Making It Our Own

      Back in April, Wes and I bought our first house.  After months of searching, we finally found exactly what we had been looking for.  We really wanted an open concept with a basement, and we got all of that and a lot more.  But we also didn’t want it to be perfect.  We wanted to make it our own over time.  We wanted to paint and lay tile and change things and add things until it wasn’t just the house we had searched for, but the home we had dreamed of.  And after a several months, and a lot of work (mostly on Wes’s part) it has slowly started to become our own. 

(One of my favorite pieces of furniture we have bought.  Please disregard the boxes in the corner.) 

      Over fall break, we decided to tackle the master bathroom.  We painted both the master bedroom and bathroom, which was quite an undertaking (the ceilings are taller than we realized).  Wes spent hours meticulously sanding and priming and painting the bathroom cabinets.  Then (and this was my favorite part) we had while tile put in.  We finished it off with some new hardware and a new make-up stool for me, and it was practically a brand new room.  It is definitely one of my favorite spaces in the house.  It just feels more like us…perhaps because it was a labor of love or perhaps because it was the first major change we made together in our first house.

      Since then, we have been taking it easy…saving up our money and our energy for the next big thing.  We still have entire rooms without furniture and my honey-do list is long, my wish list even longer.  But for now, it’s nice to enjoy all of the perfect imperfections of our forever home.  There is plenty of time for changes and fixes and furniture, a whole lifetime full of forever. 

Totally Rad 80s Prom Gone Bad

      As a child born in the 80s and raised in the 90s, there are few things quite as awesome to me as a good ole fashioned 80s costume party.  So, when Wes and I decided to host a murder mystery dinner for our birthdays, it seemed the natural course of action to make it 80s Prom themed. 

      We had both wanted to partake in a murder mystery dinner for a long time, so we decided to take matters into our own hands and just throw one ourselves.  Wes, being the super-researcher that he is, stumbled upon nightofmystery.com, and so began the weeks of planning that led up to one of the most epic nights I have ever been a part of.  Between the photo booth, tubular 80s playlist, and radical cast of characters played by our best friends, the night was sure to be a success.  And it was.  Believe me, it was. 

      There was Benny T, who took his role as “victim” and baseball all-star so seriously that he was awarded best performance.  There was the white sangria was way too delicious and went way to fast.  There was that awesome-at-the-time moment when two of our very stylish guests made it rain from our second floor with hundreds of paper dollars (not so awesome when I had to pick them all up).  There were spectacular selfies and prom posed pictures and very serious mustaches and authentic 80s dresses worn to actual 80s proms.  There was people so in character that they became known only by their fictional names (shouts of “Royyyyy” and comments about that Ryan Rocker were common).  

      It was definitely one of those nights you talk about for weeks (maybe even months) to come. The Mayhem High School Prom will live in infamy…at least until next year’s party.

The Devil is in the Details

      

     

      One of my favorite things about weddings is the amount of time the couples put into the details.  Without the simple little details that take hours to plan and coordinate, weddings would all be the same: ceremony, reception, and getaway.  That's why when it came to planning the details of our wedding, I wanted the best possible reflection of Wes and I and who we are as a couple.  Despite the fact that planning said details made me what to pull my hair out, it was these little touches that made our day our own and, ultimately, perfect in every way.  So in honor of those devilish little details, I want to name my top 5 favorites from our wedding.

 1. Our Love Tree

Wes and I knew we wanted to have some sort of unity ceremony at our wedding, but neither of us were fans of the traditional candle or sand ceremony.  We wanted it to be something different, yet something we could enjoy for our entire lives together.  We decided to pot a “love tree” during the ceremony.  We each poured a jar of soil from our childhood homes over the roots of the tree and watered it to symbolize the nourishment that we new we needed God to provide throughout our lives.  The tree is now planted in our backyard, and we can't wait to watch it bloom throughout our marriage. 

 2.  Yard Games

Yes, I know, yard games have become very trendy at weddings nowadays.  But I like to think Wes and I put our own spin on it.  We hand painted the cornhole boards ourselves (one set was monogrammed and the other had outlines of our home states), and the Giant Jenga board doubled as a guest book.  Now when we play them, we get to laugh about the sweet message and memories (and drawings) each of the pieces has on them. 

 3.  Firefly Jars

One of my favorite things about summer in Kentucky is the glow of the fireflies.  Being that half of my family hails from South Georgia, they had never gotten to see the glorious lightening bugs before, so I wanted to make them part of our wedding day.  My mom wrote a beautiful poem about fireflies and we had jars set out for all the kids to house the bugs when they caught them.  It truly was the perfect setting for the magical glow of those mysterious little bugs. 

 4.  Quotes

I might be stating the obvious, but I am a bit of a lover of words.  I knew I wanted to incorporate this love of words in our wedding.  I spent hours coming up with a list of my favorite love quotes from movies and songs and Bible verses, and we strategically placed them throughout the reception.  We framed them on each of the tables, and Wes’s mom hand painted them on giant chalkboards that we hung on the walls.

 5.  Vows

By far my favorite part of the day was exchanging our vows.  We decided to write our own, and it was the most tender and romantic moment of my life.  It didn’t matter that there were 200 of our closest family and friends just steps away; it felt like we were alone in this perfect moment of time.  Wes’s words to me were the most beautiful I’ve ever heard, and each time I think about them I am reminded of how very lucky and loved I am.

Photos by Erin Blinn, Honey & Salt Photography

The Best Day Ever

       As much as I love words (and, let’s be honest, I love them), I don’t think I could ever describe the beauty of our wedding day with them.  So, instead, I am going to let the pictures to the talking, and add a few details here and there to fill in the gaps. 

      June 28 was a rainy, gloomy morning, and my anxiety was high being that we had planned an outdoor ceremony.  But my sweet husband-to-be knew exactly how to make me smile.  He sent a special delivery via his mom: 52 Reasons I Want To Marry You.

       My mom and I had a perfect mother-daughter moment when she gave me my something old, new, borrowed and blue and helped me put on my dress.  My bridesmaids made me feel absolutely beautiful when they saw me in my dress for the first time.  Despite the rain and the last minute change of plans, the morning was shaping up to be quite beautiful.  

Everything came together, and it was finally time to get married.

We laughed a lot.

We cried a little.

Wes's dad prayed for our marriage.

We planted a tree.

We exchanged some rings.

And said some vows.

And, then, all of a sudden, after months of planning, we were husband and wife.  

So we celebrated by hugging a lot of people that we love.

 And taking lots of pictures.

And then we danced.  With each other...

And with some people we really, really love.

And then it was time for toasts.

And people said some really thoughtful things (thanks Dad, Scott, and Katie).  And some really hilarious things (thanks, Keith.)

There was some amazing cake.

And then this ridiculously epic dance party ensued. 

And somehow, just kept getting more and more ridiculous and more and more epic.

And then we did tradition-y things like toss the bouquet...

And the garter.

And just when I thought the night couldn't get any better, this amazingly perfect thing happened.

My husband sang to me.  In front of all of our family and friends.  And I absolutely loved it. Absolutely.  Loved.  It.  

And then the most amazing day of my life ended under a sea of sparkling lights with the man of my dreams.

Photos by Erin Blinn, Honey & Salt Photography