratitude. But I'll bring treats in an attempt to do so :)

More updates to come soon!

PS: We took engagement photos with the Benfield's last weeknd! Should have our shots back soon(ish). Stay tuned for those!!!

Brittany's Bachelorette Bash

Keeping in the vein of tryin to catch y'all up, let's talk about one of my favorite weekends from the past two months - Little Brother's Wedding! Before we jump into wedding fun, however, I want to show y'all some details from the bachelorette party I threw for Brittany.

First, just so y'all know, she loves purple, sparkles, and sweet girly things. She's not really into the whole "going out" scene, so I tried to keep this a little more intimate and low key.

Now, the details.

Invites

I found some adorable brown and purple DIY invites at a party store and knew they'd be perfect - her colors, cute, and with just a touch of fun (see the zebra stripe border?). I designed the invites and printed them at home - SO EASY.

Then, I wanted a cute way to let all the girls know what sizes to get her for the gift portion of the shower. I'd seen some sweet little lingerie cut out invite inserts on Etsy, but none were quite what I wanted. So I made my own!

I found perfectly matching paper at Joann, cut out a nighty shape, added a little lace to the top and bottom with some glue, and added a small jewel to the top (to give it a bit of Brittany sparkle). Then, I wrote the appropriate sizes on the top and bottom and slipped them into the envelopes with the invites.

Finished products. What do y'all think?

Decor

Since we wanted to keep the evening fairly low key, I got us a hotel room for the night so we could have a good ol' fashioned sleepover - complete with makeovers, manis & pedis, and chick flicks! I decorated the room in Brittany's signature purple with several touches of sparkle.

The door - they make sparkly, silver streamers! Who knew?

I made makeshift curtains with purple tablecloths to create a bit more ambiance. 

A sash and crown for the Bride-to-Be, and goodie bags stuffed with nail files, bubbles, candy, tiaras, and necklaces for the guests (which we all wore to dinner of course!)

Food

We all went out for dinner and drinks before the evening really got started, but I wanted us to have additional snacks for the rest of the evening. I mean, what's a sleepover without late-night snacks, right? I made:

• Rummy Bears (gummy bears soaked in Captain...for a while)
• Two different kinds of jello shots
• Pineapple Upside-down Cake (pineapple jello, cake vodka, and a cherry)
• Blow Pop (watermelon jello, bubble gum vodka, and a gumball)
• Some precious little faux nail polish bottles I saw on Pinterest (it's just marshmallows skewered with a tootsie roll on a toothpick and dipped in colored icing)

Activities

After dinner, we opened presents - she got a lot of cute stuff!

We played with bubbles for a bit...

Then we broke into the spa supplies!

We had a mani-pedi station - complete with foot soak, lotion, nail files, pumice stones, orange sticks, clippers, polish and polish remover. The possibilities were endless!

We also had a facial station - makeup wipes, a lovely apricot scrub, masks (I used the chocolate strawberry...smelled yummy, felt WEIRD), and moisturizer. There are a few photos of Brittany and me with masks on...but I'm pretending I don't know where they are...

In addition to the spa supplies, we had several movie options. 

We ended up falling asleep before the movies actually happened...but I'm sure we would have laughed ourselves silly. 

It was so much fun spending an evening bonding with my sister-in-law-to-be. I'm so glad I get to keep her forever! Love you, Britty!

"Choo-choo! Look Who's Two!" Train Cake

Welcome back friends!

Saturday I told you about the train-themed birthday party I threw for my favorite little two-year-old. We had ride on trains, train-themed snacks, and a train cake! Conductor Luke was one happy birthday boy.

I said I'd share more about the cake, so here goes.

To be honest, it all started out quite simply - I was going to make a round cake, put some of Luke's tracks around it, and pipe his name on top. Nice and easy.

Then I realized I could do a two-layer cake with the tracks around it.

Or I could do a two-layer cake with the tracks on TOP of the bottom layer and around the top layer.

OR I could create the tracks out of cake...and make them swirl down both levels...and add grass!

Yeah...went kinda off track there.

But it turned out great, so it's okay, right?

Anyway, here's how it went:

I made two 9-in and one 6-in cakes (using my vanilla cake recipe copied below).

Once cooled, I added buttercream between the two 9-in layers, sliced the 6-in cake into two layers and filled with more buttercream, and stacked the cakes like I wanted.

Then, using toothpicks, I outlined the curve I wanted to get with the tracks. 

Finally, using a sharp, serrated knife, I carved out the tracks, following the lines made with the toothpicks. 

Tip: This works a lot better with chilled (or slightly frozen) cake. Just stick it in the freezer for a couple of hours before you start carving. 

Once carved, I added the crumb coat to the cake and put it back in the fridge to chill for a few more hours.

Then, I tinted a batch of vanilla buttercream icing a nice leaf green and iced the entire cake.

Next, I added additional green coloring to the remaining buttercream and, using Wilton tip #233, added grass to the edges, flat areas, and cardboard around the cake.

Finally, I used grey icing and Wilton tip #1A to make the tracks, adding small rectangles of brown sugar sheets to finish them off. 

Once at the party, we topped the cake with a train from Luke's collection and a bright blue "2" candle.

The cake was a hit - the birthday boy had two slices all on his own! Glad you enjoyed it, kiddo!

Fluffy Vanilla Cake

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 c flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 c unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 c sugar
• 4 egg whites, room temp
• 1 tbsp real vanilla
• 1 c sour cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and prepare pans.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar til light and fluffy. Slowly add in egg whites, one at a time, beating well between each addition. Beat in vanilla.
4. Alternately add dry ingredients and sour cream, bookending with the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. 
5. Divide batter among pans.
6. Bake 30-35 min (til golden and cake is pulling away from sides.)
7. Invert onto wire rack and let cool completely.

Enjoy! Til later, friends!