Rehearsal Dinner

My son was married this past Saturday.  Being the Mother of the Groom is quite a different experience than being the Mother of the Bride. 

I was the Mother of the Bride 4 years ago and I loved every minute of it.  It was so girly!  But with a boy, well that is quite different.  Actually, not a boy, a man.  My son will turn 30 in very short order. 

To describe his Groomsmen as similar to the characters on "Big Bang Theory" is very apt.  These are extremely intelligent, very geeky guys.  Let's put it this way, his bachelor party took place partially in a "barcade".  That's a combination between a bar and an arcade! 

My son and his friends are huge "Star Wars" fans.  So I got it in to my head that I wanted a full size Darth Vader helmet as the cake for the rehearsal dinner.  His groom's cake, but at the rehearsal dinner instead of at the wedding.  This proved to be a difficult task.

The bakery I love was closed for the week of the wedding.  A second bakery wouldn't make it siting copyright infringement issues.  A third bakery gave me a price that rivaled the price of the actual wedding cake!  Finally, after getting a referral from Duling-Kurtz Country Inn which was the venue for the rehearsal dinner, I found a Bakers of Buffington to make and deliver this fantastic cake!!! 

 Not only is it great to look at, it tasted fabulous as well!!!

The gift bags contained flip flops for the girls, black framed sunglasses for all, pins that said their roles in the wedding (i.e. "Best Man", etc.), and some other goodies.

 

Wedding Celebration!

I have been MIA because I have been in wedding preparation mode!  My son is getting married this Saturday!!! 

We are so blessed that my son, L.J., has met the love of his life, Emily.  They are perfectly matched and we wish them a lifetime of happiness. 

I will be posting tons of things about the wedding and what I have done to prepare for it, but here is just the first installment.  I am saving many things as surprises. 

I am having a breakfast on the morning of the wedding and that means that I want the house to be decorated like a wedding celebration.  So I made this wreath to decorate the door. 

 I wasn't able to find a grapevine wreath to work with, so I got a wreath that was already complete (and pricey, but any port in a storm) and I remade it. 

This is how the wreath started out.  I absolutely hated the twigs and a lot of the green plants.

This is how it looked after the white flowers were added and the twigs and green plants were removed.

The only other addition was this great wedding ribbon I got on clearance. 

It will make a nice welcome for the groomsmen and their gurests. 

By The Sea!

I am just back from a week long vacation in Sea Isle City, New Jersey!  If you aren't familiar with this wonderful ocean side town, you are really missing something!!!  It is family friendly, but still has quite a nightlife to offer.

With great restaurants, many new ones since we were there last 3 years ago, and a nice selections of rides for the kids and bars for the grownups it's got something for everybody.  There are even some free concerts in the town square!  The beaches are not so vast that you can't see the ocean, but there is always room.

We had a wonderful condo on what they call the promenade which is like a board walk.  We faced the ocean, there is nothing quite like seeing the sun coming up over the ocean in the morning. 

The most genius of the new restaurants (I use that term loosely in this case) is Drifters.  Here you can get sliders, funnel cakes, French fries, deep fried Oreos, ice cream, kids favorites, or even strings for your guitar!  Open until the wee hours of the night/morning, they cater to the after bar crowd and they have just what hits the spot after a few cocktails!!!  

The nicest surprise we had was when we decided to go to La Fontana Coast for dinner!!!  This elegant BYOB at 50th and Landis is fantastic!  It rivals any of the top restaurants in Philadelphia (think the Palm, the Ritz Carlton, the Four Seasons).  The Crab Bisque was phenomenal!!!  Outstanding!!!  Just over the top good!!!  The service, well if it were any better they would be getting us things BEFORE we wanted them!!!  

The old standbys that are always good are still so, The Lobster Loft had some great specials that were reasonably priced and delicious, and Braca's is still delightful!  They have added some sidewalk tables out front which is a great option in nicer weather.  Given that both are walking distance to our condo, they are always favorites of ours.  

Until next year Sea Isle!  I did record the sites and sounds of the ocean on my cell phone for those days when I need a little boost!!!

What About The Groom???

So, I am to be the Mother of The Groom in August.  The what?  Yeah, I know.  Nobody gives a flying leap about the Mother of The Groom.  We are the "shut up and wear beige" as my sister advised me.  As in blend in to the scenery.  Well, not this momma!  Thank God for my son and my daughter-in-law to be!!!  They have included me to the best of their ability, tradition has dealt the MOG a lousy hand, and have given me a green light on everything I have asked. 

Now, I want to make things special for my son.  But there again we find a dearth of things to purchase.  I am putting a basket together for the honeymoon suite.  I wanted flip flops for the bride and groom.  Bride, no problem.  Groom, not so much. 

What is an MOG to do???  Well, of course, get crafting!  I decided to make them look like a tuxedo.  So, I used bias tape for the shirt collars and hot glued them on.  Then I used black satin ribbon to create bow ties.  So, here they are!  He may hate them and never wear them, or they may be a kitschy thing he wears only on his honeymoon.  Either way, momma made him something that rate right up there with the bride! 

Fireworks Cupcakes

Fireworks Cupcakes

Here is my interpretation of "Fireworks Cupcakes".  They are Egg Free since my grandson is allergic to eggs, but that doesn't mean they aren't delicious!  This is a dense chocolate cake, it doesn't rise much because there aren't any eggs in it.  I haven't perfected a good substitution that lets the cake rise while still tasting good without eggs.  It has a fantastic butter cream icing on top.  and I snipped some Strawberry and Blueberry Twizzlers a bit to make them fringe out so that they look kind of like fireworks.  I was able to find blue cupcake papers with stars on them and they had flags on toothpicks in the same package.  These are from Dollar Tree.  

Here is the recipe:

Egg-free Chocolate Cupcakes

Makes about 2 dozen cupcakes
Allergy note: contains wheat and dairy ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 cups whole milk
1 cup butter, melted
4 tsp. honey
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 F degrees. Line two muffin pans with baking cups. Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate mixing bowl, combine milk, butter, honey and vanilla extract. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the milk/butter mixture. Mix until combined.  Fold in the semi-sweet chocolate chips. Pour in the batter into the lined muffin pan to 2/3 full. Bake for 15 to 20 or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Let cool completely before decorating.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
makes about 2 1/2 cups frosting
Allergy note: contains dairy ingredients

5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1/3-1/2 cup heavy cream*
1 tsp. vanilla extract

 *start out with 1/3 cup of cream and add more cream to your desired consistency

In a large mixing bowl, sift powdered sugar.  Add the butter, cream and vanilla extract. Using an electric mixer, slowly mix together at a low speed. Once all the ingredients are combined, increase the speed and beat until fluffy.

Helping Little Hands

My grandson is 2 1/2 and getting the hang of potty training.  That includes hand washing skills.  Unfortunately, reaching the faucet can be problematic. 

I saw a few ideas on Pinterest as to how to extend the faucet using cut up lotion bottles and other items.  I saw one that used a scoop.  Then I remembered I had a small wood scoop from some bath salts.  Bingo!  That and a rubber band solved the problem. 

My grandson is so excited about this!!! 

All American Wreath

Here is a quick and easy wreath to bring the spirit of America to your front door.

You will need:

3 rolls of 12 inch wide mesh (I got mine at Joann's fabric store)
1 wire wreath form about 18 to 24 inches in diameter
1 roll of floral wire
scissors
wire cutters

Simply cut and bunch the mesh so that it forms nice big loops.  Wire it to the wreath form.  I made sure that I wired mine to cross bars so that they wouldn't slide on the wreath. 

I think it's a stunner!  It certainly catches your eye!!