Used to be ...

I started this blog over a year ago. I named it "Reluctant Mother of the Bride". At the time I was helping my oldest daughter plan her wedding, and I was ... well a reluctant MOB. I was feeling very overwhelmed by the whole experience. After all, one of the major players in the planning is the MOB. If things go right, you graciously accept the accolades ... if not ...


I have never been one to be in the spotlight. My college major was Theater Art. Not Acting, mind you. No way, behind the scenes was good enough for me. I have always been a shy person. No, maybe that is wrong. I was almost terrified of people. Especially authority figures. Most of this stemmed from my childhood, I would learn in my 40's.


Life or possibly fate, however seems to put into your life things that make you face your fears. You may chose to ignore them, or you can meddle through and see what's on the other side. Sometimes you get dragged through it kicking and screaming. No matter how it happens, eventually you can look back and say ... wow, I made it.

Well, I made it through the MOB experience. It had some major problems at the last minute, and the "kids" almost called off the wedding. But the "show" went on, and it was wonderful. I was and am proud of my daughter & her new husband.

So now the title does not seem right ... I have morphed it into a "new" name. I hope to put my thoughts here, even if no none else ever reads it. That's ok. I'll know it exists.

T minus 116

Time continues to fly. My friend Joy accompanied me out dress shopping this weekend. We went back to the two shops that I visited several weeks ago. I tried on all the dresses for Joy, so she could give me an honest opinion of what looked good on me. We narrowed it down to two ... but I think really we narrowed it to one.

As I came out after each change Joy let me know what she liked and didn't like about the dress. Joy and I pretty much liked the same dresses. We decided that the one we liked best was not the dress I had put a deposit on! Of course. I would rather loose my deposit than get the wrong dress through.

There is one more dress that I have seen online that I would like to try on. I have called several shops and they do not carry it. I would like to find it before I order the one Joy and liked. It is an off the shoulder chiffon dress that rauches in a crisscross on the bodice and has a "loveknot" on the side. The back dips down in a "V". I have always wanted an off the shoulder dress. My "dream" wedding dress I wanted (long ago) was an off the shoulder design. So I would love to find this dress to try on before i make my final decision.

Joy and I had a great time, and I really appreciated her help. We have a lot in common. Seems we both always have some sort of "drama" happening in our lives. We both seem to be drama magnets, although in my case it has calmed down considerably. I hope for Joy, her drama mellows out.

Dress shopping and driving

I hate to shop. I am probably the only female in the world that hates to shop. It wasn't always this way ... when Laura & Lisa were small, going to the mall was an outlet. It got us out of the house. Now, I can't stand going there. Too many people, and to get there you have to drive.

Don't get me wrong, I love to drive. Best thing that ever happened to me. Freedom. At 18, I would take off down to Southern Maryland in the middle of the night to see my brother ... or to OC to watch the sunrise. Now though, you literally take you life in your hands going on the beltway. Nuts on the road weave in and out of traffic @ 75 mph on a "55 mph" highway. And don't dare give them a dirty look or anything else. You will be dead. They would just as soon follow you off the highway to a side street, pull a gun and shoot you. Life in the suburban city.

Anyway, I digress. Time is getting short. Only 143 days to the wedding, which translates into ... order the dress! Josh's mom got her dress last week. Amy chose a royal blue which should be beautiful. I wasn't sure what I wanted, but I was leaning toward a deep purple or a deep green.

So Saturday I went to two small local bridal shops. In this economy, I am becoming deeply aware of just how much local merchants need the business. I actually had fun ... if I didn't look to close at my body! At the first shop that was a deep purple, it could not be ordered as it has been discontinued. Luckily it fit! It will need to be shortened, and altered at the bodice but I did get in it! Yay. So I put a deposit on it.

Then I went to a shop that Laura & I had first looked at gowns for her. They were right busy , since it was Saturday, but they said if I didn't mind waiting a little while I could try on the dresses I wanted to look at. I found a gown by the same designer as the dress that I liked at the first shop ... but in the new collection. I like them both so now I have to decide. I sent links to Laura ... she will let me know what she thinks, she has a good fashion sense too!

Whirlwind Weekend - Continued

This dress dips into a "v" in the back, similar to the way that Laura's gown does.

The next destination was another appointment to find a baker. The owner called us and asked if we could change the appointment to 12:00 instead of 2:00. We said we could and headed over. As soon as she opened her door I recognized her from the Bridal Show @ CBBC in January.

This appointment could not have been more different than the first! We sat down and Laura started to describe what she wanted. She described the cake with the gift boxes design and told Kass that she really wanted round layers not squares. We kept talking and finally Laura she "Here Mom, you draw it." So I did, and as I was drawing Kass started sketching too. Between the two of us we drew the cake that Laura wanted that would incorporate the way her wedding gown dips in the back. The idea was to do round layers, with the sugar on the sides and top of the layers as in the square cake, with the smooth "ribbon" around the layers dipping down like the back of the dress. Hard to picture but it really will be quite beautiful. Kass said she would send Laura an estimate so at this point we don't have an idea of cost.

What was nice about the second appointment, is that the owner really listened to what Laura wanted instead of saying "no, that won't work". I hope that this works out because I think it would be a beautiful cake.

Whirlwind Weekend - Part One

Laura came in from Columbus this weekend. It was so good to have her home a few days, I miss her already! We had a busy weekend. She wanted to get as much done as possible while she was in town. So ... we started out early Saturday morning with a cake tasting. Breakfast was cake, about eight different kinds of cake. We had an appointment with a rather well known bakery in town.

Laura looked through the book of photos the the bakery had to choose a design for the cake before we actually tasted the different kinds of cake. She decided that there were one or two that she liked design wise. Laura liked a particular cake that had sugar sprinked on the top and sides of the cake. It was a 4 layer square shaped cake that was arranged as if it were gift packages stacked on top of each other. Very pretty, and the sugar sparkled and reminded us of the beading on her dress.

We started discussing with the woman helping us about options for the design. Laura preferred to have round layers instead of sqaure. We were told this wouldn't work because the cake was supposed to look like boxes. I disagreed, saying that round "pill" boxes or hat boxes could also stacked in the same manner ... but we were told this idea would not work.

We went on to the tasting part of the appointment. They had several different flavors and conbinations of icing and cake for us to taste. Laura, Lisa (Laura's younger sister) and I all liked the Neapolitan cake the best. It had layers of vanilla, chocolate and strawberry cake, with buttercream chocolate and strawberry filling. We also liked the Red Velvet cake, and surprisingly a coconut cake with an amaretto filling.

They gave us an estimate for the cake ... about $1,500! We thanked them and then head off to the next destination ... a bridal shop to look at the dress Laura found for the Junior Bridesmaid.

The shop was mobbed as usual, which in a way was good. We were able to slip under the radar of the salespeople for a little while and check out the dress without being bothered. While we were there I tried on several dresses and Laura took pictures. Once again I was reminded that I am the reluctant MoB! I thought one dress was ok and the other I wasn't too sure of. Laura liked it but I was not convinced. It was made in chiffon, cut low in a "V" neck with some beading on the bodice and spaghetti straps. Then the dress fell from an empire style bodice into a flowing skirt. That part I liked ... but when Laura emailed me the pictures I went "ahhhhhhh"! My worst nightmare was captured in the picture. Flabby arms!! So gross. Makes me want to find a dress with long sleeves! The only problem is the wedding is at the height of summer so that just won't do. I want to look nice for this wedding, so I guess it will be workout time.

The Chesapeake Bay Beach Club

Looking up the CBBC's beach at the Sunset Ballroom and Garden room where Laura & Josh will have their wedding and reception.

This is a view of the Garden Room, with the umbrellas closed.

The Garden Room at night (photo by Larry Huffman Photography).

Looking down the ailse. Josh & Amy, his Mom, are standing at the front of the deck.

Five Months from today!

Just five months from today is Laura & Josh's wedding, June 27, 2009. The wedding and reception will take place at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club, which is on Kent Island in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay. It is an absolutely beautiful site, with a beach and two gardens for outdoor weddings. Last year the CBBC added a new room off the Sunset Ballroom, called the Garden Room. On the roof of the Garden Room is a deck with large umbrellas that can be opened to keep the guests out of the sun during the ceremony. This is where Laura & Josh's wedding ceremony will take place. It looks out over the Bay with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in the background, as the above picture shows.

Laura and Josh live in Columbus, Ohio. This weekend we were supposed to go to the brides tasting at CBBC on Saturday to sample the food for the reception. The economy has gotten in the way of our plans. Josh's company is unfortunately laying off a large amount of people. Thankfully he still has a job, but now Josh has to work, so he will not be able to come down this weekend. We postponed the tasting to March so that Josh can come too. The good news is Laura is still flying in from Columbus this weekend to visit. I get to see my "baby" for a weekend. She's only been gone a month but it seems like forever. We will be trying to finalize which the florist to use and hope to get to a cake tasting or two. Mmmm ... just what the MoB needs ... more calories!