wedding festivities {& picture overload}

Last weekend, one of my besties from childhood tied the knot to her high school sweetheart!

The wedding & reception was held in downtown Savannah at the Mariott! Beautiful place.

Since I was a bridesmaid, I wasn't able to snag any pictures of the ceremony unfortunately.

I stole this one from Jess - who by the way - was the Wedding Coordinator and did a FABULOUS, fabulous job :)

Rehearsal dinner was held at Skyler's downtown. Very romantic setting!

I'm a sucker for white Christmas lighting and fancy votive candles EVERYWHERE.

It was gorgeous.

And the food was amazingly good.

Lightly battered chicken breast, steamed vegetables, and an angel hair pasta?

You can't go wrong with that choice.

{Me, Jess, and Rach (high school friend & hair stylist) at the rehearsal dinner}



{Lacey, Rachel's babygirl, stuck me against the wall while playing 'hide-n-go-seek' and said 'stay right here, just like this'. }



{The Mr. & I}

Thank goodness for Cliff's baby sister Madison, who is.. 15.. or I would not have been wearing this cute little number I have on.

I freaked out Wednesday night when I realized I was two days away from the rehearsal with nothing in my closet to wear.. cute, of course.

My dearest Madison heard my frustration cry & came to my rescue.

I walked in to work Thursday morning to a stack of about 10 a-d-orable dresses waiting to be tried on.

I owe her big time.

{beautiful friend, Ashley!}

{Bridesmaids}

You can't see my heels, however, I was stressing about those as well. I'm a flip-flop all the time kinda girl & haven't bought cute heels since I don't know when.

Friday afternoon (yes, before rehearsal), I sweet talked Cliff into leaving a little early and stopping by a shoe department store on the way.

I walked out of there with 2 pairs for $50!

Reg. $34.99, on sale for $15.99, got an additional 50% off

Total price: $7.99

Orginally, I walked in looking for these. I actually wanted the closed toe, but they didn't have me size.

After walking in these for half an hour, I was dying already.

They need some serious breaking in.

{Decorating the table settings after the rehearsal dinner.}

Bachelorette fun: masquerade theme

A few weekends back, we hit the Opera Club in Atlanta for the Bachelorette getaway!

a little shopping, lots of eating, and a night out on the town.

xoxo, Lovies!

Have a great weekend!

[a taste] of country elegance.

our photographer snapped 2,000+ of our wedding day.

it's been almost two months, and i still have not made it through them all.

it's a shame, i know.

last night, i nearly made it halfway when my computer decided to gain a low connection to the neighbors internet [we get free internet, thanks to my grandparents living next door ;)]

it must've been a sign for me to give up and go to bed.

fair warning: this post is full of pictures, and more pictures.

every.thing. was unique in it's own little way.

each part represented us, somehow, some way.

i like being different.

i wanted our wedding to be unusual.

something everyone would remember for years to come.

the boutonnieres were made from fresh gerber daisies. we simply pulled the petals off & added a few berries. the wooden C + C = <3 sign, i handpainted. the tutorial is found HERE. the wood came from an my daddy's grandparents farmhouse. the pink C & C wooden letters (pictured in the very beginning image), were purchased from hobby lobby at 50% off. i handpainted them with a sponge brush & acrylic paint.

the flowergirl carried a wooden heart sign stating "here comes the bride" on one side and "thank you" on the back. my maternal grandpa made & painted the sign for me. i attached the ribbon, & wa-la!

the pillows were old pillows laying around our homes. our wedding planner covered them with a pleated brown fabric & placed them upon the hay bails.

the fingerprint tree guestbook(s) was handpainted by my former high school art teacher. she did an absolute fabulous job! she painted two identical ones. hobby lobby framed them.

i loved how they turned out.

looking forward to hanging them in our home.

six doves were released. two signifying our new life together. two in rememberance of cliff's grandfather & grandmother. two in rememberance of my grandfather & great grandmother.

part II coming next week, hopefully ♥

one month today.

exactly one month ago today, I married my best friend.

These past four weeks have [remarkably] flown by.

It's crazy how the time passes so quickly.

As I was sitting in church this morning, it hit me.

Of course, it has been real this entire time. But something about today makes it ever so sweet.

Our lives as one has seriously begun.

We are on our way to forever.

We are a family now.

We have decisions to make.

We now function entirely t[w]ogether.

wow.

life is sweet.

it's great.

we are blessed beyond belief.

Happy ONE month, "honey"!

[don't gag, that's what I call him ;)]

P.S. I phsyically "met" a sweet, sweet blogger friend in person today!

Cherish over at Southern Soul Mates attended our church this morning! It was so nice to finally meet her in real life. She's a beautiful person, inside and out!

 Hope y'all have a fun, lazy Sunday! ♥

redneck wine glasses?

at our couples shower back in may, i mentioned that we received mason jar wine glasses.

i was thrilled.

i know, some of you may be thinking...what? you're kidding right?

how r-e-d-n-e-c-k can one posisbly get?

don't judge.

a friend's mom handmade these for us.

we were going to actually use them as toasting flutes at the wedding.

after all, it did fit the theme to a T.

somehow or another, our wedding planner "lost" them the day of..

[haaahahaha]

twas but a joke.

if you are feeling crafty, you can handmake these yourself. it's pretty simple.

all you need is a set of clear glass candlestick holders, a set of two mason jars (either pint or quart sized- pint sized is shown in pictures), e6000 glue & a little bit of twine.

Glue the candlestick holders to the bottom of the mason jar, tie the lid on with some twine and waa-la!

You now have yourself a pair of redneck mason jars.

If you aren't feeling too crafty, check out etsy instead. they have a ton of these listed here.

                                                                 {this set is only $8}

Now go fill it up with your favorite toddy, sweet tea, or lemonade and have yourself a drank!

bridal luncheon & bridesmaid gifts.

i hosted a bridal luncheon the saturday [june 4th] before our wedding for the bridesmaids, mother-in-law, and my mama to attend.

a new, local catering company called "it's thyme" provided brunch.

we had it at an old pond house owned by fellow friends and church members.

the theme was rustic / vintage.

an assortment of old jars & bottles lined the center of the table,

the rolls were tossed in a wooden box draped with a cloth napkin,

we poured water & orange juice from a glass pitcher.

it was great.

since we're from the south, you know we had to have grits for breakfast!

our mini grits bar consisted of shrimp & gravy, butter, shedded cheddar cheese, and sausage & gravy.

for desert, we enjoyed peach smoothies.

shortly after, i passed out all of my goody bags to the ladies.

each bridesmaid bag consisted of:

pair of pearl earrings

matching pearl bracelet

burlap broach

monogrammed wooden hanger

embroidered flat iron cover

for the maid.of.honor,

she received a [different] necklace with a matching pair of earrings.

for cliff's step-mom, april,

we purchased her a monogrammed necklace off of etsy

along with a monogrammed black burlap jute bag

for my mom,

we also purchased a necklace & [pink] burlap jute bag off of etsy.

her necklace said "mom, for all you do and all you are... thanks"

i'm an overly emotional person and mushy gushy stuff, i just can't handle

this gift was perfect. i didn't have to say a thing. it said it for me!

[a picture of me & all of my ladies, except one]

bride & groom gifts.

after much deliberation and about two weeks left to go before the wedding, i finally decided on what to buy for my groom.

he's pursuing a master's degree in middle grades education and currently in the midst of applying for jobs.

i had been racking my brain for months, and nothing had hit home.

i wanted something with meaning.

something he would use.

something he would remember me by everytime he saw it.

his step-mom, april, called me one morning with a great idea.

a leather satchel to carry all of his school essentials, graded papers, etc. to and from work..

*light bulb*

Perfect!

she sent me this website where a friend had recently purchased a few bags from.

I ordered this style on 6.01.2011.

On 6.9.2011, the day of the rehearsal dinner.. I checked our P.O. box to find, nothing.

No package slip, no nothing.

Hmm..

Let me call them.

After a few minutes, the clerk came to the conclusion that the bag I had purchased 8 days ago was put on backorder.

{minor.freak.out}

Okk.. next step.

"Is there anything similar in style and color? If so, could you overnight it?"

The clerk found a similar bag, explained it to me via telephone because I was no where near a computer at the time. She said that because of the inconvenience and me being unaware that the previous bag was placed on backorder, they would cancel the backorderd bag, gift wrap the new bag for me and cut the overnight shipping fees in half.

{I honestly think they should've cut the shipping fee period, but hey..I was in panic mode at this time and just wanted the darn bag!}

I gave her the hotel shipping address & hours later I had received confirmation the bag was in route to me.

Cliff loved it.

He even took it on our honeymoon packed with all of our passport, air tickets, itinerary, and laptop.

-------------------------------------

-bride gift from the groom- 

a beautiful sterling silver tear drop monogrammed necklace from handpicked.

the hubsters picked this one out all by himself!

bigg kuddos to him.

it's my new initials: cYc

{sneak peak of our honeymoon destination, wearing my monogram chain!}

for the exchange of gifts, we had april & brooke set up on the day of the wedding.

i didn't know where we were staying until we got there after the reception.

one of many surprises.

we had our own cottage at the Statesboro Historic Inn.

we were greeted with:

chocolate covered strawberries

bottle of champagne

basket full of goodies

the next morning we ate

breakfast inside the historic inn,

just the two of us.

how romatic ♥

a day to remember.

My brother, Cody, had bought me tickets to see Miranda Lambert in concert as a college graduation gift back in May. The concert was this past Sunday night. Cliff & I had a few things to return in Savannah, so after church we made a day in Savannah until the concert began at 7:30pm. We picked up last minute Groomsmen gifts, a few beach towels and sunscreen for the honeymoon, a new long-sleeved [yes, in the summer] polo, and me a new bikini! We swung by Carey Hilliards on the way out and grabbed a bite for dinner, then headed to the Civic Center! Once we got there and settled into our seats, I realized I wasn't able to see as well as I would've like to. I thumbed through my purse and whipped out my contacts. A little background about these bad boys.. I've been battling "viral conjunctivitis" since November. Every time I leave my contacts out, take the drops, then put them back in weeks later..my eyes flare up and honestly look like I've had a hangover with no sleep for a week. So after a month of leaving them out, I figured I would be fine!

Yesterday morning, Cliff pops up and realizes he is running late for work. He hollers, "Cait, Caitttt, wake up. I'm running late. Help me!" As I lean up [from having a minor heart attack from his crazy screaming] and open my eyes wideeeee [from being pure shocked].....only ONE pops open! Gross, I know, but one was completely matted shut with goook. That's pronounced as "goo-k". After literally prying it open with my fingers, I ran to the bathroom to find it worse than it had ever been before.

[picture taken from my cell phone. doesn't do the eyes justice whatsoever.]

Since I was planning on going to Statesboro to pick up a few last minute wedding decorations, I had told Cliff that I would print out his class assignment and drop it off to him on the way through.

About 9:15am, I called the Ga Eye Institute. After being on hold for 10 minutes before someone even answered, I asked if there was anyway I could come in today and see the Doc. She mumbled as she must've been scrolling through the computer looking for an open spot and said, "yes, we have an appointment open for 2 o'clock. Is that good?". CRAP! Who would've thunk it would've been at the EXACT time I had a meeting scheduled with our tent rental lady an hour away! "Ok, I'll take it", I said. "Ok, be here at 1:30pm please", she said.

My store opens at 10:00am. Thankfully, my sweet cousin Taylor is helping me work during the week to keep up with all of the orders. I messaged her and told her I would be coming in late, if at all. I called Mom and told her to reschedule our meeting with the tent lady.

At 10:18am, Taylor sends me this message "Where's the money?! It's not in the drawer."
I wrote back, "Seriously?".
She said, "Yeah!! I dunno where it is! I've looked everywhere! The back door wasn't locked either!"

Holy.freak.out.

I immediately picked up the phone and called April (business partner/future mother-in-law). No answer.

April & Madison (future sister-in-law) were the last ones to work the store on Saturday. I needed to know where the money was when they left the store on Saturday afternoon!

After trying April a few more times, I called Madison.

"Madison! When yall left the store on Saturday, what did yall do with the money?!"

She replied, "oh, Mom took it. She wanted to count it all. She forgot to bring it back up there, didn't she?!"

[Sigh.of.relief]

Thankfully, no robber had slipped through our UN-LOCKED backdoor while we had been gone all weekend!

Still, we remained without any cash or change period.

E-mails start coming through on my phone about this time. One from a customer asking if we could do a sand pail for him & have it ready before lunch today or tomorrow because tomorrow is his last day in town. Well, we are closed tomorrow and by this time, it's 11:15am.

A text message comes thru with another customer wanting an acrylic tumbler.

Immediately after, a text message comes thru with a customer asking about vinyl lettering on t-shirts.

It was on. Full force. Fast pace. You name it.

Ok, I've got to:

• print out Cliff's assignment
• get his bookbag, flashdrive, and assignment together
• write down these three orders & get started creating them
• figure out where the cash is & get it back in the cash drawer
• go all the way to Statesboro (which is wayyyyyy out of the way), drop off Cliff's bookbag to him, then make it to my appointment before 1:30 to get these crazy eyes fixed!

It's now 11:50ish and I still haven't heard from April as to where the cash may be hiding. I run to the bank, get out $100 of personal cash and run it back into Taylor at the store.

I print out Cliff's assignment, grab his flashdrive, & try to help Tay on the sand pail before I left.

After she's got the hang of it, I get in my car and head towards Statesboro.

CRAP, I left Cliff's assignment laying right on the corner of the desk at the store! Turn-around..

Picked it back up & headed to him. I called him & told him I was on the way.

10 minutes later, he calls and says "Cait, we are going to lunch. It's not on my time. I can't help it. Can you meet me at Wendy's?"

I'm already scrambling here, and now you are wanting me to travel further into town, out.of.my.way., to give you all of your stuff?! [ughhh] "Cliff, I'm running late..is there anyway you can give me 10 mins and I'll be right there?" [with an annoyed tone]

His reply, "Just go to the subdivision, all the way in the back is our truck with the trailer attached. Just throw it in the back of the truck. Make sure you throw it now, don't lay it in there or anything. I want to see just how mad you are at me!"

[bust.out.laughing.to.myself]

"Ok, sure will!" I said & we hung up the phone.

Two seconds later, "Thx u" came thru on my phone from him.

I reply, "kma". [also known as "kiss my a**] ha.

Cliff: "Make sure flash drive is n there".

Me: "Anything for you, honey."

------Fast foward------

I walk to the front desk to check-in at the eye doctor. The lady asks for my information, then continues on to make sure my address and other information is still current. I went ahead and changed our P.O. Box to the new one. She then asks, "what's your marital status?" I immediately replied, "Single. Well, actually I'm getting married Friday..?" She says, "Whoaaa, you're getting married Friday? And your eye looks like that?! Wow, you don't seem to nervous to be getting married in 5 days. I'm hoping they can get that fixed for you!" "Thank you, I truly hope so too."

Doctor's diagnosis: bacterial conjunctivitis.

"Ok Doc, listen. I've been battling this since November. First it was viral conjunctivitis, I did the drops like you said, put the contacts back in and wa-la, flare-up. I left the contacts out for weeks, tried it again and, guess what? Flare-up. So I called your office, they set me up another appointment. I came back in, got it check out, still was viral conjunctivitis. Gave me different meds, told me to take them for at least two weeks. I took them for a month, till there was absolutely no drops left in all three bottles. Tried to put my contacts in again, flare-up. Left them out, put them back in weeks later for my first bridal shower. By mid-afternoon, all of my guests probably thought I had been crying my eyes out. I called your office the week after, you told your nurse that viral conjunctivitis just has to take it's course and that I didn't need to wear them for at least six weeks. Ok, so I did that. It's been over six weeks now, I put them in just last night and wake up like this. Now, you're telling me it's bacterial conjunctivitis. You don't by any chance think that it's the contact lenses? My eyes just are not getting enough oxygen! I'm getting married on Friday and they can't look like this!"

"Ohh, you're getting married Friday?! Wow. We've got to speed up this healing process then!"

After calling in my prescriptions he says, "I want to see you at the end of this week. Friday. I want to see you Friday. Can you come back in?"

"Umm..I don't know about that. I'm spending the night from Thursday night on in Statesboro. Is there anyway I can see you at the Statesboro office instead?"

"Yes, I'll let you see my partner. She will be there Friday."

"Mmmk. I guess I will see her early Friday then!"

Friday. The day of our wedding. I have to go to the eye doctor at 8:30 and get this crap checked out. Great!

As if yesterday wasn't going bad anyway...

Cliff calls me as I'm leaving and says, "I talked to April earlier, how about my Mom isn't coming to rehearsal dinner."

"Say what? She's not coming? Are you serious?"

"Yep! I don't know much, just that she's not coming. She must have vacation bible school or something."

"Woooowwww."

[A little tid-bit: his parents are divorced and have been for years now. We have been trying really hard to include his Mom and give her options and a part in this wedding. She has pretty much declined all offers with some excuse. She couldn't make it to the Bridal Luncheon this past Saturday because it was kick-off for VBS at her church. Now, she's saying she can't even make it to rehearsal dinner...]

Cliff doesn't let it show, but I think deep down it truly bothers him. It hurts him. His own Mom isn't there to support him. She never really has in the first place. He has this tiny bit of hope that she will be there, but he's scared to get his hopes up. Then when she backs out, he's not hurt. It's sad. Really sad situation. And it bothers me, because I feel it bothers him.

Bummer. What a day!