My Sunhat Off to You

Happy New Year's Eve, Hive! 

One year ago today, I put on the most beautiful gown I've ever worn,

arrived at our gorgeous church,

and married the love of my life.

Made in the Shade: Party Like It's 2012!

After we rang in the new year, the party kept on going!  The DJ turned the music up and some of the guests went a little nuts with props that had found their way to the dance floor.

Made in the Shade: Happy New Year!

You can't get married on New Year's Eve and not have a big countdown at midnight!

Once the goody table was set up, our guests snatched up beads, hats and blowers, and the anticipation in the room started to build.  I put on the beautiful mask I purchased just for this moment, and glasses of champagne and strawberries were passed around.

Made in the Shade: Polish Traditions

Ball Cap and I are both of Polish heritage, and we wanted to incorporate a few traditions into our wedding day.  We had already served our guests some Polish dishes with dinner, but there were three things I clearly remember from Polish weddings I attended as a kid that we wanted to include during the night. 

The first was the removal of the bride's veil and an apron tied around her waist. Traditionally, this took place on the first day of the Polish couple's two day wedding celebration, and it symbolized the bride giving up her innocence and accepting her duties as a wife, mother, and hostess.  The removal is done by a married woman, or in my experience, my mother.

I took my place on a chair in the middle of the dance floor.  I completely forgot that I should have been sitting on Ball Cap's lap for this part!

Made in the Shade: Bouquet & Garter Toss

The bouquet and garter toss can cause quite a debate in the wedding planning community.  Should you do it or not?  Is it outdated?  Does it isolate and embarrass the single folk?

I can understand both sides of the argument, but the thing is, I really wanted to toss that thing!  I've been on the receiving end more times than I can count, and I wasn't about to pass up my one chance to be the girl who gets to chuck the bouquet. Not only that, Ball Cap definitely wanted to do the garter toss - he was all about it!

We thought long and hard about our song choices.  Ball Cap wanted something he could really get down to.  "Mannish Boy" by Muddy Waters couldn't have been more perfect. 

Video via Youtube.com

Ball Cap started struttin' his stuff.

Made in the Shade: Get Your Booty on the Dance Floor

It was finally time to bust a move!  The DJ cranked the music and everyone piled on to the dance floor.  I will let the pictures speak for themselves!

MOB and her daddy cuttin' a rug!

Made in the Shade: Unexpected Photobooth

Before the party really got started, and dancing took over the evening, our photographer set up a backdrop, and anyone that wanted a formal picture could take advantage.  And boy oh boy did our guests jump in on that action!

Ball Cap and his family - gotta love the sassy pose by Sister A and the silliness of our Best Man!

Made in the Shade: Blessings and Toasts

I apologize for the break in my recap posting.  Life has dealt us some curve balls lately, but I'm ready to get back to it and share more wedding goodness with the hive!

Once the first dances were over, it was time to get our grub on!  The bridal party was seated at the head tables and my Uncle Mark did us the honor of giving the blessing before the meal.

Made in the Shade: First Dances

Ball Cap and I had a difficult time deciding on a song for our first dance.  The problem was that we didn't have one song that we considered to be "our" song - we had several!  After some deliberation, we narrowed in down to two - Jack Johnson's Better Together and Coldplay's Sparks. 

Ball Cap is a huge Coldplay fan and we just recently went to their concert in Chicago (amazing by the way!).  Before I met him, I had no clue who Jack Johnson was (I apparently lived in a hole).  Both artists and their songs have built the soundtrack to our relationship.

It felt wrong to choose one song over the other, so why not dance to both?  I e-mailed our DJ and we decided to dance to the first half of Better Together and the second half of Sparks. Our DJ did a great job and the transition was seamless.

Video via YouTube.com

Song transitioned around the 2:15 mark

Video via YouTube.com

Song picked up around the 1:50 mark

Made in the Shade: Grand Entrance & The Cake

We made it to the reception venue just prior to the start of cocktail hour.  We were able to see the space before anyone arrived.  This also allowed us to stand by the entrance in a sort of informal receiving line and greet our guests as they arrived.  I didn't know how much time we'd have later on in the evening to speak with everyone so I was very happy we took the time to do this.

We were serving a fairly large meal after the one hour cocktail hour, so hors d' oeuvres consisted of bruschetta on toasted baguette and spinach and artichoke dip on toasted baguette; both served butler style.  I didn't even try one!  I was on such a high and was so excited to see everyone that food was the last thing on my mind.  I did have someone grab me some water - I was parched from talking so much!

As cocktail hour wound down, the parents, along with us and the bridal party, lined up in the lobby.  The DJ cranked The White Stripes Seven Nation Army and everyone strutted their stuff to a round of applause.

Video via YouTube.com

Made in the Shade: Reception Decor Details



Capturing the reception decor was definitely a priority on the photography list.  After months of hard work and DIY projects, I wanted to be able to look back and remember every, single, detail.

When our guests first entered our venue, they were greeted by a festive table (decorated by my venue coordinator!) that held our thumbprint guestbook.

This photo captures so many amazing things.  My Uncle/Godfather passed away the year before the wedding, so having my Aunt and cousin with us was so important.  My dad's side of the family is notorious for sticking out our tongues when concentrating, and my little cousin is no exception!  Our guests did an amazing job completing our guestbook and we have it proudly hung in our home.

Made in the Shade: Second Location Pictures

We had plenty of time before we needed to be at the reception venue, so we drove around in the party bus and enjoyed the high of newly wedded bliss.  Mr. Ball Cap and I did want to try and capture a few outdoor shots (we were hoping for snow - as you well know by now!), so we scouted a few locations prior to the big day.

We wanted a location that was on the way to the reception venue and that would offer a fun backdrop.  A local restaurant, Teibel's, has huge evergreens surrounding their property and during the holidays, they cover them in lights.  It was perfect!  Well, almost.

By the time we made it there, the temperature had begun to drop and the wind was gusting.  Not exactly ideal conditions for outdoor pics.  Since you only live once, Mr. BC and I went for it.  Our photographer ran out and set up his equipment and got one of the groomsmen to hang on to the light so it wouldn't blow over.  We got the okay and ran out of the bus, clutching my veil to my head. 

Even though we weren't able to have the whole party involved, it was still a fun time that resulted in some memorable shots.

Made in the Shade: A Few More Special Shots

Many, many years ago, Mr. Ball Cap's grandparents were married in the very same church we had just said our vows.  On that day, they took a beautiful photo in the entrance to the church.  When Mr. BC's brother was married in 2010, they recreated this photo, and his parents requested we do the same.  The end result is a trio of amazing kisses in time.

From left to right:  Mr. Ball Cap and I, BC's grandparents, and BC's brother and SIL.

Made in the Shade: Formal Portraits

Our photographer was on the ball and our formal shots were completed quickly and efficiently.

Warning:  Major picture heavy post ahead!

Mr. Ball Cap and I were up first.

 Love the color contrast on this one.

Made in the Shade: Church Exit

Since we didn't have a first look, any formal pictures of Mr. Ball Cap and I together had to wait until after the ceremony.  Seeing that these could take a while, and we didn't want our guests to be waiting on us, we did a "faux" exit after the ceremony.

After Mr. BC and I made it to the end of the aisle, we snuck off into a side room at the back of the church to wait until everyone had exited. (We may have gotten in a few more kisses during this time!)  As our guests walked out, a friend of the family passed out the bells I had made many months before.  When the coast was clear, our photographer came and got us and we were able to capture some fun exit shots.

Watch your step!  I think everyone was holding their breath that I wouldn't trip!

Made in the Shade: Our Catholic Ceremony-Conclusion & Recessional

After our first kiss, our Sister-in-Law returned to the podium and read the Prayers of the Faithful.  These prayerful petitions remind us not to forget the needs of others in the world.  Seven were read during the ceremony including:

For those who are sick, lonely, discouraged,

or oppressed that they may be strengthened

by God's help and aided by their friends,

let us pray to the Lord.

Response:  Lord hear our prayer.

Made in the Shade: Our Catholic Ceremony-Vows, Rings and a Kiss

Hive, I have a bit of a confession.  Maybe I'm not the only one, but I feel pretty silly about it. 

I kind of forgot about the part of the ceremony where we say our vows. 

Now, obviously I knew we were going to say vows, but after choosing the version we wanted during a meeting with our Priest, they never really crossed my mind again!  We weren't writing our own and we didn't go over them during rehearsal.  The weeks leading up to the wedding were filled with final details and I knew Father would guide us through the ceremony, so I never went through it in my mind. 

After Father's homily, he asked us to turn towards one another and join our right hands.  I immediately had a brief flash of panic.  This was it!  It was time to say our vows.  How could I not have thought about this beforehand?  However, by not going over that moment in my head, the emotions and feelings were natural and raw.

Made in the Shade: Our Catholic Ceremony - Readings

There was no question that Mr. Ball Cap and I would have a traditional, Catholic ceremony.  We were both raised in the Catholic Church, attended private Catholic grade school, and are active members in our church community. 

Father began Mass with the opening prayer:

Almighty God,

hear our prayers for Sunhat and Ball Cap

who have come here today

to be united in the sacrament of marriage.

Increase their faith in you and in each other,

and through them bless your Church.

We ask you this through our Lord . . . Amen

We asked Bridesmaid K's son, (MOB's Godson), to read the Old Testament reading.

Made in the Shade: Walking to the Altar

The guests were seated and it was time to start the ceremony.  Promptly at 3:00 p.m., our organist began to play and the bridal party started their procession.

Please feel free to listen along!

Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring

Made in the Shade: Dad's First Look & Bridal Photos

The ladies had to get in on the picture action as well.  The church was stunning with all of the holiday decor and it made for an amazing backdrop.

Where's the snow?!  It was a gorgeous day, and relatively warm.

Made in the Shade: Sharp Dressed Men

Similar to Mrs. Pony's guys, there are also no pictures of the Sunhat men getting dressed the day of the wedding.  We only had one photographer, our gentlemen were spread out and not in one location, and it would have been too challenging to try and corral them all prior to meeting up at the church.

While it would have made for some great shots, our photographer and the guys did a great job at capturing some pre-ceremony pictures at our beautiful church.

My handsome groom

Made in the Shade: Puttin' on the Dress

It was finally time for me to get dressed.  I was so excited to put on my gown.  My emotions were bubbling to the surface and I didn't want to hold back a single tear.

MOB so full of joy.

A better shot of my hair!

Made in the Shade: Hair and Makeup

The morning of the wedding, I woke up excited and refreshed.  It was super early, but I had slept well.  I typed out my wedding day post to the Hive and anxiously waited for my sister to wake up. 

First stop of the day was McDonald's for some wedding morning breakfast and then we were off to Mr. Ball Cap's cousin's home as she would be doing both our hair for the day.

Sister gettin' prettified (personal photo)

Workin' on my bridal 'do (personal photo)

Made in the Shade: Gifts of Thanks

After the rehearsal dinner, Mr. Ball Cap and I took a moment to thank everyone for all they had done to help make this moment possible for us.  We wanted to especially thank our parents and bridal party for their involvement and I was so excited to finally share the gifts we had gotten them all!

My girls received the following:

Matching earrings and necklace purchased on eBay.

Snowflake brooch purchased a the jewelry and fashion show.

Sequin edged scarf to help keep shoulders warm, purchased at Macy's.

For the parents, each received a handkerchief that I had emroidered with custom phrases.

Made in the Shade: We Rehearse

On Friday evening, December 30th, friends and family gathered at our church, St. Andrew the Apostle, to rehearse for the ceremony.  We were fortunate to also have our talented photographer, Stephen Martin, on hand for the evening.

Dad and I got the party started, complete with a bouquet made from bows from our shower gifts.

Father was all business during our rehearsal and really stressed the importance of what we were about to do.  He did a wonderful job at explaining the meaning of the ceremony and many of our non-Catholic friends and family commented that they really enjoyed feeling so included process.  

Sunhats at Secrets: Honeymoon Wrap-Up

Our stay at Secrets Silversands was our first experience at an all inclusive resort and it far exceeded any expectations.  I can't say enough about the service and the staff and we'd go back in a heartbeat.

During our last days, we spent a lot of time at the main pool.  I got a lot of reading done, attempted to get a tan and we even met another couple from Chicago.  There was never a shortage of action around the pool and the entertainment staff was a blast.

She was a riot!

Sunhats at Secrets: Excursion Adventure

After several days at the resort, we knew we wanted to experience at least one excursion.  Mr. Ball Cap is really into history so we looked into traveling to Tulum, Mecixo to experience some of the Mayan ruins.  The only downside to this was that it was almost two hours away from our resort.  We were hoping to find something a little closer to avoid spending so much time traveling.

While on a visit to a sister resort of Silversands, Maroma, one of the staff members spoke highly of Xplor, an adventure park in Riviera Maya.  The park was only 45 minutes from our resort and offered some fun and unique experiences.  Count us in!

At Xplor, you can fly over treetops on 14 zip lines, drive amphibious vehicles on trails through the jungle as well as inside caves, swim in an underground river surrounded by stalactites and stalagmites, and take an underground raft ride using hand paddles.

We wore our swim suits all day and brought along water socks for our feet.  The park requires you to wear helmets for safety.  Each helmet has a unique number, and at the end of the day, the park can pull up pictures taken of you during your visit based upon your helmet number.*  This was great as there was no way to safely take a camera with you.

We decided to hit up the zip lines first while the day was still early and the weather wasn't quite as hot.  There was quite a bit of climbing so we got our work out in for the day!  I was pretty disappointed that the park cameras didn't capture very good pictures of us during this time, but we had a blast.

Sunhats at Secrets: We Feast

I think I was stuffed for at least the first three days of our honeymoon.  There was so much food! 

We started out each morning at the large breakfast buffet.  They had EVERYTHING.  You could choose from traditional fare like eggs, bacon, bagels, and cereal or feast on chorizo tacos or fresh smoothies made to order.  Want to get the party started early?  Help yourself to the mimosa and bloody mary bar!

For lunch, there was always the option of another buffet, or several outdoor grills, including the seafood restaurant, Oceana.

The menus were huge!

Sunhats at Secrets: We Arrive!

The weekend before Memorial Day, Mr. Ball Cap and I set off for a week long honeymoon in Rivera Cancun.  I can't tell you how much we were looking forward to doing a whole lot of relaxing.  After the wedding, an insane tax season for me, and an intensive job search for Mr. BC (he landed one!), we just wanted to soak up some sun and focus on nothing but each other. 

This place delivered.

One of eight pools!

Don't Call It a Comeback . . .

. . . I been here for years.  Well, not years, but days, weeks, months even!  I know you haven't heard from me in ages but I promise I've been around, lurking and catching up on all the exciting news in the Hive.  This past tax season was a beast and there was no time, let alone energy, to start writing my recaps.  (Bonus points to anyone catching the song reference.)

It feels so great to have free time once again and really get settled into married life.  I promise my recaps will begin soon, but there is just one more thing the Sunhats need to do.

Image via SecretsResorts.com

Blue Brooch Bouquet

Once upon a time, in my early days as a Bee, I wrote this post about my plans to create a brooch bouquet.  I even gave you a little sneak peak at its progress here, but that is where I stopped!  Other projects became more of a priority and I never got around to sharing the final product with you before the wedding.  It's your lucky day because I'm sharing now!

This project was indeed a labor of love and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out.  I'm still so in love with it and I now get to enjoy it every day.

So how about I just show it to you and then tell you how it came to be? 

Photo by Stephen Martin Photography

Mini Moon Part Two

I discussed the first part of our mini moon here. 

We arrived at the Kingsley Inn a little early on our check-in day.  We dropped off our bags and decided to head over to Saugatuck to see the town and see what was open.  I've been to Saugatuck during the summer and it is hoppin' with people, but on a Monday in January?  Not so much.  That didn't matter one bit to us.  We drove through the town and already started discussing the things we'd do when we came back in the warmer months.

Although most of the shops weren't open, several restaurants were, so we decided on The Butler, situated right on the lake.

Mini Mooning in Michigan

Being a tax accountant means that January through April, 15th are just a tad busy.  Mr. Ball Cap and I didn't want to squeeze in a honeymoon right after the wedding only to have me come home and start working insane hours.  I wanted to enjoy our trip away and not worry about the stress I'd be coming home to.  We still wanted to get away for a few days so we went on a mini moon at a bed and breakfast in Michigan.

(See that snow?  Where was it the day of the wedding?!)

The Kingsley House Bed and Breakfast Inn is located in Fennville, Michigan just minutes away from Saugatuck, Holland and South Haven.  It is ranked one of the top 12 bed and breakfast inns worldwide.  The home was built in 1886 by Harvey Kingsley who brought apples and peaches to the area.  As such, each room in the Inn, eight in total, is named after a type of apple.  We stayed in the Empire Elite Suite.

Good Fortune in 2012

The Wednesday before the wedding, MOB, my sister and I executed a last minute favor project.

Long before the days of Pinterest, I ran across an idea for a fortune cookie wedding favor.  I liked the symbolism of receiving a fortune at the start of a new year.  I saved the idea in one of my umpteen wedding spreadsheets and moved on.  Fast forward to when I actually needed to reference it and it was nowhere to be found.  I tried to search for it again but never quite found the right post.  Oh well - time to wing it!

MOB called her local Chinese restaurant and I stopped in to pick up a box of 200 fortune cookies for $16.  I bought some Baker's chocolate from the grocery store and treat bags from JoAnn's and we were ready to roll.

The Balding Bride

Stress is a you know what.  I'm no stranger to stress.  I am a tax accountant.  Three and a half months out of every year is filled with deadlines and stress, but after over ten years in the industry, I feel I manage it quite well.  Wedding and emotional stress, however, is a new beast. 

I knew that planning a wedding would be stressful at times.  Our engagement was was just over 15 months long and for the most part, I handled the crazier moments quite well.  It wasn't until the week before the wedding that I realized I was holding on to some major stress, and obviously was not managing it at all.

I, like many, many other brides, grew my hair out for the wedding.  One week prior to the 31st, I took a shower and noticed I was losing more hair than normal.  I've been using the Wen hair care products for a few months now and I use a comb in the shower to work the product through my hair and untangle any knots.  Well, I ran the comb through and it came out FULL of hair.  It completely freaked me out.  I thought maybe it was a fluke, but the next time I washed my hair, the same thing happened.

I was trippin' big time so I reached out to my fellow Bees to see if anyone else had experienced this.  While it was unfortunate that they had, I was so relieved to discover I wasn't alone.  Many a bride before me has faced this terrible side effect.  My hair is quite thick, so as long as it wasn't noticeable to anyone and I didn't develop any bald spots, I could live with this temporary issue.  The last thing I wanted to do was worry about walking down the aisle looking like this:

Image via Worth1000.com

Sunhat is Back!

I'm back and I'm now a Mrs.!

I couldn't have asked for a more perfect day.  Our ceremony was beautiful and the reception was a blast.  We haven't stopped receiving glowing reviews from our guests and I'm still completely overjoyed. 

Mr. Ball Cap and I are on a mini honeymoon getaway right now, but I couldn't resist popping in to say hello and sharing a teaser pic with you all.  I could actually share more as we received the link to all of our pictures today!  Our photographer is just too amazing.  For now, I will leave you with one, and enjoy the rest of my trip away.

I'll be back soon to share some final details and then let you in on all of our gorgeous photos!

Love, Mrs. Sunhat.

Photo by Stephen Martin Photography