Totally Addictive

In my web wanderings I happened upon this incredibly addictive site.  Here's what I've spent way too much time doing lately...

You have to try this!

Photo Surprise

My friend, Martha, sent me a lovely little surprise email with photos from the wedding.  She's actually the first friend to email pictures...hint, hint...I saw all those cameras flashing.
Here are a few of my faves...

The cake was very special to me.  It's a pile of made-by-my-mama cream puffs.  I have fond childhood memories of her making giant cream puffs.  The funny thing is that she probably only made them two or three times in my life, but, boy, did those memories stick like glue!

I'm so glad to have some snow eating photos!!  Levi was hilarious about the snow.  He still talks about his snow.  "Where's my snow?"  Followed by a sad voice, "My snow gone."  Awww.  And, to think, it's highly possible that he might not see snow that sticks for a few more years.

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Oh, and, yes, he did wear those galoshes down the aisle.  He's worn them every day for about a month now.  They are two sizes too big for him, but he totally doesn't care.  He also screamed all the way down the aisle and during the first part of the ceremony.  My dad convinced him to relinquish his death grip on my hair by telling him he could go outside.  Martha's husband, Bob, took over from there and helped him make sculptures with sticks in the snow.

Thanks, Martha!

Success!

Levi has finally turned a corner in the whole getting-settled-into-a-new-life-funk.  He's been mostly sweet about the move and the marriage, but he's certainly had his quirky and trying moments...okay, more than just moments.  He was screaming every morning for at least 1/2 an hour...."I wanna go home!!!"  What a pleasant way to great the day.  He was also refusing to acknowledge that this was now our house.  Until two days ago he was referring to it only as "Teven's house".  If anyone mentioned that it was our or his house, Levi would scream, "Nooooo!"

But, then on Wednesday morning the screaming was oddly shorter than usual.  It was even followed by a very happy munchkin.  The happiness lasted the whole, entire day!  Thursday morning rolled around, and the screaming was almost unnoticeable.  And, the happiness returned for yet another whole, entire day.  Now, it's Friday...no screaming...just happiness....except when I tell him he can't watch a movie, but that's really a whole other post.  Over the course of the past 2 1/2 days Levi has actually been referring to it as "our house" and "home."  Oh, sweet relief!

Now that laughter is back and we're on a happy note, I thought I'd leave you with some photos of the huge snow we got the day before our wedding.  A whopping SIX inches...in February!  What's up with that?!!!

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Mississippi landscapes...this much snow is unusual...anytime...especially in February.  But, hey, Levi thought it was the best thing in the world, and although, it was certainly cold, it was also undeniably beautiful.

Wedding!!

We are technically over our no good, very bad, rotten stinkin' awful stomach bug, but we are still recovering from our week of dealing with it plus moving, plus never ending home renovation projects, plus trying to get a two year old settled into a big change. So far Levi is okay with moving except in the morning when he screams at us from about 6:30-7:00 and then finally accepts oatmeal as a substitute for going home. Y'all, it's been a rough week.
On the upside I married an incredible man (who has changed a total of 5 of the nastiest diapers I've ever seen...all in one week) and we had a beautiful wedding.  So, here are a few pics of the wedding that I ripped off of my sister's facebook page. 

The "cake"...homemade cream puffs dusted with powdered sugar...heaven...

The eating of the "cake"...

One of our few family photos....Levi insisted on spending most of the wedding outside....And, oh, what's that you see covering the ground?  None other than snow in Mississippi in February....a rare event that obviously nixed my outdoor wedding plans.  It was beautiful at least.

 

Levi...because he's way cuter than us anyway...

  

And, the getaway...

 

So, there's a taste of it.  Once we get a little more settled in and I get my camera's memory card (and other people's photos...ahem...hint, hint.) then I promise I'll share more.  It really was lovely.

Let The Countdown Begin

The clock is really starting to tick now.  As of today, there is exactly one week before vows are spoken, lives are united, and we start a brand new life, a brand new family, and a brand new adventure.  Sigh.  Happiness.
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Oh, yeah, and there might be a little stress involved.  It's been raining buckets upon buckets around here.  Our yard (which drains really well by the way) has been looking rather pond like lately.  And, although, we are perfectly capable (and kind of okay with) getting hitched indoors, outdoors was definitely on the agenda...and the invitations. 
More rain is in the forecast.  Is there an anti-rain dance to be done?  I'm up for doing it.  Anyone want to join me?  Oh, yes, and a slightly warmer weather dance would be great too.

Photo via Leo Reonalds flickr photostream.

Wedding Updates and Munchkin Attire

So far almost everything about this wedding has been ridiculously easy breezy.  Lots of wonderful people have volunteered to help out doing everything from taking pictures to lending serving pieces to helping set up.  My dress and shoes were found in record time.  Even the blood tests went smoothly...if you know me you know this is a miracle.  It's so rare for someone to find a vein in my arm without extraordinary amounts of pain and often digging.....seriously, people, blood work is something I dread like nothing else.  But this time it was quick and painless.

So, things have been falling together with little to no effort....except for the invitations and the flower girls' dresses.   Oh. my.  The invitations deserve their own blog posts, but I'll keep it short.  Thanks to a very wonderful family friend they got done.  Now, I just have to mail them!  I know, I'm a tad behind on that one.
The dresses!!  Who knew it could be so difficult to find little girl dresses?  Maybe I just don't know where to look, but the selection was so terribly slim.  And, EVERYTHING was sleeveless...in January!!!  Do little girls not need sleeves in the middle of winter?  I did finally piece together two outfits. (I should probably break in here to explain that there is a pair of sisters who are very close to my heart.  I couldn't pick just one.)  Anyway, with a little sweater shopping, which was oddly also difficult in JANUARY, mixed with a little craftiness I finally came up with something that I like. 

Dress 1:  This is for the oldest sister.  This dress is not as gold and shiny as it looks in the photo.  It's actually a very pale champagne.  I didn't have to do anything with this one except find a sweater.  I so wish I had taken pics while the girls were actually in their dresses!  They were so darn cute. 

Dress 2:  This is the dress that required the most work.  I couldn't find matching dresses or even dresses in the same color family.  I couldn't even find less dressy dresses. This shopping experience left me hoping that I have all boys because I obviously can't shop for girls.  Anyway, this was the original dress...in purple...so not the wedding color...

To minimize the purple impact, I added a blue sash.

And, of course, a sweater.  I am still kind of shocked by how difficult it was to find sweaters this time of year.

The sweater was embroidered with two of these...

I covered them up with two of these felt appliques with button centers...

And for those of you who are wondering what Levi (the ring bearer) will be wearing...

And, yes, he will be wearing pants with this...blue slacks to be exact.  I know something a little nicer would have matched the flower girls a tad better, but getting him into something nicer would have sent my head spinning...not to mention his.

So, three munchkins in the wedding party should equal to totally upstaging me.  I can't wait!

Wedding Crafting...Maybe

I've been experimenting with some wedding craft ideas.  I'm not sure where all of it's going, but I thought I'd give y'all a little sneak peak. 

What kind of crafty endeavors are y'all up to?

Wedding Loveliness

I found the dress (a lovely goldish champagne knee length number)...and the shoes...she grins ear to ear as she types.  And, unbelievably I found them in one hour.  Seriously.  I sort of couldn't believe it.  It takes me longer to find a pair of jeans.

But, now I'm looking for something to wear in my hair, and my eyes have begun to glaze over.  There are so many options!  I can't decide!!

by Be Something New

by PenelliBelle

by Crystal Bloom

by It's The Little Things

After all this indecisiveness I am actually considering just making my own. I'm pretty handy with doodads and wire, so maybe it wouldn't look too terribly rotten.  Any thoughts, ideas, suggestions, favorites??

The Shiny Side

I have a little surprise up my sleeve.
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You wanna know what it is?
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Drum roll please...
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Are you ready for it?  ; )
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You sure?
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Alrighty then
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This Barefoot Mama's gettin' hitched!!!

I told you it was a surprise.  He's kinda cute...huh?  To top it off he's my best friend, and he happens to be the sweetest guy on the face of this planet....in my not so humble opinion.

To answer possible questions...no, we didn't just meet yesterday...and no, he's not the reason for this.  I promise.  I'm not that kind of girl.  We met over the course of my ridiculously lengthy divorce...which at the time was inconvenient and annoying.  But, in retrospect it's got God's fingerprints all over it.  Meeting that way and only being able to be friends actually allowed us to become best friends.  Funny how things work out.

You wanna know the coolest part?  Levi thinks he hung the stinkin' moon.  Those two fellas could start their own mutual admiration society.  Which is a good thing, because no matter how swank I think he is, he wasn't going to make the cut without Levi's wholehearted approval.

Oh...what's that?...you wanna know his name?  :)  It's Stephan.  Although, most people (except me for some odd reason) call him Steve.  Someday, I might be converted...we'll see.

We're tying the knot February 13 in my parents' back yard.  Sorry to disappoint though...it won't be a full on barefoot wedding because...um...Mississippi is cold in February.  People are probably going to be ready to slap me for having the shindig in the backyard in the first place.  But, I'm aiming for small, relaxed, and personal...the backyard fits.

P.S. Sorry about the not so fabulous photos.  I tried to get some over Christmas, but we just weren't managing photogenic...or even close.

P.P.S. One day in the near future, I'll actually sit down and write a post about how we met.  So, inquiring minds can know.