Big Round Balloons...I Love Them.

; )

So I love thinking of the possible photos we could take at our wedding...our wedding that is yet to be planned, but still, I love photos. We thought of antique cars, old furniture, and photo booths. But the cheapest accessory I hope to purchase to glorify our wedding photos are these awesome round balloons that have become fairly popular...at least as seen on the wedding blogs I am semi-attached to. Look below:

Bridesmaids with balloons, instead of bouquets?

This bride was inspired by "Up"

Oh yeeah!

Ice Ice Baby

I was rummaging through my photos and I came across these again and I just couldn't let them sit in a folder on my computer. This little chica, Miss Kaya Wade, is so adorable. And really loves ice and any uncle that supplies it for her.

P.S. I do apologize for the cheesy title...but, really? Can you blame me?   : )

Modcloth

I am getting tired of the same old shopping around here - Khols, Target, Pennys, Old Navy. So I decided to take stroll around the internet and consequently spent about 20 minutes virtually sifting through the racks of dresses on Modcloth. These dresses are so vintage inspired and adorable. Here are some of my favorites.

The Modern Wedding Topper

It's amazing the variety of wedding toppers out there. It's not just your momma's lady-in-veil-standing-next-to-man-tux topper. However, I am not going to have a normal three-tiered cake. And there is no way I would ever change my cake to accommodate a topper. I love my future wedding cake. Kyle's step-mom Kim is going to make our cake, shall I say cakes. She makes this amazing chocolate chip cake in the shape of a bundt and she is going to try a few other recipes, which I have no doubt will be amazingly delicious, for a collection of bundts to be placed on cake stands and cut into for our guests to enjoy. Still....here are some cute toppers.

Very Kyle and I. 

How cute.

I love love love this one. I might just have to buy it and put it somewhere. : )

WHAT IN THE WORLD?!?!?

Fear No Evil

David, the beloved, the killer, the deceiver, the forgiven, the king, wrote this:

 ¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
 ² He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
 ³ he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
   for his name’s sake.
⁴ Even though I walk
   through the darkest valley,^[a]
I will fear no evil,
   for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
   they comfort me.

I am amazed by the power in this message, amazed by David's faith. There are many psalms that call on the Lord to guard David from his enemies, but this one offers such powerful belief in the power and love of God. Lately, I have been wrestling with fear. Fear of all kinds. Fear to step out and make a difference. Fear to speak out and look like a fool in the eyes of this world. But most of all, fear of going to bed alone. 

I literally have to convince myself to go to sleep, to keep the lights off and my eyes closed. I fear evil in the hearts of men, who plan to steal, kill, and destroy. Sounds familiar, almost as if I fear the workings of the devil. I want to grow in faith enough to speak as David did. To say that I know my God well enough and trust in him enough to perpetually lie down in peaceful green pastures and fear NO evil.

I think I have focused too much on trying to make it happen myself. So I have given it to God. I ask for strength and growth in faith, so that I can find peace and solace at home instead of anxiety and inner turmoil.

More verses that squash fear and inspire faith:
For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. (Isaiah 41:13)

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7)

The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27)

 

So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can Man do to me?" (Hebrews 13:6)

Good point - what can man do to me that my God couldn't stop or prevent? God is all powerful and all capable. I insult his supreme power to put him in such a limiting role in this world. The devil may have the ability to roam this world, but he is definitely not as powerful as my God. 

 

Joyce Meyer explains courage as a sign of maturity. That as we continue to experience God and see how he takes care of us, making sure we have all we need, then we begin to relax and do not have the same fears as before. She explains that fear is Satan's way of distracting us and probably, this is me talking, his way of making us doubt God as well. Meyers writes, "Anytime trouble comes fear is usually the first thing we feel. Satan injects "what if" thoughts into our head, and we often begin to see the worst possible outcome. As soon as that happens, we should realize what is going on - Satan is trying to keep us from going forward in God's will and good plan for our lives." Taking that to mind, I just want to say: the devil has no jurisdiction or stronghold hear on my soul or heart. He is banished by the name of Jesus. Banished. And with him, fear.

Venue Shopping

So I have been doing more than just browsing the internet and magazines for wedding ideas. Kyle and I have visited a couple venues and have been trying to find the perfect spot for the look, feel, and price of our wedding. We are looking for a great outdoor ceremony site and an indoor/under a roof reception area with a possible "barn-like" feel to it.

First, a good while ago, we visited House Mountain Inn in Lexington. It is a beautiful facility way up in the mountains with great views and wonderful guest lodging. It offers two possible reception areas - one that is in their main house and one that is still under construction. The pricing of the venues is reasonable, but the Inn does require that they provide the catering which starts at $30 per person without factoring in taxes, gratuity, and drinks. Kyle and I know that the food is going to be a pricey part of the wedding, but neither of us likes the idea of having only one option for a caterer. We want to shop around and find unique, well-priced food. Plus, the rooms are pricey. They are gorgeous and many have hot tubs, but still pricey and the policy is you must rent them all to have your wedding at the main facility. The location is beautiful, but there are limited grounds to just "hang out" on and the "nature" of the place seems to reside on the mountains, which is pretty, but far away. So this venue remains at the bottom of the list. The lack of food options really doesn't appeal to us.

A previous wedding at the Inn

This is an outdoor pavilion that can be a reception site for smaller parties or a ceremony site.

The indoor reception area.

The next visit I made by myself. I visited Hermitage Hill Farms in Waynesboro.This facility is a horse boarding ranch featuring a ballroom that is rented exclusively for weddings. The venue is rather small and limited in ceremony site options, but it does have a sort of unique charm about it. The director is eager to help in any way - he talked to me for about 2 hours about wedding planning - and the facility has comparable rates and some unique photo opportunities. It also offers an adorable cocktail option called the "Carrots and Cocktail Hour." During this time, the guests are served cocktails and hors d'oeuvres and given carrots to feed the horses. Before I visited the venue, I was thinking horses = dirty, horse poopy. But it wasn't the case. The facility was clean and nasty smell free and I could actually picture a wedding there. The tables and chairs provided are ugly and would need to be covered, but that seems to be a trend at most places. But the big downfall of this facility is the ceremony site. It is in the middle of a horse track, in front of the building, near a parking lot and the road. There are no trees, no lush greenery - just a little white building surrounded by a sandy dirt circle track. I did not like this. I tried to ask about other possible ceremony sites, but there didn't seem to be much else to offer at the facility, which made it appeal less to me. I like the idea of the horses and the reception area is nice, but I am still on the fence about this one.

The ceremony site looks nice here, but that is because you can't see what surrounds.

Front of building - cool staircase to look-out at top.

See - cute photo opportunities.

Reception area - ugly tables, ugly chairs.

Next we visited the Inn at Old Virginia in Staunton. First of all, we loved the director of the Inn. She was so pleasant and cordial, humorous and hospitable. She seemed to really want to work with us to give us the venue we really wanted. Even though the Inn is close to the highway, it is still rather beautiful with views of the mountains behind the buildings and of a railroad bridge as you first drive in. The Inn itself is charming and would offer more accommodations for guests if they wanted to stay on the property. The rooms are more reasonably priced than at the House Mountain Inn and this Inn has more lawn and allows for an outside caterer of our choosing. It offers several ceremony sites - in front of a great tree, in front of a few pines, looking out on the mountains of Virginia. The reception would be held in a tent that the facility rents and sets up for the wedding. The Inn also takes care of chair and table rentals, which are also included in the price. The pricing of this Inn is comparable to the House Mountain Inn and we love the flexibility of the director and her "can-do" attitude. Overall, this place is beautiful and high on the list. It is still at the higher end of our budget, but knowing that the director is willing to work with us makes the price sit easier.

Ceremony out front in front of a big tree - which is the spot I like.

A cute old building on the property for photo options.

The tent. Not the greatest...but it is a normal tent.

Then, we visited the Frontier Culture Museum. I actually visited this one by myself towards the end of February and then Kyle and I went back last weekend to see it again. This venue is so appealing mainly because of the price. It does have the look we want and some interesting features, but the price is amazing. The Museum also offers two reception areas and two different ceremony site possibilities. I like both ceremony site options because they are amphitheater like and situated in the woods and have a rather rustic charm about them. The reception sites are not as lovable, but they are possible. The first is a pavilion that is spacious, but has no visual character and is rather close to the main facility buildings of the museum. The second is an octagonal barn with two floors. The top floor has great ceilings and, although it looks rather small, the director did tell us it could hold 130 people easily. Hard to believe, but I am sure she knows. The bottom floor is rather ugly, with outdated carpets and dingy walls, but it would be a great area for the dancing/karaoke part of the reception. The barn offers no air conditioning though. Eeek, for a wedding in June. It seems small, there is not much lawn space, but like I said the pricing is fabulous. I wish I could just visit a wedding that is going to be held there so I can see the spacing in the octagonal barn and it might be beneficial to wait until June of this year to see how hot it gets. I am sure it would be just as hot as a tent reception on the lawn of the Inn at Old Virginia, though.

Not many pictures of this place. Which is a bummer.

We have a few more venues to visit: The Evermore Barn in Luray, Barren Ridge Vineyard...maybe some others

Wat...Wat...Watters

I was browsing the "Style Me Pretty" blog and saw a few beautiful dresses by Watters, so I checked them out. Very expensive, but I found a couple that were in my price range on a discount dress site.

This one, although it is hard to see, has rose imprints in fabric. Very pretty.

This one is kind of meh, but it does have pockets. 

I think this one is my favorite.

Spring

Our windows are open and the sun is shining.

We washed and waxed our cars today and the whole time I was smiling because it feels wonderful outside. I am so happy for spring, so tired of winter. I can't wait to do some landscaping outside in our yard. I want to make planters for our desks, build flower beds and plant shrubbery around the house, and plant a few lilac trees next to our building out back. I can't wait. I wish we had two trees close to one another so I could hang a hammock, but then again, there are always great lawn chairs.

Yay, Spring!

Martha Stewart

I am pretty sure good ol' Martha doesn't come up with all these ideas herself, but I do love her wedding website. Here are some DIY projects I love that I sifted out the surfing I did for the last hour. Yay for Sundays.

Homemade wire holders, maybe to hold
- menus
- cute Polaroids
- table numbers














Okay, maybe not in these bright colors - not really my style, but I do like these giant flower hangy things that are made from paper!

Ribbon decorations - all made from paper and ribbon.

Cute little bird name cards.

Needs a few more warm colors in my opinion, but I like the simplistic design of this table.

I love the colors in this one. And get this: the table runner is textured, heavy duty wrapping paper, the place mat is patterned scrapbooking paper, and the flowers are half paper, half real. Love it.