Easter Pictures with Baby Chics

Photo Credit and Studio Credit: Photography 35 aka the most patient incredible kind hearted people

I hope you all had a great Easter or Passover weekend! I just wanted to share some cuteness with you!



Soooooooooooooo, Gabriel (our 2.25 year old, wouldn't sit with the Easter Bunny, and let's face it that guy can be a bit scary...) So, our tradition has been to take his picture with the baby Chics... and it's cute, right!



So this year, I wanted a picture with G and Z. Gabriel has been a great big brother. He loves to help with his little brother, bringing his binky, and his blankey, and sort of sharing his toys.



So I though, hey.... this will be a piece of cake! A picture with a 2 year old and 3 month old... no problem!



Until it happened, and my husband happened to snap it on his camera.

No Baby was harmed in the taking of this picture

Oops... so the moral of the story is, be sure to have your wife laying under the bench in case your 2 year old thinks it's funny to see if a baby really does bounce.

Really Cool Wedding Idea

We are always on the look out for super cool ideas! New, super cool ideas are even funner!



So, when this blog came across my desk, I just had to let you know. It's rare these days that something new and exciting crosses our desks.... so I just had to share!


Check out I Love Pezzulli, but first let me tell what what it is.

Okay, so picture this, you were invited to Anna's wedding and you are going to know, NO ONE, that's awkward right?



But Anna solved that - she has created a blog that features each one of her wedding guests, creates a blog post about them, how she met them, some fun facts, and why that person is special to her and her fiancé.



This way, no one is a stranger! I love it!



So friends, meet Anna and Vince, and meet Anna and Vince's friend's.

Our Family

We are so blessed to have such amazing friends. Seriously, amazing friends. A few of our friends share their talents with our family. And check out these incredible images of Zachary! These were taken when he was 7 days old!



A Huge Way BIG Huge Thank you to Footstone Photography for these truly priceless images! I am so blessed!

Pear Tree Greetings

Before I tell you the story of Zachary's Birth Announcement, I need to thank Kristin from Footstone Photography and Footstone Ink for taking my idea that I wrote on a napkin and putting it on paper! I seriously wrote this on a napkin, a paper napkin and she make it this! I love it!!!!!!!



Zachary's Birth Announcement was supposed to be our Christmas Card, and due to some serious illnesses, well, it got bumped to New Years Valentines Day!



Pear Tree Greetings had offered me a substantial credit to print cards, as long as I told you about my experience. Soooooo, I took them up on it!



I found Pear Tree Greetings to have a great selection of Birth Announcements, Winter Birth Announcements, Holiday Cards, and everything in-between. I was hard to pick what I wanted, there was so much selection, but with the designed "Mad Lib Style Birth Announcement" I needed a card that had a customizable front, and then I was fine with a fill in the blank inside.



I choose my design (which was actually a Christmas Card, that I customized to look like a Valentines Day Card... honestly, so versatile!)



And I played with the design and the text on the inside until it was perfect.



I placed my order, put in my discount code, and BAM! It was done, or so I thought.



This is where my issues started, since I had a customizable card, and most of the site is plug and play, you simply plug in your images and type your text into the presized areas, and you are good to go, your card is professional and gorgeous.



Except, my image, the one above wasn't fitting in the pre-fit space (even though we custom sized it so that it would fit). So I had to start a chat with Customer Service, and they told me to email them the image with my order number, and they would place it into the card manually at no extra cost. Perfect!



I did that. BAM! Done!



Notsomuch.



Two days later my cards were supposed to be delivered and when a box showed up at our house that afternoon I was so excited, I tore it open, and it was filled to the brim with envelopes. Just envelopes.



Where were my cards?



I started another chat with Customer Service, and they said that I needed to approve the proof before it was mailed.



She emailed me the proof. I okay'ed it.



There were a few more hiccups in the process, and I don't want to sound unappreciative, because I am not, I am so grateful to Pear Tree Greetings for the credit, and the gorgeous cards that will be with our family for the rest of our lives!

Awkward Family Photos

So, it's your wedding day, and you are imagining dreaming of all of your family being together in one place and your having these incredible images that capture your wedding perfectly!



But, let's talk real life for just a sec.



Humor me.



Sometimes you just don't get that dream image. Sometimes you picture life one way and BAM! Real life slaps you in the face like an overcooked pancake.



I am working on a little project about awkward family pictures, please send them to me! Email me at melissa at masterpieceweddings dot net



I wanna see them!



And just so you know I play fair.... (and the best is yet to come!)

Awkward Family Photo.... Exhibit A - I had Gabriel all dressed up for his brother's Baptism - he loved it. I cut off John's head and Zachary looks like he's a few fries short of, well you know.

Merry Christmas

I cannot believe I never showed you this!



Zachary Ryan was born on November 9th, 2011, and we were so blessed to welcome him to our family!



He was the best Christmas Gift E-vah!

Thank you Footstone Photography for this amazing newborn session - and a big thanks to Command Adhesive Hooks...

Do Not Try This At Home Kids.

Thank you Kristen from Footstone Photography for your patience with Zachary

This is my favorite image from Footstone Photography that day with both G and Z!

Wait until I show you Zachary's Birth Announcement!

Every Miracle deserves Another

As I am about to enter a newly new chapter of my life, I am well, at a loss for words, which doesn't happen ever often for me. So, I am going to let him explain....

Top Image taken my friend Amanda with SWOONOVERIT

My Mommy is having a baby brother for me, his name will be Zachary. My Mommy and Daddy tell me all the time that I am a miracle and that my brother is too. I am not sure what that means, but this little miracle is excited to show Zachary how to ride a tricycle, and eat Cheerios, and play with cars and read books, and color, and play with toys, and, and, and a lot of other stuff too!



I guess that means that Zachary is a miracle too. So that's cool. But now that I am a big brother, I feel like this is a big responsib.. responsibil.... a big deal. So, I promise to be a good big brother, and show Zachary all the super duper fun stuff, like running around naked in the rain, and brushing your teeth, Seasme Street, how to dance and the funnest part falling down!



So, while Mommy is busy, she said her friends are going to take over her blob. She won't be gone long, I promise!



Wuv you!



G

Interview with...ME!

I was honored to be interviewed by the awesometastic Invitation Consultants  the other day, they asked me five fab questions about what I do.



Here's a little preview..

To see the entire post with pictures go here to their blog!



You don't want to miss out!

No Wedding Planner

I recently had the opportunity to observe a wedding that didn't have a planner. I really had a hard time not interfering. Like a serious hard time. In fact, in the end, I couldn't not interfere.

Cartoon Source

But here were some things that I observed as a by-stander/not their wedding planner/didn't want to take over.



1. The bride wasn't dressed 15 minutes before she was supposed to walk down the aisle. Neither were the bridesmaids. No one knew what to do, they were very sadly lost. No direction, the photographer was snapping pictures, but no one had any clue, when I said, "okay, there is about 10 minutes before we have to have you ladies lined up, let's get ya'll dressed." And then it was chaos... I heard things like "WHAT! 10 minutes!" "Wait, I have to finish my make up!" "Where are my under wear!" and much more.



1.5. The mother of the groom sat down with the regular guests, she didn't know she was supposed to be "special".



2. The flowers were wrong. They were delivered wrong. Not intensely wrong, just the wrong color... But no one knew what to do or how to get a hold of the florist. Luckily, I had the florists cell phone number.



3. No one knew how to line up, there was no direction, I wound up getting everyone lined up and cue'ing the musicians.



3.5 The muscians didn't know when to play and not to play, the guests sat to no music at all. She had no music to play, didn't know what to play or that she should. (she was a friend)



4. The musician had no clue when to start and stop the music. When the bride and groom made it back down the aisle, she stopped playing and the guests left the chapel in silence.



5. The guests had no idea there was even a reception or how to get there.



6. At the reception, the DJ had to run everything, because the bridal party, family and venue had no idea, there was no timeline, and just plain unorganized.



7. The bride and groom came up to me like 40 times to thank me. Because they had no clue what they were doing.

Merry Christmas Eve!!!

I hope you have something spectacular planned for Christmas! I think Christmas Eve has become by favorite holiday. I know it sounds silly, because really it should be Christmas, and it used to be. I mean the hub-bub, and waking up early cuz Santa came!Santa came! And the jumping on the bed to wake everyone in the house up at 6AM and my parent stumbling to make coffee just to stick toothpicks in their eyes while my sister and I hustle and bustled to tear everything open faster than my parents could stir cream into their coffee.... that part will always hold a special place in my heart.

Me and my sister dancing circa 1983ish

BUT....

Christmas Eve.

Now that is holiday that I am loving.

And here is why.

Bad Picture we took while everyone was eating and mid conversation

Friends and family gather at our house for the Feast of the Seven Fishes. This is my 17th year enjoying this tradition. We've added some new recipes and made it our own, but the Itailian Feast of the Seven Fishes is so much fun to prepare. We always set the menu earlier in the month, and John and I prep and cook and plan this amazing meal to share with our friends and family.

There's no stress, no hustle and bustle. Just a meal, some prayer, some wine (there's always wine), fun conversations over new recipes and old.

And then at midnight we go to church, sing, and then at the end, wish each other a Merry Christmas. And go to bed remembering what The Holidays are all about.



I think it's the tradition of it all, something I can pass down to Gabriel, and something he can carry on to his family.



And I love it!

If you are curious as to what the Seven Fishes is all about here goes:

The long tradition of eating seafood on Christmas Eve dates from the medieval Roman Catholic tradition of abstinence—in this case, refraining from the consumption of meat or milk products—on Fridays and specific holy days. As no meat or butter could be used, observant Catholics would instead eat fish, typically fried in oil.





There are many hypotheses for what the number "7" relates to, one being the number of Sacraments in the Roman Catholic Church. Another theory is that seven is a number representing perfection: the traditional Biblical number for divinity is three, and for Earth is four, and the combination of these numbers, seven, represents God on Earth, or Jesus Christ.



Or the Seven Deadly Sins, the seven days of the week... or just cuz someone long ago thought 7 was a good round number.



Either way-



Merry Christmas!

You never know....

You'll never know who you'll meet. Or when.



You see, I was invited to a birthday party for a dear friend, and I sat down next to a guy that I thought looked as if I could make good conversation with.



Super nice guy, he and his family and friends immediately had me laughing, and the conversation was easy.



I asked him what he did. He said that he was an Event Planner.



I thought, pstcha... whatever. Sure you are. Everyone is an event planner. Whatever.



So then I asked him what type of events he planned, he mentioned some large corporate events, for fashion clients, and large marketing firms.



Okay, sure you do... maybe... maybe you plan something sort of cool like that.



Then he sees me tweeting... he asks me about Twitter... and my blog. And I ask him more about what he does.



Then he casually, and I mean oh so casually, mentioned he'll be on Martha Stewart Radio on Wednesday.



Casually.



No Biggie.



So, I introduce him to my friend Jen, and now Mark Addison and I are BFF's. And I think he's super cool, and I'll cling glasses with him anytime of day.



Have you met, my friend, the Event Planner in New York, Mark Addison? Mark, meet my blog friends, friends, meet Mark.

Love Wedd

Have you been to the funnest Bridal Boutique in Gainesville? If not, you must make a trip to Love Wedd!

If you aren't in Gainesville, head over to the Love Wedd Blog for fun giveaways, and FREE workshops that we'll be hosting there!

Be True

The best advice I can give you....

Left Overs

We are taking time to enjoy our Turkey Hangover, and I hope you are doing the same!



Have a great Gobble, Gobbley-rific Weekend!

{Martha Stewart}

Happy Thanksgiving!

From all of us at MasterPiece Weddings, we wish you and your family the best of Thanksgivings!!!



Please take a moment for everything you have to be grateful for!



I feel so grateful for my family and friends and all of the amazing things that are to come.



God Bless you and your family

The Big Move

If you follow us on Twitter or Facebook you know I've been mentioning change and rolling with the changes rather than trying to fight them. Because really, I hate change. Don't move the things on my desk, or mess with my computer. I will beat you up. Seriously. Just ask my husband. He moved a painting in the house, and now has 9 fingers. (okay, slight exaggeration...but slight)



Okay, well here is the deal-io.



Due to some long and complicated curcumstances the building that MasterPiece Weddings is in, is being taken over by the bank, and the bank wants to move in. Big business at it's finest. So the little guy has to move out.



Sooooooooooo, we are looking for a bigger and better space that will be awesometastic and incredible, and frankly, worthy of our awesometasticness!



We'll be homeless for the holidays, but the first part of next year, you'd better believe there will be a party for our new crib!!!



PS - Don't worry, if you need us, just call the office! It's all being transfered to a central number. Nothing is changing but our location.



PPS- You can always visit us at Love Wedd!

Oh The Places We Went

These shoes were definately not made for walking. In fact, they are what I have dubbed my "Wedding Shoes". I have found over the years, that I must have comfy shoes for working weddings. Otherwize, there is no walking at all the day after a wedding. And then my back is killing me, and then John can't stand to hear me moan and groan... so I wear something cute for the ceremony, and then the wedding shoes come into play for the remainder of the wedding...



And these shoes, these, right here...

Yes, those are holes on the bottom of the soles.



It was a silly emotional thing for me to come to the realization that I must toss these shoes, and I could have should have thrown them out months ago, because they really had, had enough. But I couldn't. They had to see me through the remainder of our season. I mean, really, these shoes had seen alot of emotion, they had been with me through alot.



63 Weddings.



These shoes made it through 63 weddings with me. That's a lot of I Do's. A lot of running, a lot of miles of running around, a heckuvalot of secret missions, love notes, emergencies, tears, sweat, and maybe even some blood, but really... just plain a lot of stuff.



So they had to see me through the rest of our season. Had to. Must.



And now that our season is over until January (I'm sad, but also kind of glad, we needed a mini break, and the holidays are coming up... so it's fambly time).



But these shoes had to see me though Ashley and Jordan's wedding to successfully finish their mission. And they did.



And I am proud of them. I'm proud of us, and our team!



John asked me if I was going to bronze them. Sort of silly... although I did consider it.



And honestly, just thinking about the last 63 weddings makes me a bit emotional. I started wearing them before I had Gabriel, before I knew I was pregnant. Why, in the world did I wear them so long? Its not like  I couldn't afford new shoes... nostaglia maybe? Comfort? Lazy?



So, now on the new shoes. New love. New weddings. New beginings.

Brazilian Blowout

Normally, on a regular day, you've probably seen me looking like this, my hair is naturally curly, so I just toss some product in it, and throw it back. It's easy, really easy, and looks like this (not too bad, right... I mean, it doesn't look ghetto, right?):

 

When I have some time, I can blow dry dry it straight, it takes 40 minutes, can still be frizzy, needs lots of products, and looks like this:

Sometimes I actually wear my hair curly and down. The problem is that it's crunchy and untouchable. Kind of kinky, sometimes it looks good, sometimes it curls whack and just looks funky. Like this:

(by the way, this was Halloween, we don't normally dress G up as a Giraffe)

So, why all this talk about my crazy hair?

Well, my friend Glenda at Creations asked me if she could do a Brazilian Blowout on me, I am not one to have anything done to my hair without really thinking about it. I mean, sheesh, I didn't even have my hair colored until about a year ago, so this would be a huge decision for me.

Here were my thoughts:

"You have very frizzy hair Melissa, you should get it done, I mean, think about the research side of it, if you have a Brazilian Blowout done, in Gainesville, you can be a tremendous assett to your clients if they have questions about having a Brazilian Blowout done...."

"Why not, what will it hurt, you can still wear your hair curly if you want to, you'll be able to step out of the shower, and not have a big frizz ball on your head.... but what if you look like you have no volume... but no frizz... but what if... okay shut up and trust Glenda!"

Soooo... tomorrow, the decision and the results.

What would you do?

Continue to Learn

I had an amazing opportunity to go to Orlando last week to attend a workshop held by The Association of Bridal Consultants. And I finally got to meet a long time friend, Mark Kingsdorf! One thing that was said by Mark Kingsdorf has stuck with me. And reigns true always.

Vendors drive Hot Dog carts, we are Wedding Professionals.



I think that will forever change the way I think. You, of course, want professionals at your wedding, and in the rare occurrence, maybe a Hot Dog Cart (and if that's the case I'll find you one...) But regardless, the people, the professionals that make your wedding dreams come true must be a professional.



You want an expert to handle your wedding, someone that is knowledgeable, reliable, honest, trustworthy. Not a vendor, a Professional.



(and if you want a Hot Dog Cart, I'll make sure they are professional)

Melissa Featured in Style!

We are so honored to be featured on The Stylish Planner, especially considering how completely unstylish I consider myself. It was an honor to be interviewed with The Stylish Planner, let alone featured!



Check out our complete interview, including my favorite jean, a picture of my family, and my cleansing regime! I give you all my deep dirty secrets.



Plus we love The Stylish Planner, so you've gotta add it to your daily reads!