Celery

I read somewhere that you can plant the root end of a celery head after you've finished with it - instead of throwing it out. So I thought I'd try it out in my hydroponics. It takes awhile but it works!

Soap Class

The local garden center offered another soap class a few weeks ago so I decided to take it again. I really enjoyed the first one, and thought it was a good value. The teacher supplies all the equipment and supplies that you need, and you get to take home a block of soap at the end. This time she even mixed up the oils beforehand, along with the lye and water solution. So all we had to do was choose the things we wanted to add - like color, scent, texture - and mix it all together. I choose a green color, lemongrass, and oatmeal. A few days later, I cut my block up into fourteen bars. So for the $35 fee, each bar is less than $3, which is about half what you might pay for homemade natural soap.

Pool Deconstruct

We hadn't been using the above ground swimming pool for a few weeks. The water was beginning to get cold and we were too busy. So it was time to pack it up.

It took several days to drain the pool, using the outlet at the bottom and a garden hose. We were able to lift the liner gradually to remove the last few inches of water.

The frame came apart fairly easily. But the rope securing the sides had disintegrated in several places so had to be thrown away and will have to be replaced. The ground sheet had also disintegrated. 

After a few days in the sun, the liner was able to be folded up and stored in the workshop.

Flooding

Just one week after the Event, we had a weekend of extremely heavy rain. (So thankful it waited a week!) We had about 13" in a couple of days, while a nearby town had almost 20".

When we get so much rain in such a short space of time, following months of no rain, there is really nowhere for the water to go.

Creeks flooded. Fields flooded. Roads flooded. Sections of Interstate 45 were closed. Thankfully our house sits on higher ground, but some of our property on lower ground was underwater.

I happened to be in town the day it started raining. I had no idea how bad it was going to get so quickly. I heard later that the roads I used to get home were closed soon after I left. Thankfully I was in Guv'nor's truck that day which sits up higher than most cars.

When I saw the boat rescue (!) going that way I decided to go a different way.

The water started getting deep as I approached this overpass.

Thankfully I was on slightly higher ground as I waited at the intersection just under the overpass.

My theory was, if the truck in front of me can do it, I can too.

Guv'nor resorted to wearing his cowboy hat since it was waterproof. He's not happy about all the rain.

The website "drivetexas.org" was useful to see which roads were flooded.

Event

After weeks of planning, the time came quickly. Everyone was ready and the wedding started right on time.

Once again, thanks for the photos: RF, LG, JC.

Event: Getting Ready

The few days before our big Event, family and friends started to arrive. Some stayed here with us but most stayed in the area either at hotels or with other family. The ones staying with us were put straight to work doing various little jobs with the flowers or food.

The evening before, the entire party met at the venue for a run through of the ceremony. Everyone not involved in the ceremony outside were persuaded to help with the set up of the tables inside. The rentals had been delivered earlier, and we brought the rest in several carloads.

Each table included a tablecloth, brown paper runner, flower centerpiece, six pillar candles, four glass punch cups with tea light candles, four votive candles, childhood photos, table number, ceramic plates, plastic plates, napkins, forks, glasses, pinecones, thank you cards, and copies of a hymn.

We were able to get almost everything set up in our allotted two hours. We had planned all the different elements separately, so we were very pleased at how things looked when put all together.

We all went back into town for a lovely evening meal hosted by Hunter's parents. It was a nice relaxing event and we were able to celebrate the couple with several sentimental and humorous speeches.

The following morning started early with a long list of things to do by certain times. We had a couple of panic moments, as things went wrong - like when some of the flowers wilted because our fridge was too cold and then had to be replaced.

After arriving at the venue with several hours to get ready, it seemed like the clock just whirled around.

So many people were helping and doing all the right things at the right times. Saying thank you later seemed very inadequate. One sweet teacher friend of Teacher offered to help with the overall coordinating, another did all the girl's hair. Our daughter did all the makeup for the girls. A couple of my sweet friends gave invaluable help with the oversight of the food. A couple from church picked up the chicken on their way. 

The photographer and the videographer arrived as planned and quietly captured the day. In hindsight, we should have hired someone to take candids throughout the day just for us to have since we were busy and forgot to stop and take any photos.

So, once again, I am thankful to those who have shared their photos with me and have agreed to let me use them here. (RF, JC, LG, CW)

I'm sure I've completely bored you by now, so here are a few more photos. I am hoping I can wrap this up with one more post to come.


Setting up the evening before

We used this layout to set up the tables. There were 14 tables for the guests.

Most of the 8' tables had eight place settings, a few had 9 or 10.

The head table was made with 6' tables, seating the bridal party of 18.

We put out the floral centerpieces the night before with the exception of the hydrangeas.

The table runners were made using one roll of brown contractor's paper.

The ceramic plates were used like chargers, with clear plastic plates for the meal.

Setting up outside

Hunter made the sign and Teacher painted the words. They're a good team.

The chairs were set up under the trees.

A couple of the ring bearers just wanted to play.

The finishing touches inside

It was a beautiful sunny day and the windows provided plenty of natural light.

We used the same set of rental chairs for the ceremony and meal. The chairs were moved inside after the ceremony.

The centerpiece flowers did well sitting out overnight.

The glasses were filled with ice and the candles lit before the ceremony.

The delicate hydrangeas were added at the last minute to the centerpieces.

One flower girl had a special message for the groom. One ring bearer carried the ring box.

Family wedding photos and the couple's engagement photos were displayed along one wall.

The wedding cake was embellished with a couple of deer.

Back in the bridal suite

The girls all wore their appliqué t-shirts.

Here's the dress waiting to be worn.

The flower girls all had special hair styles. They wore pink pinstripe Laura Ashley dresses.

The dusty blue bridesmaid dresses went well with the pink flower girl dresses.

The veil was pinned to the back of the hair on each side, creating a dip in the middle.

Hunter wasn't allowed to see Teacher before the ceremony, so he sent her a letter.

Ribbon was added to the bouquet at the last minute.

The bouquet