Wedding Week: Practice Makes Perfect

While I'm using the words "Wedding Week" in every title, I think it's time I talk about how the actual week of the wedding went down for us. Most brides would probably agree when I say it was the most whirlwind week of my life. Since I still had class that week, I had to write two papers and study for an exam (gross), but I let my professors know ahead of time that I would not be in class that Thursday or Friday. Just wasn't hapnin. Those days were reserved for picking up my dress and shoes, getting the ribbons tied on the programs, wrapping the bridesmaids gifts, getting the oil changed and vacuuming out my car, finalizing things with the reception venue, DJ, and photographer, and packing for the honeymoon. Shew, I'm exhausted just typing all of that!

Needless to say I was glad when Friday evening finally rolled around. I was ready to see everyone (the majority of the bridesmaids lived out of state), get in a good run-through or two, and then chow down on some mouth-watering pulled pork.

We started the rehearsal out with a prayer from one of our officiants, Pastor Ronnie, and then our wedding director, Suzanne, took over. Let me tell you, she was amazing! Everyone kept saying how it was one of the most organized rehearsals they've ever been to.

I believe the secret to Suzanne's success lies in this quick tip from Emily Ayer: start with everyone where they'll be during the ceremony (i.e. bride and groom in the center, bridal party on either side), then practice the recessional, and then practice the processional. That way, you'll know exactly how everyone should be lined up in the back to get everyone in the right position in the front!

So we went about discussing where everyone would stand...

...Threw in a few weird hand motions...
...and got everybody in the right spot.
Woo hoo! We're excited to be pretend married! It was around this time we got the sad news about my grandmother having an aneurysm. My heart was torn because I wanted to be there with her and help somehow, but I also know she would have wanted us to go on and soak up this special time in our lives. So I held on tight to my dad and we did.

Kyle's family did a great job with the rehearsal dinner. They made it easy on everyone and held it at the church's fellowship hall, and gave our guests a proper southern welcome with pulled pork for dinner and assorted pies for dessert. And yes, that's a whole roast pig!

For the centerpieces, Kyle's mom and sister arranged magnolia leaves around a glass bowl with floating candles. Very pretty!

And here we have the gracious rehearsal dinner hosts, Kyle's mom and dad.

After we stuffed our bellies to our heart's content, Kyle's dad opened the floor to anyone who wanted to give a toast. There was much laughter and a few tears from the shameless storytelling that ensued!

As the evening came to a close, we handed out the ring bearer and flower girl gifts. I was especially excited about Rebecca's because she is a girl after my own heart at that age. I loved getting doll clothes when I was 5, I was an unabashed girly girl!

After some quick poses with my gal cousins and my parents, it was time to roll out and get some beauty sleep. I said my last goodbye to Kyle as my fiance, knowing the next time I saw him I would be wearing that white dress! (Best feeling in the world.)

Thanks to my mom and Brax Roberts for capturing these photos.

Wedding Week: Hen Night

Enough about our favorite people and wedding day details, let's get on with the main events! First up, the timeless female ritual known as the bachelorette party, or in some countries, hen night. (Kinda weird name, but kinda funny all at the same time.)

Naturally the planning fell in my sister's hands, seeing as she was the MOH, and she did a fantastic job! She decided to host it the Saturday before the wedding, which worked out perfectly since I didn't have to wait forever to sport all my pretty new lingerie!

So after they dressed me up in the usual bachelorette paraphernalia, we set out to eat dinner at Shout in Atlanta. We got a little behind schedule due to traffic from a Jay-Z concert--we were pretty much the only people in Atlanta NOT going--but eventually we found our way there. Shout had a fun atmosphere and was extra delicious, a great locale for bachelorette shindigs!

Once we had our fill of food and drinks, we headed back to my sister's house for some fun games and the lingerie shower. And to munch on these delightful little red velvet cupcakes. There's always extra room for dessert!

Hilarity ensued with the games my sister had planned, but there are no pictures of that. ;) The lingerie shower absolutely exceeded my expectations, my girls spoiled me to death! You can see here how my sister got a little creative with the decor.

By far my favorite gift was this panty bouquet made by my fabulous roomies Jaclyn and Brittany. How amazing is that?! I managed to get the goodies out and reused it as my rehearsal bouquet. You'll get to see more on that tomorrow.

All in all it was a fabulous night with a few of my favorite gal-pals. To top it off I had an amazing conversation with my sister afterward talking marriage and practical advice. Gotta love older sisters. And right around this time you can cue the sleepless nights!

Photos by Rachel Newsome (Soon-to-be-Smith!)

Wedding Week: Flora and Fauna

It was one of my favorite moments in the wedding planning process. My mom, Denise and I sat in a comfy booth at Rafferty's, sipping on sweet tea and munching on their divine honey-glazed croissants, talking wedding flowers and longing for spring. I didn't know then how beautiful the flowers would turn out, how Denise would create for us a dream of a yellow, white and green garden on our wedding day. I am so happy to show you the floral masterpieces lovingly crafted for us by TruSo Weddings today. Thanks so much again, Denise!

You've already seen my bouquet here, but I didn't want it to feel left out of the flowers post so it gets another picture. :)

My bridesmaids carried bouquets of two shades of yellow roses and lady's mantle, hand-tied with yellow gingham ribbon. Even though I was hesitant about doing yellow flowers with yellow dresses, the greenery around the base really helped them to pop and everything turned out beautifully.

My sweet little flower girl wore a headpiece of baby's breath and sweetheart roses and carried a basket of yellow rose petals to sprinkle down the aisle for me. She was a pro!

My handsome groom donned a white calla lily and yellow ranunculus boutonniere. A little side note of warning though, I do not recommend ranunculus for boutonnieres or corsages. They just don't have enough strength and stamina for the job. You can tell in this photo that Kyle's was already drooping, and it finally threw in the towel right after the ceremony. Or Kyle ate it and didn't tell me. Both are possibilities.

Kyle's merry men wore a slightly larger version of what this tough guy wore, a simple billy ball boutonniere. Surprisingly, my brother volunteered his opinion on the groomsmen boutonnieres, and the billy balls got the "masculine" stamp of approval. Woo hoo!

For everyone else who needed a "Looky here! I'm important!" flower, we went with white freesias, ranunculus and roses to tone done the yellowness in everything else.

Speaking of yellow, this was our guest book arrangement set up on a table in the church foyer. We went with tall cylinder vases with yellow callas, orchids and lemons inside. I love this photo Shannon captured of the arrangement so much. Simply stunning!

We had these pew markers on the first two rows to set apart where our grandparents and parents were to sit during the ceremony. We wanted these to emphasize the greenery but still have a pop of color with the cluster of yellow and white roses.

And here we have the big kahuna, the altar arrangement. I wish I could've preserved this and taken it home with me, it was so beautiful! For this arrangement we used a garden urn with a mixture of all the aforementioned flowers, with a little willow and bells of ireland thrown in. Thankfully we were able to recycle this arrangement at the reception and use it as the buffet arrangement as well.

This was our unity candle arrangement, which was basically the same as our pew markers but with a little more swag.

And now for the reception decor! On the highboy tables we used square vases with ranunculus and roses wrapped in a big leaf thingy (also known as a dieffenbachia leaf, for those who like their trivia).

The table centerpieces were definitely my favorite arrangements. They were a beautiful combination of hydrangeas, yellow roses & ranunculus, green viburnum & sedum, yellow orchids, bright green berries and tall willow. Denise had these gorgeous tall vases to put them in, and added hanging crystals and candles in stemmed glass holders to complete the look. Perfection, I say!

And finally, to add finishing touches to the wedding cake, we went with yellow ranunculus and green viburnum for the cake topper, and ranunculus in random spots on the different tiers. If you can't tell, I love me some ranunculus!

I'd love to hear about your wedding flowers, or flowers for any event you've had recently! Did you DIY or go with a florist? I just made my first attempt at DIY flowers for a baby shower I recently co-hosted, pictures coming once Wedding Week quits taking over my blog! ;)

All photos by Shannon Belletti.

Wedding Week: The Gents

Thanks for sticking with us through Wedding Week thus far! These posts have been some of my favorite to write. In case you are just now joining us, we kicked things off with an intro on Sunday, then talked about the wedding paper trail, our engagement session, the bridal look, and my lovely bridesmaids. And you guessed it, this post will be all about Kyle's best dudes!

We chose black Joseph & Feiss tuxedos with yellow vests and ties for the groomsmen, and Kyle was lookin' sexy in a Calvin Klein tux with a white vest and tie (which was free, woot woot! One of the benefits of having a large wedding party when renting from MW Tux I guess).

So without further ado, let's meet Kyle's best buds:

First, this is Kyle's best man and father, Eric. He is a veterinarian just like my dad, and they were actually both in vet school at UGA at the same time, only one year apart. They probably never imagined an event like this would bring them together!

This is my weetle brudder Drewbear. He will probably hate me for typing that, but he can get over it because he will always be my little shrimp, no matter how tall he gets. I am so proud of the young man he is becoming and his evident love for Christ. Keep it up bro!

This is Alan, my brother-in-law. He married my sister at this very same church two years prior, and I really appreciate the way he loves and takes care of my Ashie. If you ever get the privilege to meet him, ask him to do his race car impression. It's pretty spot-on.

Say hi to Andy H., a dear friend Kyle met in a calculus class at UGA that they both didn't need. But hey, they got a marvelous friendship out of the deal! Andy is a self-proclaimed coffee connoisseur, uber tech-savvy and really good at posing for pictures, as you can tell.

Next, this is Matt. He's a longtime friend of Kyle's and deserves an extra pat on the back for making it down the aisle during our ceremony without a crutch. He sprained his ankle the week of the wedding, ouch! He's getting married to the love of his life this June, we are really looking forward to their hitchin'!

And this is Isaac, another longtime friend of Kyle's. Isaac has this great ability to lighten up the mood everywhere he goes. He is the definition of chill. He is an honest guy and loves to discuss politics, so if you're up for an interesting conversation, Isaac is your man.

This is Andy M., Kyle's partner in crime growing up. Whatever Andy did, Kyle did too. Which explains Kyle's momentary relapse of sanity when he was a Georgia Tech fan, since Andy was a Tech fan. Thankfully Kyle recovered. But we love Andy despite his college football loyalties, and he has a wedding anniversary of his own coming up soon in June!

Here we have Eugene, our favorite Korean. He and Kyle lived on the same hall freshman year at UGA, and then they were roommates for three-ish years after that. I guess you could say they have a special bond. Eugene also secretly wants to be a GQ model. Check out how he's workin' it in that photo!

And last but not least, we have Tyler. Tyler also lived on the same hall as Kyle freshman year at UGA, and they've been great buds ever since. Fun fact about Tyler, he was in the men's A Capella group at UGA called The Accidentals. Homeboy is always singing/whistling a tune! He's gonna be the next Will Schuester, just you wait!

More than deserving of an honorable mention is Grady, Isaac's little brother. Grady was always around when Kyle would hang out with Isaac and the dudes, and Kyle thinks of him like a brother too. Most of all, they have a mutual appreciation for all things Star Wars. Sorry guys, had to out your inner geekiness. But I think you're cool!

And we can't forget these other important men, the ring bearer Patrick, my Dad, and you saw the g-pas in yesterday's post.

So yeah, those are Kyle's brochachos. We had an awesome wedding party and couldn't be more thankful for their love and support!

Get...that...dirt off your shoulder (Name that song!)
The tripod.
The End! Yay!
All photos by Shannon Belletti.