Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Wedding Vendor Recap

I wanted to take a break from all the holiday talk to share about our wedding day. I haven't blogged about it at all and I think it's time I do.
Hunter and I got married September 3, 2011. So it's been a little over 3 months since we said "I do" and it seems like it was just yesterday. Our wedding day was everything we hoped it would be, from the ceremony to the reception, to the food, and all the fun we shared with our friends and family. Our day was perfect. Somehow everything worked out and we had nothing go wrong. Everything just fell into place. And this couldn't have been possible without our awesome vendors. I wanted to share about our experience with each of them and hopefully, if you are planning a wedding anytime soon, you will keep them in mind.
First up, our amazing photographer, Amanda Pair. Amanda did our engagement photos as well as our wedding day. She has a great viewpoint and I love her editing. She's quick and gets the important shots without making everyone pose for long periods of time. Hunter even mentioned this to me and was very happy about it. She makes taking pictures feel comfortable and in no way awkward. Keep her in mind if you are in the Birmingham area and are looking for a photographer for anything. She does engagements, weddings, family photos, children and newborn sessions, maternity sessions, and probably anything else you can think of. Go check out her blog to see her work! (I will be doing a post soon with some of our favorite pictures from Amanda of our day)


Photo by Amanda Pair
 Next, Jackie Robinson with RawwBeauty. Jackie did my makeup for the wedding and I couldn't have been more happy with the result. She also did several other peoples and I think everyone looked great! You can check out her page to see before and after shots of her work or check her out on Facebook. Keep her in mind for your makeup for any event!

Photo by Michelle Watson
Photo by Michelle Watson
For flowers, we took a while to make the decision. We live in Sylacauga, and while there are a couple shops we could have used, we decided not to. We met with one lady here and after her telling me in the nastiest way possible that I couldn't get what I wanted, we left and decided to take our business (and money) elsewhere. I won't blast her name on my blog, but if you want to know who not to go to, I'll tell you privately. If you're planning your wedding and you can't get what you've always dreamed about, it is the florists job to give you other options that are just as beautiful and that you will love equally. That's all the ranting I'm going to do. :)

So once we had a consult with J. Ross at Norton's in Birmingham, we were sold. J. Ross did a fantastic job. He told me we may not be able to get peonies for my bouquet (in a nice way), but he would find me something I loved just as much, and that he did. They delivered the flowers to the church and to the reception venue on time and all the flowers were beautiful. None were wilting and while I was surprised with the final product, I could not have been happier. I would definitely recommend Norton's for any event you need flower and arrangements for.


Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair

J. Ross personally did my bouquet and put my grandmothers veil on it. I loved it!
Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair
For my wedding dress, I went to Diane's Formal Affair in Jasper, Alabama. I was the bride that knew exactly what type of dress I wanted and I took pictures from magazines in to show my consultant what I wanted. I only tried on about 5 dresses and ended up with one I had torn out of a magazine. The staff was very professional and extremely nice. I also got it altered there and I was very happy with the result.
Photo by Amanda Pair
For our wedding ceremony we used First United Methodist Church in Sylacauga. We both knew this was where we wanted to get married so that decision wasn't a difficult one.
Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair
Before, during, and after our wedding ceremony we had a trio of strings by Cahaba River Strings. They did a fantastic job and it was absolutely beautiful. With their help (and some from the Internet), I chose the music to be played and I couldn't have been happier.

We had the reception at Harvey's on Noble in Sylacauga. This is basically the only place to have your reception in our town but it is one anyone would be happy with. It is owned by the Chandlers and it is beautiful. With lots of help from the staff at Harvey's (and many others), the reception was everything I hoped for.
Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair
For the food, my uncle provided a lot of it. Dana Vick and Lynn Payton and their staff did a fabulous job providing everything else, cooking, preparing, and serving the food. Everything was fabulous and we couldn't have asked for a better experience. If you would like their information, let me know.
Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair
For our wedding cake we used Pam Barnett. She does all types of cakes locally and we were very happy with using her! The cakes were exactly what we asked for and they were delicious! Let me know if you need her contact information.
Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Amanda Pair
At the last minute, we decided to add a little more fun to our reception. A photobooth! We wanted one from the get-go but at $1200, that was definitely not in the budget. About a month before the wedding, Groupon posted a fabulous deal. A photobooth for any even for just $425. We couldn't pass this up. So we bought the deal and it was a huge hit! We used Snaps Photobooth and they did a great job!

Photo by Amanda Pair

Photo by Snaps Photobooth
And all the fun was provided by our awesome friends and amazing family!

Photo by Amanda Pair


Photo by Amanda Pair


So I think that about wraps it up. Did I forget anything? If so, then they obviously did a great job because nothing bad stands out. :) But we seriously were so happy with all our vendors. They did a fabulous job and made our day perfect! We hope you consider all of these people while planning your special day or any other event.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Santa Bears

I shared a picture yesterday of my Santa Bear that I've had since my first Christmas. It's a tradition my dads mother, Memaw, started for all of her grandchildren when we had our first Christmas. Each year we take a picture with our bear at Christmas. With 9 of us (now 11 since my uncle got remarried last year), that's a lot of bears. But Memaw has all the pictures framed with the year marked in a collage up her stairwell. I love this tradition and it is something I want to continue to carry on once Hunter and I decide to start a family of our own. Or maybe my parents will continue that tradition? Not sure, but regardless, I think it's something fun to do with your family.
My first Christmas with my bear.
My brother, John, with his bear on his first Christmas.
My sweet little sister, Bailee, on her first Christmas with her bear.
Bailee last year (2010) with her bear.
John last year with his bear. (He looks so different now. It's crazy how much someone can change in a year!)
Me with my bear last year. I graduated from the University of Alabama on December 11, 2010, so my grandmother had me take a picture in my cap and gown with my bear. (This just made me realize I've been done with nursing school for a whole year! Woohoo!)

That's one of our family traditions that we do. Do you have any special traditions you do with your family each year?
Happy Monday!

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Rockin' around the Christmas tree

I just shared our Christmas decorations with you guys but wanted to do a separate post on our Christmas tree. I have always had a real tree but Home Depot had a really pretty artificial, pre-lit tree for only $49 on Black Friday. I just couldn't pass up this great deal so for the first year, besides when I lived in my condo in Tuscaloosa, I got a fake tree. And to my surprise, I actually like it. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing like a real tree. I love the fresh smell it sends all through the house. But it was so nice to not have sap all over your hands and needles all over the place. And since our tree is pre-lit, we didn't have to deal with putting lights on the tree.
After Christmas last year, Hunter and I went to Wal-Mart to see what they had on sale. They had tons of pretty glass ornaments. We stuck with a silver, white and green theme. We spent very little money on these ornaments so if we ever get tired of them, we can change them out. I used other ornaments that I got at our holiday shower and ornaments I have gotten since I was a baby.
I love how our tree turned out! I always like to use two wrapping papers and this year I got them from Hobby Lobby (What am I saying? I always get my paper from Hobby Lobby). I still haven't put the ribbon on them yet. (Lazy).

I used burlap as garland this year and I love how it turned out!
I love this one! My cousin, Amanda, made this for us with our wedding invitation.
This was made my my best friends mom and I love it!

One of my favorites! From my Uncle Andy when I was a baby!

Have a wonderful day!


It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Christmas is my FAVORITE! I'm actually watching Elf right now. Seriously, who doesn't love this movie?
So I decorated for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. Hunter was supposed to help, but he decided a nap sounded better. I have been so excited to decorate for Christmas this year! Last year, after Christmas, my stepmom, Allison's, sweet friends gave me a Christmas shower. I got SO much stuff and I couldn't wait to bring it out this year! So this post is going to be lots of pictures of our decorations. Hope you enjoy!
Please excuse the lighting in this picture. The sun was setting and I couldn't get a good shot. I really like how the door turned out though. The wreath is from Whole Foods and I got the metal "E" at my shower last year. I think it came from Chelsea Lane. I bought the garland and had the ornaments that I got on sale after Christmas last year. I attached them to the garland with green pipe cleaners. I was very happy with the final product.
With the garland on the front I attached the deco mesh and ornaments with pipe cleaners. It is so easy and was really fast.
Our table is my favorite. We got it for $40 from a furniture consignment shop (for those of you in Sylacauga, Anne's Bargain Barn). Hunter refinished it and it has a leaf that we can put in it to fit 8+ people. The candle is from Palace and was a wedding gift. I got the red and green striped runner and the deer from Home Goods. The burlap is fabric I had left over from the burlap garland strips I cut for our tree. And the napkins and napkin rings we got at our Holiday shower last year.
This is my Santa bear that I have had since I was born. My Memaw (my dad's mom) bought all of her grand kids one and every year we take a picture with it. She has a wall full of pictures with each of her grand kids and their bears labeled with what year it was. I will have to share more on this later because I think it is such a great tradition to have. She gave it to me last year to keep and I plan on keeping up the tradition once Hunter and I decide to start a family.
I love our stockings! I saw them at Pottery Barn after Christmas last year and my mom surprised me with them. My best friends very talented mom, Judy, monagrammed them for us.



Merry Christmas to you and yours! :)