Happy 70th to my Dad!

I never hesitate to answer the question about the relevance of today's date.
The anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor?
Nope -
My dad's birthday!

Apparently my grandma used to say that my dad was born when they dropped the first bomb on Pearl Harbor. (bad joke, but com'on -  laugh)
And so today I tell you again that sure, it's Pearl Harbor day, but it's also the anniversary of the beginning of my dad's life!

I get my blonde, fine hair (fingers crossed mine sticks around... sorry, Dad!), my allergies, and affinity for sweets from him.  We have the same face, too.  He taught me at a young age how to throw a curve ball and I still know how. If I had been a boy, my name would be akin to his.  Basically I am my dad, in girl form.

I inherited his genuine desire for everyone to always feel comfortable, probably because he did a good job of taking care of me. And recently his acts of kindness brought tears to my eyes as I watched him hand a dollar to a veteran begging in the median of a highway. (Probably because city living calloused me to sadly ignore such people.) He goes out of his way to help others and if I can simply pass that on one day, then I feel a piece of him will always be with me (not that he's going anywhere, anytime soon!)

Happy 70th Bday, Daddy-o.

Oh oh, in celebration of my dad's 70th, today only I am offering free shipping on my Scentsy site.  You must email me with the order & payment info for me to cover the shipping costs, though!

Thankful...

...for these special people in my life,

especially this guy!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Happy Birthday Mom!

She's the reason I take vitamins (without prompting, now), the reason I always bring a jacket or sweater with me (don't want to make her cold), and the reason I never missed a day of school unless I was sick (hehe).
[But I still refuse to iron - some things you can't change!]

Happy birthday to a woman I love and respect, very much!

She knows how to keep it real!

Much love to you mom, 

today and always!

(Wedding Recap) Dance the Night Away

The remainder of the night passed in a blur of music, dancing, and fun.  In fact, I took a little break to cool off.  All that dancing in a dress made out of the "best" (translation heaviest) fabric in 80 bazillion layers, can really tire out a girl!
[Note to designers: make detachable wedding dresses that turn into short, cute, dancing dresses for the reception. One dress, two ways.]

The guests danced on....

and LOVED the photo booth, which we turned into our guest book!

The photo booth props turned into an opportunity to have more fun...

  and you KNOW where you can find me when the Electric Slide hits...

My last present to Mike -

my rendition of (Mike's least favorite band) Journey's Don't Stop Believing.

 Because honestly, who doesn't love Journey?!

(This took some creative scheeming and planning with the band)

((and we majorly butchered this song))

(((because all my friends sang along and embarrassed my new Hubby)))

It was awesome to the max.

...and during the after party I went to the ER due to heat exhaustion & low blood sugar.

(apparently you're supposed to actually eat at your wedding? and for the record, I stopped drinking halfway through the reception)

((I wish I was kidding to the max))

The first time Mike referred to me as his wife, in public,
was at GW Hospital.

There's a story for your grandkids!

THE END.

(Wedding Recap) The Hora!

During the post-wedding-feedback stage, several people told me the Hora stood out as their favorite part of our wedding. Comments varied from, "I've never seen a group of people so excited!" to "Twenty-five minutes of straight dancing without stopping was incredible."  Our band rocked it out and kept the party going, for what seemed like a great forever.

[Sidenote: around this point the bustle in my dress began failing & falling.  I stepped on the hem and got frustrated and started hated my dress.  Oh, the heat, too.  The temperature under 6 layers of fabric grew unbearable.]

But that did not stop me from dancing!

I showed off my roger-rabbit skillz.  for realz.

The guys and girls created their own circles.

 Mike flung me around in circles

And then came THE CHAIRS.

My word, the chairs.

The scary chairs, lifted up and down, all over the place.

Feeling like you're going to fall.

The chairs.

Scary and exhilarating.

(mostly scary)

Once back on the ground, my dad broke out the accordion!!!!

 

Look at him rocking out!

So awesome.

He's one talented Dad.

Speaking of talented, Mike & danced for each other

This goes down as one of my favorite moments in my life.

Seriously, the best Hora ever!

{Photo amahzingness: Studio Juno}

(Wedding Recap) Father/Daughter & Mother/Son Dances

I cried more dancing with my father than any other time during the wedding. (Sorry husband).  Even though my dad and I only practiced once, about 5 minutes before we took the floor, he managed to swing, twirl and promenade me all over that dance floor. That man can lead (he and my mom ballroom dance <-- cute!).  During the dance he whispered complements to me, telling me how beautiful I looked, how amazing everything came together, and how lucky he was. Cue the waterworks.  We shared a great Father's Day moment right there.

You might recall the emails exchanged between he and I, where I wondered if he could guess my favorite Disney movie song?  and BAM without prompting, he knew what our song would be:
Candle on the Water, by Helen Reedy, from Pete's Dragon.

I'll be your candle on the water
This flame inside of me will grow
Keep holding on you'll make it
Here's my hand so take it

Look for me reaching out to show
As sure as rivers flow
I'll never let you go

I'll never let you go

Mike and his mom danced to Barbra Streisand's If I Could.

If I could
I would try to shield your innocence from time
but the part of life I gave you isn't mine

I've watched you grow
so I could let you go

but I know that I can never cry your tears
but I would
If I could
yes I would

I love that Mike's Grandparents began to dance and are in the back of this shot! So sweet!

What were your father/daughter or mother/son dance songs?


{pictures courtesy Studio Juno}

Wordless Wednesday: Flower Girl vs. Bride

{pics by Studio Juno photography}

(Wedding Recap) The Rehearsal Dinner

Rehearsal Dinner: a mini-wedding reception without all the fuss.

Honestly, this part might be one of the least stressful elements of our wedding.  We mingled, we drank, we ate, we watched a photo-montage, we laughed, we drank some more.  (Thanks to Vince,  for letting me abuse your AV powers!)

Also, we celebrated my parents' 45th wedding anniversary!

A big ol' thank you goes out to Mike's dad and step mom for not only honoring us with this special dinner, but also for honoring my parents!

Giving out presents to our parents & bridal party made the experience even better.  I love giving gifts (getting them too, rocks).   Unfortunately I have no pictures of this moment.  But I have pictures of the gifts separately (for a different post!)

I DO have pictures of a gift I gave myself (and Mike).  Stephanie of Say Anything Jewelry custom made us these caaaaaa-ute wine charms.  And they really did come in handy! You have no idea how many times I put down my glass and then didn't know where it was, or someone else picked it up!

They either say "Mrs." or "Mr." and our wedding date: 6.19.11

Love it!
(crappy picture apology)

You might recall my epic search for a dress for this occasion.  First I bought a Marc Jacobs from Bloomingdale's and it was stolen right off our driveway.  No lie.  Bloomies wonderfully agreed to ship another but since I purchased it on sale, they had no more. Sad. Then I tried to find a peacock dress, but apparently peacock feathers are only on ugly dresses.

Then one day while checking Rue La La's daily sales I spotted a wonderful little number by BCBGMAXAZRIA for a nominal price.  After sending links to a couple trustworthy fashion consultants & then measuring my body, I pounced.  My Ink Colorblock Dress arrived shortly thereafter and it was love at first teal.

Instead of worrying about peacock feathers on the dress, I added my own.  Actually my mom sent me her peacock earrings to wear!  Perfection!

Isn't she a total Betty?  because she is.  Her name actually is Betty.

Perfection doubled.

I absolutely die of love looking at this picture of my sister, niece and me.  LOVE!
(triple perfection)

Ultimately this enjoyable evening went smoothly!

Next up?!  The (Rehearsal Dinner) After Party!!!!  (because you have to make sure the bride and groom sleep well before the big day!)

Wordless Wednesday: Flower Girl!

(Wedding Recap) Family & Friends Arrival

True Story: The wedding craziness festivities began about a week before the wedding.  Once I took off from work, said goodbye to my students for the year (::tear::), and finally had a chance to sleep in (only once) then things started snowballing happening.

The whirlwind began with errands run all over the DMV (District-Maryland-Virginia) metro area.  The ketuba framing was ready only 3 days prior to "go-time" and I needed various craft supplies from Michael's, last minute.  Of course I needed my dress too, and we had the seamstress steam it 2 days prior to the big day. There were other details needing my attention, and the midnight hours saw me working on them.

Once friends and family arrived the non-stop fun began.  The adventure swept me off my feet and surrounded me with love. 

We met with friends from far and wide to catch up. Ali (you might remember her from such previous posts as Live Tweets From My Wedding ), drove up with her fiance, Vince, overnight from FL and hauled her tired butt body out of the hotel room to catch a drink with me.  The moment I saw my former-roommate and bestie I knew this is it! I felt so great having someone to share the excitement with me!

Forgive the poor phone quality picture and my creepy eyes.

(This is not the last you will hear of my dear friend Ali)

The moment my family came down from their hotel room to see me was sheer bliss!  My niece, Eleanor, fell on the floor with laughter and kept saying "Vicki, Vicki, Vicki!"  I loved it.

 actual rolling on the ground with laughter photo

Silly Eleanor & Aunt Vicki Cool Dude (<--That's my name)

I went with my in-town bridesmaids to get our nails done on Thursday, then with my mom, sister, and niece on Friday.

Eleanor (flower girl) had gold sparkly nails!

The award for farthest traveled friends goes to this group below, from London, England!  Mike's friends, Ollie, Rob, Elissa, Lara & Johnny, from a study abroad program, flew in early for his bachelor party (which was 5 days before the wedding....story for another time). Lara came down to DC to help me out (I am forever indebted to her!!) while the boys did whatever it is they did on Mike's bachelor party in AC.

We had time to catch up over dinner, which is nice when you don't get to see friends very often!

When Meg (bridesmaid and bestie from high school) arrived the fun was ON!

And nothing says "WHEW, SO MUCH FUN!" like brothers sitting on each other while cramming seven people into your 5-seater Civic:

Let the good times roll!

{all photos personal pictures}