baseballette

It feels a little bit like January 2nd today. I woke up still sleep deprived, slightly dehydrated and sad that the festivities are over. But it’s Monday so here I am, attempting to work and stop relishing in the fun of what went down this weekend. Clearly I am failing at that attempt so here is the recap.

The long planned and awaited baseball bachelorette party took place on Saturday. Fortunately, we had a warm and sunny August afternoon that called for, what else, but barbecue and beer? We claimed a rare shady, grassy knoll in the concrete jungle that surrounds Citizens Bank Park as our own. We set up what I like to think of as a gourmet tailgate spread complete with a fruit tray, olives, champagne, baked goods, dips, chocolate and veggie burgers.

This obviously wasn’t your boyfriend’s tailgate. It was a bachelorette party.

I do have to admit that the boys make putting a tailgate party together look quite easy. Schlepping cases of beer, keeping things cold, remembering all appropriate cooking utensils and actually grilling on the pavement can be more laborious than I ever imagined. We managed though and the fun was well worth it.

True to baseball form, we had our own 25 man roster. It was the largest bachelorette party that I’ve ever planned or attended but this goes to show the character of the bachelorette. Friends travelled up and down the east coast to make the event and some even flew cross country. In addition, all 25 had a uniform of matching tees with funny baseball puns custom designed by our resident graphic designer and assembled by another great friend of the bride. The bachelorette got to wear a special white Phillies cap donned with the inevitable tulle veil. That was the worst of the bachelorette swag.

Or perhaps the garter was.

The goal of the game was to make an appearance on the jumbotron. (Actually that is my goal at every Phillies game.) Some of our party managed to make an appearance sans the bachelorette. How bitter sweet!

Oh well, the impromptu hoola hoop dance party was fun anyway.

It truly took a team to pull off this event. The Phillies lost but the bride won everyone over!

-The perennial bridesmaid

photo courtesy: nadine friedman

lovebirds

I sure am behind schedule this week as round 2 of wedding season picks up in full swing. Today a bachelorette party. Next week a wedding. Yesterday bridesmaid dress shopping. Here we go again! Stay tuned for details.

The surface of my refrigerator is beginning to fill up with more wedding & shower invitations, save the dates, thank yous and other cute announcements for this season’s events. Today I wanted to feature a DIY save the date.

It is a 5x7 brushed gold one sided card. The personalization is 2-fold. First, actual engagement photos of the couple are centered up top.  Real pictures! From my understanding, different photos were used on each card. The photographs were taken by Lorraine Daley and her sidekick Greg. The engaged couple chose Ridley Creek State Park in Delaware County, PA. They were lucky enough to get a rare low humidity, cool summer day which as we know ladies, leads to a good hair day!

The couple is working the lovebird theme with the birdcage stamp. In addition, they had a custom stamp made with their deets by Love To Create Stamps. Good choice. I can imagine the endless possibilities on future DIY projects for that stamp.

For a girl’s first wedding DIY project, she did a-okay! I like the lack of mass-produced feel this save the date evokes. Judge for yourself…

-The perennial bridesmaid

summer dreams

…make me feel fine.

On these cold February days, planning a sunny summer event brightens my day. This morning I secured 25 tickets to an August Phillies game/bachelorette party where the boys will take on the Mets. It should be a good game considering the long standing rivalry between both teams. Regardless of the rivalry at bat, it is guaranteed to be a good day because a group of friends will be celebrating with the bride in one of her favorite atmospheres.

Tickets went on sale yesterday for the Phillies regular season. Getting a large group in to see the Phillies play the Mets on a Saturday evening in August proved to be quite challenging, even this early in the pre-season. Fortunately I was up for the challenge! Sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see if my request for 25 tickets was approved only psyched me for the event more. Look for us on the jumbotron dancing with the Phanatic this summer!

I can barely wait. I’ve spent the morning daydreaming about pinstripes, Hatfield Dogs, Chickie's & Pete's Crab Fries, cotton candy, the Schmitter, Tony Luke’s cheesesteaks & McFadden’s cover bands. If you don’t know what I am talking about, you’ve probably never been to the Phillies stadium on a warm summer night. Put it on your to-do list.

Bring on tailgating. Bring on baseball. Bring on the summer sun!

-The perennial bridesmaid