"why, hello, big nose"

nic testing out his new camera that he bought for the alaska trip.

manhattan retreat

before michelle's wedding festivities, i spent some time in manhattan. i caught up on sleep and had a great time visiting my brother (who is a freshman at K-State!). we went to the grocery store, toured campus, ate at chipotle, and visited call hall for some ice-cream! for those of you that don't know, call hall has the most bestest ice-cream. i'm convinced it's made fresh daily. so if you're in manhattan, be sure to stop by for some yummies in the little dairy shop. my granddad (mom's dad) actually worked at call hall making milk shakes back in the 1940s when he was a student in veterinary medicine.

it was quite a delicious adventure.

a beautiful bride

i had an amazing time celebrating the marriage of anthony and michelle in manhattan, ks last weekend!

it's tough work being the matron of honor. so, i thought it'd be best if i took three days off from work to be sure we were all ready for the big day. best decision, ever.

Thursday, 10.06.11:

the hard work begins. mani-pedis.

Friday, 10.07.11:

first order of business, grab coffee and a chai tea latte from radinas.

then decorate the reception site (in crazy fast speed), and stop off at the florist to see a preview of the flowers.

Saturday, 10.08.11:

step 1: hair at 9am. 9 heads of hair, 3 stylists, and 5 hours later our hairs were beautified.

i couldn't get enough of the flower girl. if you remember, i babysat this crazy little one a few months back. i love the shot of her holding her breath for the hairspray attack. she is quite the diva.

an unexpected flower delivery came to the salon, the card was "awww" worthy.

the fincham mrs.

step 2: make-up = no pictures because there was no time.

step 3: 2:15pm - get the bride in her gown and get her ready to see her groom. gorgeous.

step 4: 4:30pm - get them married!

it was an amazing experience and such an honor to stand up there with her (nic took this shot from his seat, don't judge the poor quality of the iphone camera). 

step 5: party!!!

congratulations you two!! 

Michelle's Bridal Shower

a dear friend of mine is getting married this weekend!! the bridesmaids threw her a bridal shower/bachelorette party a few weekends ago. it was my turn to start getting creative and crafty. so with the help of other bloggers i pulled together some fun crafts last minute, not sure when i slept last week. but it was well worth it.

i painted pizza pans that i purchased from the dollar shore with some chalkboard paint that the prior owner of our house left for us in the basement. total cost $4. sweet!

a little nervous for my first chalkboard paint experience:

oh, and i saw these cute little tin buckets at the dollar store and couldn't pass them up. perfect for toothpicks!

the shower started off with the gathering of friends and family, we then opened gifts, played the pre-newlywed question game and made predictions of what their lives will look like on their 1st, 5th, and 10 year anniversaries. they have been told not to open the predictions until the respective anniversary. i'm holding them to it.

one of the bridesmaids made a paper bag album that houses their predictions, so cleaver! no peaking you two!

quick banner throw together that turned out pretty well. twine, clothes pins, paper bags, cardstock, and martha stewart's fantastic font. 

took some posed shots.

going for the wine!

family

we then ate a magnificent dinner. went out on the town. and closed the evening by relaxing in our king suite. life is good.