How lucky am I that my Mum is in the wedding business! Laura and I have watched our Mum hold countless appointments with excited brides since we were little girls. As kids we knew the importance of keeping the TV low because "Mum has a bride in", we expected our teenage Saturday morning lie-ins to be ruined by a shrieking bride downstairs and having our family dinners interrupted by a Bride-zilla who placed her wedding flowers in higher regard than Mum's need to eat was considered normal. We spent our sick-days off school in churches watching Mum decorate alters (we've both boked in many a church hall), we've spent hours standing in the kitchen while Mum used our heads as dummies for shaping flower girl headbands, we've been dressed up in bridesmaids dresses and marched down catwalks at Bridal Shows and been shouted at on numerous occasions for playing with the glue gun...
Laura and I lived and breathed weddings all our lives, without really even noticing it. Weddings were just a normal part of our lives growing up and it isn't until we look back that we realise just how much we picked up on. As a result, my sister and I are hyper-critical over wedding details and, in some way, have been trained to pick up on details no one else would likely notice. It's likely the reason the both of us aren't really into the traditional wedding - having seen hundreds of weddings over the years, they all pretty much look the same - and is probably why I've been so keen to do something a little different. The three of us keep using the phrase "but would anyone else notice that?" when one of us picks up on a ridiculous little detail that our floristry superpowers have noticed.
Prior to our "appointment" I had sent Mum a couple photographs of floral styles that I like, and in typical Wendy style she had some centerpieces made up for me to look at. I can't tell if she's delighted or disappointed that I've chosen something really simple and minimal for my Reception (probably a bit of both?!) but I'm really, really pleased with her ideas. Based on our numbers at the moment I think we'll have 10 tables, 5 of which I would like Mum to create centerpieces for. We will have various other tables dotted around the room that will have Wendy creations too and the table for our main meal will have flowers on too. I'm toying with the idea of wearing a wrist corsage,getting Laura and Megan to wear one too and getting Michael to wear a button hole.
I'm still battling with making the reception "too wedding-y" as, lets be honest, Michael and I will be 2 weeks married by this point and we're worried it will feel a bit strange. It's a post-wedding party after all, and it's easy to get carried away and treat it like a normal wedding reception. I just want the room to look nice and the bottom line is that I want our guests to feel like they're celebrating our marriage, not just a random party. It's been a strange thing to plan and I'm glad Mum and Laura have been so honest and good at keeping me grounded so far. On Thursday they helped me change my mind about a few things and make some cut backs. It's sometimes hard not to feel a bit deflated, but after a couple days considering their advice it's clear that they're right and it spurs me on again.
I think we're pretty much decided on our flowers and decor now - just a little bit more shopping to do for bits and pieces but I'm really happy with how it's all working out. I know Michael loves the ideas too - I've run a couple past him that he hasn't really liked, so those will be scrapped but apart from that we're pretty much on the same page. He's just raging he didn't get to have pizza on Thursday....Thanks Mum and Lo for all your help :)
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