MIA For A While!

Yes I'll be on a small hiatus because my cousin just had her twin babies yesterday and I'm on hospital duty in the morning! I'm so excited that the baby's are healthy and safe and so is my cousin. She practically went full term with twins, she was 38 weeks when she had them. Since Mr. Motown & I married in August we've had tons of family (and strangers too) asking if we were going to have children soon. I must admit since marrying I have had baby fever but it's so many other things that we want to get done first that we are in no rush. We want the best for our children and I'm super anal about things that I want to make sure all my priorities and responsibilities are taken care of first. I think that some really don't take into account all the things that come along with babies. I just graduated college and I would like to get fully in my career (and pay off some students loans too) first. Nevertheless when God finds it's right to bless us with a baby we will be ready with open hearts!

Here are some pictures of the twins...Did I mention that they are both BOYS!

Baby Aven -7.2 lbs

Baby Avery - 5.13 lbs

Yes she carried over 12 lbs of baby in her! She's a trooper! I will be back soon to continue wedding detail posts!

Details : The Cake!

This week's post will be dedicated to the details of the wedding. I tried to emphasis with details because we didn't have the biggest budget to work with. I've spent countless hours on wedding boards looking for ideas and inspiration. I'm so happy that I found these sites and I've "met" so many wonderful online ladies that it almost seems like I "know"them haha! Today I present our wedding cake! It was everything I hoped for. Simple in design but screamed classic. I think that the design of a cake is key but more importantly is the TASTE! I hate seeing a gorgeous cake to only have a bite of it and it's completely horrible! IMO it's a severe disservice, almost like false advertising ( yes it's kinda that serious).

When it was time to choose our cake we went with my cousin who I knew would do great things for the cake. All of her cakes are phenomenal and it was a natural given that she would construct our cake. Don't get caught up in using "popular" vendors, I focused on who would give me exactly what I wanted without inflating the price because it was a wedding. Ask around, get recommendations and don't be afraid to use someone who isn't well known. My cousin makes cakes out of her home but don't let that fool you! She gives cake tastings, has a professional portfolio and it's almost a plus that she's not in a shop because sometimes that what you end up paying for; maintaining their business. Furthermore she's the head cake baker for a well known country club in MI and makes all of their clients wedding cakes so I had no hesitation with booking this vendor!

We had 3 layers of :

vanilla with butter cream

chocolate with bailey's filling
red velvet with cream cheese

The cake went so fast that we (the groom and I) didn't even get a chance to eat the red velvet! It was swooped up as soon as it hit the cake table! I've had so many guests asking for her cards and saying how good the cake was!

Reception

Sorry It's been a few days between posts but I haven't been feeling too good. Anyways after we left the park we headed to the reception which was all of 3 minutes away. As soon as we arrived I headed to the bathroom to prep and freshen up for my entrance and had my bustle done. I was ready!

The music started playing for the bridal party but half of the song went before their names were called! I was getting ticked! It was restarted and that went fine, so it was our turn. We entered and I was so excited (as you will see in a pic below). However I did notice when we entered that NO ONE was standing! Yes they were clapping and cheering but is this the new norm or did I just have some lazy guests? I've always seen on TV where the bride & groom were announced and everyone was standing. Anyways we had our first dance (which went by really fast for us at least), then I went straight into my father/daughter dance. Some people do things differently nowadays, like waiting until after dinner for dances, or not even doing a father/daughter dance. I however wanted to remain traditional on this aspect and that was the least my father deserved for all his has done for me throughout the years and honestly I envisioned that moment since I was a little girl.

Next dinner was served and when they say you never get to eat your own food they were right. We could have but was just so excited that food was the last thing on my mind (even though I had only had a bagel for the WHOLE day, but I was running on a natural high). While guests ate we made our rounds instead of doing a traditional receiving line. I think this is SOO much better and more personal way of thanking guests.

The rest of the night went really smooth and we danced and partied ALL NIGHT! We had some guests seriously not wanting to leave at the end of the night and was trying to figure out what to do next, even though our reception was 6.5 hrs long. It just confirmed that they had a really great time. I received so many compliments throughout the day and it was really nice to see that all of my planning was well received by some many (of course there were a few haters (afterwards) as we say but that's sometime the best form of flattery!) Despite the hiccups from the rain and the little problems here and there I would not change one thing from the day.

This is my nephew dancing away @ only 10 months!

My younger cousins all wanted to dance with the bride (so cute)!

Non Pro Pic: Caught in action dancing!

Non Pro Pic: End of the night with my beautiful mother (hence the fallen curls)

Have a happy weekend! I'll be back next week with Detail Pics and words of advice (if wanted, I know I loved getting them from others besides family who swore they new everything)!

Post Ceremony

After the ceremony we exited the church and it felt like the birds were chirping lol! The sun had come out and we were MARRIED! We greeted some of our guests, quickly took a picture with my grandparents which I never imagined would be the last one with my grandmother, do to the fact that her oxygen tank was low and had to head home. We returned into the chapel to take formal pictures. Then we headed to the park to take photos. Heading to the park the limo driver got seriously LOST! Luckily our photog was in the limo with us and used his handy IPhone (which I SO want!) to get us there. Since we had got lost we didn't hardly have anytime to take photos. Our photographer did the best he could given the circumstances but now after receiving our pictures back I'm a little sadden that Mr. Motown & I don't have a lot of photos together that I've swooned over, picked out and visualized the months leading up to the wedding. Nevertheless I am happy for what he was able to capture and grateful that it DID stop raining because otherwise we wouldn't have had any outdoor pics. Guess you have to take whatever cards are dealt and play your hand wisely huh?

Up Next: Party Time!

Ceremony

As my bridesmaids and I left the hotel the limo ride was quite a calm one. Lots of picture snapping and just over all excitement. Before we knew it we were there, a little behind and guests had begin to arrive. It was quite amusing watching guests enter the church, while I was secretly watching from the limo (our windows was very tinted). Once the rain finally calmed down a bit and it was clear of guests, two of my bm's came to get me with huge umbrellas.

We ran in and straight up stairs as I knew my soon to be husband was only a few feet away downstairs. As we waited in the social room of the church, more pictures were taken. I finally got to see my lovely flower girls and some other members of the wedding party.

It was really kicking it. Suddenly I had the urge that I needed to go to the bathroom. I kept thinking I'd hate to be at the alter for 30-45 mins with a full bladder distracting me! So operation "Get the bride to bathroom" was underway. Mind you we had guests constantly entering the church and I didn't want to be seen by ANYONE! So we had guarded the door and cleared the hallway telling the guests it would be a moment as I dashed into the private bathroom in the church office. With a help from some of my girls I was ready to head back. Again the halls had to be clear and I dashed back into the room to wait until it was my time. The time was nearing and my bridesmaids began to place my veil on me.

It was getting real! But what made it a reality was the moment I saw my father.

Everyone cleared the room and lined up for the ceremony to begin, as we just waited for our que.

This was it, it was time. As soon as I entered the chapel the tears of happiness began. I got myself together but still managed the pretty ugly cry lol.

At this point nothing else mattered. I was about to marry the man of my dreams.

Up Next Post Ceremony!