Week after Christmas!

Well, as I said Christmas came and went and I really did get ready....being sick with the stomach flu set me back but since I have done this gig for 37 years and I've never forgotten a gift or to grocery shop and prepare food I was confident that it would happen again. I didn't get a chance to make Bula bread, which is a Swedish tradition in my family but promised my kids that I would make it this winter instead.

This week has been great so far....Steve has been on vacation all week so he finally has some time to re-connect. We have been cooking together, watching movies and spending time with Christa, Steve's daughter that has been in France for the past 4 months. Today we walked outside in the snow as it was a perfectly sunny blue sky day!

I had a wedding on Monday for a young couple in college. It was beautiful and so were they....soooo young but I wish them much happiness in their new life together....she wore red shoes under her white dress....it is such a trend to wear colored shoes...I love it!

Merry Christmas!

Well it's December and I am as busy as ever. After having my daughter, her husband and 4 kids here for 22 weeks this year I kind of got out of sync and didn't get my regular Christmas stuff done early. So here it is just a week before Christmas and I am not done shopping, baking and wrapping. Oh well - Christmas will come whether I am ready or not. I am trying to step back and focus more on what this season really means to me and the world. It's not about all the parties, gifts, food, etc. but about God's intense and indescribable love for us all. That He would actually come to earth in human form, teach us and then sacrifice his life for us! It's so amazing...it convicts me to love others beyond measure!

I have a couple of Dec. weddings coming up. One is this Sat. and another right after Christmas. Both themes will be decorated in red...what a perfect time to get married. It's when everything inside is soft and warm and cozy even when it is so cold outside. I love the calmness of the lights and the warmth of the colors of Christmas.

May your Christmas be all you are hoping for!

Well it's November and a really dark dreary day...someone once said to me in late Fall of the year...gray till May...I sure hope that's not the case this year. I am hoping for a really sunny Winter this year in Ohio. I have not been blogging as I have been more that busy. So many weddings this year which I am very grateful for and also my oldest daugher, "son" and 4 children came back to camp out at our house until they found a house and got ready to move in...moving day is the day before Thanksgiving and the best thing is that they will be just a bike ride away!!!! Finally we will be able to see them lots and lots and that is the biggest blessing of all. It's been 10 years since then moved away, then just with Hannah at age 18months. Now she is 9, Grace is 7, Emma is 5 and Joshua is 18months. What fun it will be to see them grow and develop from the little people they are in every stage of life. Take a look at the picture of them....

Taking a much needed break from the string of weddings this year. Had a beautiful wedding a couple of weeks ago - the bride was an identical twin. The bride had idential twins in her bridal party, 2 members of her sports team from college were at the wedding and were also identical twins, and then the groom had 2 more sets of identical twins on his side. It was amazing when they all got out on the dance floor for a picture. Bet there is a good chance that they could have a set too someday! I love wedding shoes and the bride wore purple. It was awesome!

I have added some pics of another amazing "lovebird theme wedding." It was awesome!!!!!... and so was the couple

Beautiful Shoes.....

My bride and groom from this week was from NYC and the week before from NJ....I kind of have an East Coast thing going on...I was glad to have been able to help them both with the long distance planning and both weddings were very elegant and beautiful. I especially enjoyed meeting the families and actually felt like we were old friends by the time I left. I still, even after hundreds of weddings, get choked up when I hear the toasts and the love professed and it's so touching when the best man can't get through his speech because he is overcome with emotion for his brother, in the case last Sat. or best friend....by the way, the pic is of the shoes the bride wore this past week ....I loved them but can't remember the last time I could wear heels like that.....but she acted like they were so comfy! Of course later into the night, they changed into what's in the basket!

I have a weekend off and am soooo looking forward to it. I am so grateful to have had such a great season but I am in need of a re-grouping and a fresh outlook for the weddings ahead this month and into the Fall. Christa, my stepdaughter is also going to be home for only 2 weeks until she leaves for France to study the 1st semester of her jr. year. She will be gone until almost Christmas so it will be hard to see her go and my husband, her dad, will be lost without her...but what an experience for her. My son, Jeff, studied abroad in Turkey for a semester and he loved it too. So I'm glad she has the opportunity to do it.

Weddings-Weddings-Weddings.....!!!

It's July-and many of the weddings I've done this summer have been in wedding gardens.....it has been either soooo hot or very rainy so it hasn't been ideal. But with all of these weddings what I have been reflecting on most is the marriages that have been taking place. Sometimes the brides and grooms get so caught up in the details that by the time the wedding is upon them they are arguing with the love of their lives and wishing they had eloped or worse yet some are wondering if they are doing the right thing or marrying the right person. I try to help them see that in their life together they will have many tough times when things don't go exactly as planned....but those times and the way they handle them will actually reflect their character and will determine how successful their marriages will be.

My advise to the couples is to delegate as many details as possible to their close family and friends, and then let those things go and trust that they will handle them well. Trouble comes when the bride and groom try to do everything themselves and they completely exhaust themselves.

Also take time at least once a week during the planning process to spend a day or evening together where you don't talk about "the wedding" at all. Focus on creating the best relationship you possibly can always building each other up and being genuinely interested in one another's life. What you will be doing is growing strong muscles in your future marriage that will see you though all of the joys, and obstacles ahead........

BITTERSWEET!

It has been 10 weeks and 2 days since my daughter and her husband and their 4 beautiful children came to stay with us!!!! The 3 girls left on Friday with their dad driving them back to TX and Amy and the baby, Joshua left today to fly home and be re-united. I cried all the way home! Those emotions surprised me and overtook me. It was a precious time begin able to spend so much time with them. How often does anyone get the chance to live with their grandkids for an extended amount of time. There were many amazing moments and some stressful ones as well. When we raised our kids we had the space and our lives were geared to them but now we live in a condo with an open floor plan that is not very conducive to more than the 2 of us. But we made it work and we will miss it all terribly....although we are also excited to just be the 2 of us again. My husband was so wonderful though it all. So helpful and soooo understanding and had so much patience. I know God has given me such a wonderful husband...and I am so grateful.



The wedding season is upon us both now and it was hard to be completely focused with all of the craziness but now we will be giving it all we have and are looking forward to it all. We are celebrating our anniversary today, June 6 and are reflecting how good our God is and how much we love each other!

Updated Website!

I am so thankful to my husband Steve for helping me update my website. I hope you all like it. Let me know what you think. We are home tonight really relaxing after a great bridal show and tasting at Scioto Reserve Country Club. Tomorrow my daughter and her 4 children will be coming to visit for awhile. Our life is about to change for a little while but I look forward to the wonderful hugs and kisses we'll be getting soon!