Now that this lovely lady is enjoying life as a newlywed and has officially changed her last name, I can finally share her bridal portraits!
Jessica and Grant got married at Lost Oak Winery in Burleson, Texas and I took these photos there too. The winery is absolutely gorgeous and just completed a major renovation. If you’re in the area, I highly recommend stopping for a visit, tour of the vineyards, and wine tasting in the gift shop.
I met Jessica a couple years ago when I joined the fitness center. She was a personal trainer and group class instructor and now she’s the general manager! I couldn’t be more proud of this girl from North Dakooooooota and I’m blessed to call her friend. She’s as sweet as they come and beautiful – inside and out.
Jess’s mother wore this hat at her wedding and Jess wanted to incorporate the precious piece into her bridal session. Even though she did not wear this piece at the wedding, I’m so glad we got shots like this one. I absolutely love family heirlooms!
Grant’s mother collects squirrel figurines and sent the engaged couple these kissing squirrels. Confession: it took me FOREVER to balance them on the support wire of a grapevine to get this shot … but totally worth it.
Not only did I get to take Jess’s bridal portraits, but I was also a guest at their wedding and it was simplistic, charming, fun, and beautiful – everything a wedding should be! Every detail was perfect and reflected the couple’s personality. They also have jokesters in their family. Grant’s brother gave the most HILARIOUS Best Man Speech I’ve ever heard.
Grant and Jess, congratulations you two love squirrels and thank you for letting me a part of your special day. Big hugs and blessings!
Last weekend, I attended a dinner event hosted by Texas Women Bloggers and sponsored by Urban Acres, Market Street, Lost Oak Winery, and Lick Honest Ice Cream. Me being me, I showed up wearing the most ridiculous outfit I could put together from my closet and I think I hit a homerun in the *What NOT To Wear* category of blogging and social media events. I finally got an opportunity to wear THE ex-bridesmaid dress I’ve had since 2012. What do you think …are the purple sunglasses and pink feathery tiara too much? Every time I approached someone, especially the folks I’d not met before, they looked at me with confusion and perhaps a little fear too. Did I have something in my teeth? Was there a booger in my nose? Even though I spent a crap-ton on the dress and to get it altered for my voluptuous body, it no longer fits my post-partum self and the top, without the support of the black sports bra and gray tank, would have exposed my uber-lactating bosom buddies. Now THAT would have been a story to share on the blog! If I was going for muted elegance, I missed it by a long shot. I hope I proved to the ladies that I don’t take myself seriously and blogger events are supposed to be fun. I realized early in the evening that the top of the dress could hold quite a lot … I kept my wallet, a stack of blog cards, and my cell phone inside my bra!
In case you weren’t following my shenanigans in 2012, you should read this post and this post. Or here’s the Cliff’s Notes’ version:
I bought a bridesmaid dress.
Four months later, I had the dress altered, which cost more than the dress itself.
I wrote a blog post making fun of my fabu-less-ness and big boobs.
Bride’s tinsel got tangled and I was excused from my bridesmaid duties.
I wrote a blog post about getting kicked out of a bridal party.
Two weeks before the wedding, the whole thing was called off.
Back to the TXWB dinner …
Taylor and Jennifer, our TXWB community leaders, did an amazing job at organizing and coordinating this event, and many thanks to the sponsors for supporting the dinner, which was amazeballs! The venue was super cool (a produce distribution warehouse); the food was delicious (I’m still waiting for that kale salad recipe!); and the company was all kinds of lovely. One thing I love about these blogger events I attend is the opportunity to see folks I know and meet others I don’t. Of course, when you’re dressed to the nines like I was, you know folks are going to smile, maybe laugh at you, and have a good time! At this event, I was most looking forward to meeting (in person) Stephanie, from The Vintage Modern Wife blog. She is a fellow lactating lady (her daughter, Addie, is currently in the NICU but might get to come home in a couple of weeks – go #PinkNinja!) and the sweetest, shortest, pink-obsessed, cutie-patootie you’ve ever seen.
I’m a terrible blogger in that I took my camera but didn’t take very many pictures and, what I did photograph, didn’t turn out well because I didn’t change my camera’s settings for the indoor, nighttime event. But thank the Good Lord for party planners and photo booths. And purple sunglasses and pink tiaras.
It’s no surprise that I stand several inches above most people – I am six feet tall – but dang, my blogging buddies are seriously short. This is even funnier because they all wear these sky-high stiletto heels while I’m in comfy flats. And no, I did not crop my head out of the photo below, that’s the actual picture from the photo booth! #BeingTallIsHard #TheStruggleIsReal
I was so impressed by the dinner event and all of the generous sponsors. I am most appreciative to the chef, who I didn’t get to meet but was available by phone to answer my questions about the menu and my milk allergy. I need to call him back because the kale salad was delicious! Thanks to Lick Ice Creams for the Coconut, Peanut Butter, and Chocolate Swirl vegan ice cream. One word: YUM!
I know I could have “pumped and dumped” and enjoyed the wine pairings provided by Lost Oak Winery, but I refrained and, frankly, there’s only so many shenanigans a group of (mostly) strange women can handle from me. One dinner attendee and blogger said I was a lot of crazy … welcome to my Husband’s life! Obviously I don’t need alcohol to have a good time. Instead, I wear a ridiculous purple ex-bridesmaid dress and a pink tiara. While I didn’t drink any wine, I’m still grateful that Lost Oak was part of our evening because I got to visit with Roxanne, the winery’s manager. I’ve known her a while and she’s a big dose of fun in a little package. I even got to see the wine labels that I helped design through a focus group a year ago!
I’m really sad I missed the big group photo but I had to leave early because my boobs were about to explode with milk. I got very uncomfortable (that means my boobs were really full) around the entrée course and ate dessert while hugging and saying goodbye to everyone. I had a blast though and I hope we have future gatherings so I can wear my ex-bridesmaid dress again. Fortunately, it’s a wardrobe piece that can be dressed up or down, depending on the occasion. 🙂
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