I've known Rachel for ten years, she was 12 when her family moved in down the street. I've watched her grow into a beautiful young woman and now she's getting married! With help from Janice, Megan and Barbara, we threw Rachel a bridal shower that ended up being one for the books - mainly because the weather was so beautiful! The week before the shower I was hyperventilating over the weather - we had several 90 degree days and no one wants to sit outside when it's that hot! Or inside! I worried myself sick over where to put the guests - crammed inside on top of each other or outside where they would surely wilt! But my worry was for naught...it was 78 degrees by shower time with a slight breeze...could not have been better!
When I have a party it always takes 3 days out of my week...I do as much prep as I can the day before, the day of is usually filled with cooking/baking and last minute ideas (I'm an expert at last minute crappola - anything to make things more difficult!) and the day after is taken up with putting everything back in it's place - and usually a nap!
Speaking of making things difficult, I don't like to use paper plates/cups/utensils...call me stupid but I would rather eat off of real plates with a real fork...so spending time at the kitchen sink washing place settings for 30 is about as diffcult as one can get except I also have a thing about people helping me wash dishes! (Let me explain that, I'm not totally crazy or maybe I am, but over the years at the end of a party, well-meaning friends rush into the kitchen and start scraping plates and flinging stuff around - a plate or two would get chipped, a goblet would shatter, a fork (or 3) would go missing, later to be found in the trash! - things would happen. If a dish is going to break in my kitchen I'd rather it be me doing the breaking...then no one leaves feeling bad!)
The theme for the shower was the girl next door and the all-American boy and coincidentally the shower was two days before the 4th so all of my July 4th paraphernalia fit in nicely! Rachel has known Tanner since 5th grade - they grew up together - I think everyone always knew they would get married one day.
It was a big shower - 30 people! I picked up bandanas at the party store for napkins, mason jars were used as vases and the flowers were all from my yard! We served an all-American meal for dinner and once everyone was seated they were there for the night - as there wasn't a whole lot of room for roaming around!
Megan brought beautiful white-chocolate dipped strawberries that were so sweet and so good! She also went to the trouble to bring home-made rootbeer so we could have rootbeer floats for dessert! Janice brought her famous baked beans and fruit skewers which went perfectly with the Deviled Eggs, Cherry-Bomb Pork Sliders, Edith's Cole Slaw, chips and Sun-Dried Tomato Salad pasta salad...all-American meal right down to the last piece of corn-on-the-cob!
The food was great - and I have to thank my sous chef Katie who came and helped me in the kitchen. Katie is 15 and she was a life-saver! Everyone should have a Katie!!
Rachel was showered with wonderful gifts! And a few extra-special gifts that made her blush and even squirm a bit!
Like this beautifully hand-crafted "money belt"...what else could it be?!? There were actually two of them...his and her...and a matching top! Someone said they were denim thongs...but they looked more like headbands to me! (Nicely done Joni and Tami!)
Of all the gifts Rachel opened, my favorite had to be the one her future mother-in-law gave her...and really, it's the perfect MIL gift!
It was a very fun night - wonderful women came to support Rachel and this was a first for me, everyone there knew both the Mother of the Bride and the Mother of the Groom - so it was one big love fest! Just a two more pics - Rachel and me - she is holding her bow-quet and I'm demonstrating how to wear white pants with chocolate stains!
Everyone left with a box of Cracker-Jack - can't get any more all-American than that! Good luck Rachel - I am so very happy for you and Tanner!
