The Party Thai

   Every time I cross something off my wedding accessories and wedding supplies list, I think of something else I need and have to add it on. Will I ever reach the end? It started with the wedding invitations and from there, just took off.  I’m glad I found a place that offers discounts on a lot of items, that really helps with my limited wedding budget. There was everything from invitations to wedding favors at reasonable prices. They had some very lovely items and lots of neat ideas for all kinds of weddings and receptions.

   I checked out all the themed wedding ideas they had and found one I really like. It’s a beautiful winter wedding, and they have all kinds of decorations and accessories to go with it. Winter is one of my favorite seasons, with the gorgeous white snow and the crisp clean air. We are getting married in January, so this will be the perfect theme for our wedding and reception. They even have adorable invitations to send out with a winter theme. I’ll have snow flakes, snow globes and so many of the winter wonderland items at my reception. You should see all the wedding cake toppers they have too. There are some of the prettiest wedding cake supplies I’ve seen on the market today. There are cake toppers for all kinds of themes and even some whimsical toppers for couples that want to start their reception off with a few laughs, and I found the most elegant cake serving set that will really shine on my wedding table, along with beautiful crystal flutes for our champagne toast and lovely wine glasses too.

   This has to be one of the best shopping trips I’ve ever been on, and I didn’t even have to leave the house.  I did all my shopping online, right at my desk. It’s an awesome way to shop. I find what I want, order it and wait for delivery. Saves me a lot of hassle, not to mention money. I wish I could do all my shopping this way.

   There’s not just reception supplies either, they have some fantastic suggestions for flower girl baskets, ring pillows, wedding guest books and so much more.  I ordered a winter wedding guest book, and it is so beautiful. It’s a white satin and has a beautifully romantic brooch on the cover. I was really amazed at all the lovely items they have. I even found flower petals for my flower girls basket.

   There are lots of selections of decorations to explore too. Decorations that will make your ceremony and reception every bit as beautiful as you want it to be. With all the wedding items and lovely wedding decoration supplies, you just can’t go wrong. I’ve got everything I need now and I can’t wait until my wedding day.  Everything is going to be so spectacular and wait until my guests see their wedding favors I bought for them as thank you gifts.  I had them packaged in winter themed favor boxes and they will really stand out on all the reception tables, along with the themed place card holders. There were some pretty cool ideas for wedding favors too, nice little novelty gifts and winter themed gifts to choose from. They had nice little picture frames, candles, ornaments,tea lights and so much more.

   My wedding and reception is going to be the highlight of my life. I can hardly wait to walk down the aisle in my beautiful wedding dress and say my vows.  I think out of everything, what I’m waiting for the most is to hear the minister say “ I now pronounce you man and wife.”

   My daughter looked so lovely standing in front of the mirror in her gown and veil. Like you would imagine, it brought back a lot of memories. From the day we brought her home from the hospital, to the day she graduated high school.  All the bumps and scrapes, the boyfriends that broke her heart, and the hearts she broke along the way. It’s funny how that stuff goes through your mind at a time like this. Everyone was scurrying around looking for this and that, checking their hair and making sure they looked just perfect, one girl was trying, without much success,  to tuck her handkerchief inside the sleeve of her dress. But all I could do was stand there and stare at my beautiful daughter.

   We worked so hard at planning this wedding and reception. Her and I did it together, no wedding planner, just us. We must have gone to 50 wedding shops looking for the perfect gown and veil, when she finally found the one she wanted, she just said “this is it” and that was that. We really had a great time shopping for wedding accessories and decorations. She didn’t want one of those modern themed weddings, she just wanted a simple and traditional ceremony and reception.

   We got out the invitations and everyone answered right away, so now it was time to plan the menu for 123 people, then we had to order her cake.  She chose a gorgeous three tiered cake. It was a yellow cake with white cream frosting and beautiful tiny flowers around each layer.  Her cake topper was a traditional bride and groom topper. With no humorous overtones and nothing added, it was just the bride and groom under an arch. It really was quite lovely.

   We shopped for wedding favors for everyone, and special gifts for her bridesmaids and flower girl.  It seemed like we never stopped shopping.  I remember when we were shopping for her bridal accessories and she was looking at a beautiful lace handkerchief, trying to decide if she wanted to carry one or not. She decided to wait on that, until she made up her mind. She did buy some very lovely pearl ear rings and necklace.

   The time had come now for her walk down the aisle. She had her something new, borrowed and blue, but not anything for the something old. I had something of my grandmothers that I really wanted her to carry with her down the aisle on her wedding day. It was her beautiful embroidered handkerchief that she carried on her wedding day. So did my mother and so did I. We kinda considered it good luck. It was a very old and delicate handkerchief with a fancy lace border. She tucked it in her sleeve and took her place in the wedding procession. Everything was so beautiful and the little flower girl was adorable as she passed out a rose to everyone on the end of the pews. For only 4 years old, she did a very good job.  The ring boy was really handsome in his little tux. He carried that pillow as if it were made of glass.

   Everything was perfect for their ceremony and reception and my daughter was now a married woman with a life all her own. I don’t know if it’s possible to be happy and sad at the same time, but I was. I lost a little girl, but gained a good friend.  As far as grandmas handkerchief, she put it away until she can hand it down to her daughter on her wedding day.

We were all so excited about graduation, that I decided to throw a big party for my son. I wasn’t really sure what to do for a graduation party since I’ve never been to one and I never had one myself. When I graduated, we just had the family over for cake and coffee, but, I wanted to have much more of a celebration than that for my son. We’re so proud of him, and he worked so hard to make it through his high school years with the best grades possible.  He took his education very seriously, and I’m glad he did. He’s already getting offers from colleges for the next semester. So, I wanted everything special, from invitations to graduation favors. But, I wasn’t sure where to start, so I just asked my sister for some advice.  She said I could probably get some ideas from the internet. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that myself. You can find almost anything on the internet.

   I found a lot of graduation party ideas, and ways to decorate that sounded pretty cool for the kids his age. So, I started by having invitations printed out in his school colors and waited for their RSVP to come back.  After I knew how many kids were coming, I started checking out table and chair rentals (cause we’re doing this in the back yard) and planned the menu, which consisted mainly of pizzas and submarine sandwiches, and of course, a graduation cake with a cap, gown, and a little diploma. I got all that done plus had the drinks taken care of, but when it came to the music, I decided to enlist the help of a couple of his friends. They suggested a DJ, but that was a little more than I planned on spending, so I told them to just pick out their favorite tunes and they could use the stereo, since the speakers will reach outside anyway.

   After the food, refreshments, cake and music was taken care of, I started looking for decorating ideas. I decided to go with the school colors, since that’s what I did for the invitations. There were a lot of decorating ideas on the internet that were very helpful. I really liked the one about displaying his school pictures since he was in elementary school. So I got a cork board and had every school picture since pre-school on there. It really looked great. Now all I had to get was the graduation party favors for all of his guests. When I told my sister I had everything under control, she asked me what type of favors I had for the kids. I had completely forgotten to get them, so there I was, shopping again when I thought I was done.

   There were a lot of favors to choose from, and I wasn’t quite sure what to get them all. At their age it’s hard to tell what they would like to have. But since a lot of them are planning on going to college and I know they can all read, I decided to get little graduation book markers. I think that was a pretty good graduation party favor. They all seemed to like them. At least that’s what they told me. I was so worried about this party going well, but it turned out just fine. One thing I’ve discovered about teenagers; give them lots of food and refreshments and music loud enough to give the headless horseman a migraine, and you’ve got yourself a successful party.  

   Someone having a birthday party, or maybe that teenager in your life has just graduated and you want to have a celebration for him or her? Parties can be a lot of fun, but they can also be a lot of work when it comes to planning out the perfect festivities. It not much different from bridal showers and baby showers.  They all need a guest list, invitations, food, refreshments and more.  One thing all parties have in common is favors. Anyone that throws a party or a wedding reception knows that party favors are a big hit.  From little kids birthday parties to baby showers, party gifts have become a given. Party favors are a way of showing your appreciation for your guests caring enough to share this day with you. Favors are your way of saying thank you.

   For kids birthday parties you could have each child a favor box filled with little colorful candies,( this is proven to be a favorite), or maybe a small toy, like a car for boys and a bracelet for the girls. If you are having a baby shower, you can get some wonderfully unique favors and have them put in pink or blue favor boxes, or possibly ABC block containers with a pacifier tied to the ribbon.  There are many ideas to go with, when it comes to party favors, for every kind of celebration.  Having your festivities on the beach? You’ll find exquisite beach party favors depicting a wonderful time in the sand and surf. Or maybe you’ve decided on a garden party surrounded with the scent of lovely flowers.  What ever location you decide on, you’ll be able to find just about any type of party favor you want.

   There are also fantastic favors for the guests at your wedding reception. With all the themes there are today for ceremonies and receptions, you’ll find there are just as many favor suggestions, to go along with them.  Beach receptions, winter wonderland receptions, and even storybook receptions.  Planning on a gorgeous autumn wedding and party?  You’ll find such unique wedding favor ideas that are just as colorful and delightful as the season. Every bride wants her guests to feel important, because they are. They are there for you on the most important day of your life and you want a way to show them how much they mean to you and how much you appreciate their love and friendship.  The giving of wedding party favors is one sure way to let them know how you feel. There are adorable picture frames, beautifully decorated candles and holders, and mini picture albums that would make wonderful thank you gifts, or you may want to choose colorful favor boxes filled with delicious little candies. There are so many select choices for your friends and families.

   Make sure your gifts are packaged in beautiful themed favor boxes, for instance, if you are having a winter wonderland reception, you may want to look for boxes or tags that are also of a winter scene, such as snowflakes, sleds, snowmen or anything that goes along with that particular season. It also helps to add to the décor of your elegant reception tables.

   It doesn’t really matter which theme you choose, or if you don’t have any particular theme in mind and you decide to go with a traditional ceremony and wedding party. You can find almost every possibility there is for the perfect unique wedding party favor for each of your guests. It’s just a little keepsake of the most wonderful wedding reception they’ve ever attended.