The Mustache Crew

You might remember early on my bridesmaids named themselves the mustache crew.
So it was only fitting that they surprised me with these mustaches on wedding morning.
No only mustaches to wear, but mustache napkins, straws, plates for breakfast and mimosa sipping.

 

I've blogged about each one of these woman, by now you know how inspiring they are and how much I love them.  As a group, I couldn't have asked for a better wedding party.  Supportive, hilarious, fun.  Best friends from every part of life blending together as if they'd always been friends. 

And as Mindy Kaling put it perfectly:  "Best friend is a status, not a person." 
I'm so grateful that these crazy ladies, along with a few others, are mine.

Smores Bar

I'm not a big fan of cake.  Usually I eat the frosting and leave the actual cake.  At weddings the whole cake cutting tradition is my least favorite tradition, unless you count the dollar dance.  

So in lieu of cake, we decided to have a Smore's Bar.

We had the standard marshmallows, chocolate bars and graham crackers; but, we also had oreo bars, heath bars, reeces bars, white chocolate bars....you name it.

 We loved it.

 We hope everyone else had as much fun as we did!

Lite Brites

Jason came up with the idea of having miniature lite bright table numbers.  At first he was just joking around, or at least I thought he was, but then he asked his dad and brother-in-law what they thought.  They took this task to a whole new level.  They made these beautiful boxes from scratch.  

 The amount of time and energy they put into making these was definatley above and beyond what was expected.  We couldn't have been happier with how they turned out.  A perfect mix between fun and somehow classy.

The whole idea was that people would use the extra pegs later in the evening and create new designs on what was once the table numbers.  It didn't take long for people to figure this out.

Here are some of our favorite designs.

A tribute to the Mustache Crew

 My cousins showing Michigan pride.

 One of many penis spottings.

Sadly, the IU on top was an omen for how that evenings basketball game would end.  Luckily, I was having too much fun to notice.

Wedding Pinecones

Thanks to pintrest, I wanted to have a pinecone bouquet.  I thought it would be a perfect touch for a winter wedding, but also makes for an easy keepsake from our wedding.  The people at Eastern floral out did themselves with this task.  I absolutely loved it.

Eastern floral also added small pinecones to the groomsmen boutineers.

Mom and Dad worked tirelessly to make these gold painted pinecone escort card holders

Eastern Floral even added some pinecones to the vases on the tables.

I loved this unique touch to our winter wedding!

Signature Cocktail: Grandpa TenCate's Old Fashioned

A TenCate party isn't complete without our family recipe for an Old Fashioned.  For as long as I can remember holidays start with the adults enjoying an Old Fashioned.  The recipe has been passed from generation to generation, it's a strong one, but perfect for warming you on a cold winter day.

Dad was generous enough to prepare several batches of the cocktail and provide it to our bartenders for distribution.  People seemed to enjoy them!

 

Jay and I found an vintage gold mirror at the Milwaukee Antique market.  Mom used scrapbook lettering and a display easle found on craigslist to display our signature cocktail for all to enjoy!

Reliving the Wedding

Our wedding photos from Mitch Ranger Photography arrived this week.  For those of you at the wedding, you know he was amazing.  I've spent the last several days combing through literally thousands of fantastic images trying to pick my favorites.  After a years worth of planning and a lifetime of waiting, I want to relive every moment as long as possible.  So......brace yourself for several days of wedding details up on my blog.

Today's highlight Grandma TenCate's stole.

My family has always told me I look like my late grandmother in her younger days.  Maybe it was my lace dress or my updo, but in our wedding photos I do see a striking resemblance.  A loving wife and mother, I can think of worse people to be compared to.

 

At my bridal shower, my aunt and cousin gifted me a beautiful fur stole which was my grandmothers.  On the inner pocket. you can see her initials LTC still embroidered.

It was so special for me to wear this on our wedding day, keeping a woman of intelligence, spunk, graceful beauty near me more than 15 years after her passing. 

Bachelorette Weekend: It's All in the Details

From the moment we arrived to Sleeping Bear Dunes, I was blown away with the details and effort that went into planning this weekend.  My sister (Matron of Honor) is amazing and I will be forever grateful for how special she made this weekend just for me.  

Dani and my mom had a car load of food/drink and all of my favorites.  They had prepared taco salad dinner (MEXICAN-my fav!!) and surprised me with reservations for massages and cocktails overlooking a beautiful Lake Michigan sunset.

You may recall, I invited my bridal party with a cute little saying " I Mustache You a Question" Shortly after, my bridal party was nicknamed "The Mustache Crew" thanks to Andrea's creativity.  This weekend the theme continued with adorable water bottles from my sister, which came in handy on the hike and by the pool!  

Mustache hats for everyone made by Andrea kept our faces shielded from the hot sun!

My love for Mason Jars and mustaches combined for individual cocktail holders for each of us!

Annie prepared a hilarious question answer for me to earn bachelorette gifts and my sister got Jason to respond with heartwarming and embarrassing comments! 

Jacquie put together a playlist of songs and each of my friends contributed songs which were special to us, including some throwbacks from elementary with Natalie!

Amanda saved a special "Veronica" bag for probably 8 years to give me during the party!

And it wouldn't be a bachelorette party without some embarrassing photos in a veil.  My mom provided a baseball cap with veil for running up and down the dunes.

I can not express in words how moved I am that these women not only took time from their busy lives to travel and spend the weekend with me, but how each detail made me feel so special and loved.

I've said it before.  I say it again.  I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Michigan Bachelorette Party at a Glance

This weekend we had my bachelorette party at The Homestead Resort in Sleeping Bear Dunes.  I'm still flying high after having the perfect weekend with wonderful friends/family, celebrating my single days exactly how I'd hoped.  Somewhere beautiful, where we could be active outdoors, but also relax and goof around together.

And that is exactly what we did.

We had lunch in Saugatuck along the way.

Once we arrived to the resort, we had wine and massages at the spa while watching the sunset.

After a morning run we hiked the Sleeping Bear Dunes.

We spent the afternoon with some poolside relaxation.

We got cleaned up and had a champagne toast and bachelorette gift opening (no photos please).

Then we wrapped up with a fantastic dinner in town.

I'm overwhelmed with the generosity and love these women bring to my life.  I'll be blogging more details this week, so check back tomorrow for more of the fun!

Bridesmaid Dress Contest

I've asked each of my bridesmaids to pick a dress from the four above in the next few weeks.  I tried to find a variety of styles so that everyone would have one that suits them.  I  picked a different beautiful dress option for my sister:the maid of honor.

Just for the hell of it I wrote a list of which dress I think each of the ladies will choose. I sent it to my sister to keep track of the results.  Narrowing down to two dresses was easy for everyone, but picking just one was tough.  I wonder how I'll do.  Statistically I have a 1 in 4,096 chance for being right if I exclude the maid of honor dress option.   1 in 20,480 if I include my sister's 5th option. 

 I definitely have a favorite one.  Which one is your favorite?!

Will you be my bridesmaid?

 Almost all the bridesmaids have been asked!  Lucky for me each seemed excited to accept.  I searched the intranet for a cute way to ask my maids, but fell short.  Then one day it came to me.  Every girl loves to read the names of nailpolishes while getting a manicure.  Turns out there are tons of bridal themed nail colors.  I picked out these three:

 OPI's Catch the Garder

 Essie Walk Down the Aisle

 And a special one for my sister: Made to Honor

 Sealed them in a box for the out of towners and in a paper box for local ladies.

One of my maids even blogged about it.

Can't wait to spend the next year planning fun events with these ladies!!