Start 'em off right

A dear friend of mine from high school went off to college at Purdue U. There she learned, made friends, and went to a lot of rowdy football games. She also met her now husband there as well, and together they kept up their tradition of going to football games and other Purdue events together.

Now my dear friend and her loving hubby are just days away from welcoming their first baby boy. When I heard the news, I knew just what this fan-in-training needed:




I used the pattern from Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones to make these adorable booties.



Eeeeee! Can you stand the cuteness?

The hooded blanket is also from the same book. The pattern has the middle tie going through some button holes in the center, but I left those off. I figured having the tie around all the time would be a safety hazard as the kid got bigger, but with a regular blanket he can drag it around however he sees fit.



I also added some quilting to help all the layers stay together and make it more durable. I just followed in the pattern on the printed side, which made the stitches disappear on that side with the added benefit of this awesome pattern on the fleece.



Now hurry up and get here, baby! I can't wait to see you all bundled up in your fan gear!

A little shopping

"Honey, I'm going to run to the store to pick up some snack cakes. I'll take the truck..."

(I love my neighborhood)

Ice cream and cake!

I talked the fiancee--let's call him Mr. McAwesome (because he is, duh)--into going to the big bridal show at the convention center. Promises of ice cream and cake (and food) won him over, and the show certainly didn't disappoint in that regard. Buzzing on sugar, we came to several important conclusions:

1) There are a heck of a lot of photographers, which is going to make choosing hard.
2) We both like the idea of rustic but pretty, like branches with candles and such, for decor. And we want to be as green as possible, natch.
3) Pink is out. Seriously, there was this huge pink booth and it scared both of us.
4) We like cake. A lot.
5) I'm not kidding about #4. We're talking about mini cupcakes now, and other desserts too. Who needs food when you have sweets?
6) I am going to have a hard time finding a dress that isn't strapless.
7) MORE CAKE!!

We finished the day by going to the bridal fashion show. After having some ridiculous DJ try to get us to dance to "We are family" in the rows, we got to see some pretty dresses. All that Project Runway I make Mr. McAwesome watch has paid off, as he has good opinions about fashion. Towards the end of the fashion show, the models were tossing their bouquets. One model aimed for the woman right behind me but her toss was a bit off. As I saw the bouquet flying towards my head, I did what I do at most weddings--I ducked! Mr. McAwesome, however, just opened his hand, with his arm still around me, and caught me this:



Pretty!

After the fashion show they had some raffle giveaways. They called five grooms onstage and asked them one question in order to win one a prize. Mr. McAwesome was one of these guys and the first to be asked:
"When is your wedding date?"

His answer? "We don't have one!"

The place erupted in laughter. But since that is technically true, he won a $25 Lowe's gift card. Hurrah, Mr. McAwesome! After taking in account our tickets and parking, we still came out ahead $1...plus some flowers and a belly full of cake. I could get used to this wedding planning business!

And so it begins...

Within a week of the engagement I could be found under a large pile of bridal magazines, courtesy of my mother. While a grand princess-day was never a consideration for me, we have plenty of mother-daughter bonding time over those silly magazines. Like looking at couture fashion or million-dollar homes, we dreamed about what could be done if money was no object (and what we would do with the money OTHER than blow it on centerpieces!).

On the coldest, iciest, nastiest night in Nashville so far this weekend, mother and daughter braved the elements to go to...our first bridal show! Yes it may have been crazy, but it was so much fun. We hung out at a posh new hotel in town, munched on delish food, had a few too many cake samples, and even took a turn in the photobooth:



As much giggly, girlie fun we had looking at all the nice things, we both knew what would be our favorite part of the wedding--CRAFTS! I can't wait to get my creative juices flowing, and I'll be sure to share my results, good or bad. Get your glue guns, kids, it's going to be a wild ride...

Once upon a time...

Boy meets Girl.
Girl meets Boy.

Boy and Girl talk - a lot - on the phone and email. Boy and girl go to lunch. And then they go to lunch.

Boy thinks Girl is super cool and pretty--and that he probably blew it when his car broke down on the way back from lunch number 2. Girl thinks Boy is intriguing and remarkably cool under pressure. Girl calls Boy for date number three.

That one date turns into two weeks, then three months, then almost four years. Boy buys a house, Girl moves in. Boy and Girl talk a lot, eat a lot, have fun a lot, and dance in the living room.

Boy and Girl spend celebrate the first Christmas that they haven't gone their separate ways by inviting the families to their home...and ordering BBQ. There is much food and wine and laughing.

"A wonderful Christmas," Boy says. "I think we should have a few more..."

And then, a question.




(Girl said yes!)