Yes, I am fully aware it is Wednesday. Sadly, since Monday and Tuesday were so busy, it has taken me until today to get to my weekend post.
Not sadly, I finally got to experience my first real Sunday Funday. In college, I worked a double shift at a restaurant every Sunday and was always jealous of the throngs of people who came out, seeking brunches, bloody Marys and mimosas. But last Sunday, I got to spend my very own funday, with the best (almost) mother-in-law. Ever.
Not to make you all jealous (most of my friends already hate me for this) but my soon-to-be-mother-in-law rocks. Everyone tries to scare me by saying it’ll change after marriage, but since I’ve already been around over 10 years, I’m pretty sure she’s just that cool. I mean, come on, look at us:
Anywhoo, let’s go back to the beginning of Sunday Funday. Not surprisingly, considering my wedding-riddled brain, this funday had a main purpose: visit the Geneva French Market to visit the wholesale florist I had met a few weeks earlier at the Wheaton French Market. Sounds confusing, no? A few weeks ago, when my maid of honor Casey and I went for my first dress fitting, we stopped at the Wheaton market. A friend of hers had done all of her wedding flowers through a vendor there, so we wanted to see what she was like. Well, she’s pretty awesome. She sells wholesale flowers, which is exactly what I want since I am putting together all of my own bouquets and centerpieces. Unfortunately the Wheaton market was pretty swamped, so she told me to come back another day and we could discuss exactly what I wanted.
On Sundays, she happens to be in Geneva. I happen to LOVE Geneva. Done. So, Mary Jo (ooh, look the MIL has a name!) and I headed out. We met the florist right away, and despite being a beautiful day, the market was pretty slow so we got quite a bit of time by ourselves! We discussed what flowers I knew I wanted, plus what she thought would look good. I wish I had taken pictures, but I was too excited to even think about it. The one thing I knew I wanted was Gerbera Daisies.
For the centerpieces, I also knew I wanted alstromeria, as they were one of Mom’s favorites. We decided on deep red to tie in our wedding colors (deep red, tangerine, and aqua).
Then, for a bit of filler and another pop of color, the florist suggested Solidago. They are really beautiful little flowers, and provide a bit of a wildflower-esque look which will be perfect in our
mason jar vases.
The boutonnieres will be pretty easy- we’re just going to do one daisy with a broad leaf behind it. That meant it was time for my bouquet! I originally thought I wanted to do all red and orange gerberas. But the more I looked at examples, the more I realized it wasn’t for me. Pretty, yes, but far too modernist and bold for what I want. I really want to keep the vintage, antique look while maintaining pops of color. So, we’re sticking with a few daisies, and keeping the solidago. The florist didn’t like the look of the alstromeria (neither did I- it somehow looks great in the vases but odd in a bouquet) so we went with… roses!
Now, I’m not a big rose girl (Brian is thankful) and I knew I never wanted an all rose bouquet. No offense to those who have had them- they are beautiful and classic, just not me! But when the florist added a few roses into the existing arrangement, it looked beautiful. We settled on two varieties, and I couldn’t love them any more. The first is called a Freedom Rose and it perfectly suits our dark red shade in our color scheme.
The other, and my personal favorite, is called the Free Spirit Rose. They are a beautiful, almost tye-dye looking orange shade, and smell amazing. They actually remind me a lot of the Tropicana Roses my Mom grew when we were kids.
Aren’t they beautiful? Unfortunately, she didn’t have any extra to show me what they would actually look like in the arrangement, but she did give me the rest of our “test” bouquet to take home! Now I just have to go back (after giving her a one week notice) and she will have all of the flowers we discussed on hand to build an actual demo bouquet and centerpiece so we can finalize pricing. After that we’re officially booked, and I get to pick up the wedding flowers the morning before the wedding. That will give me plenty of time to put together centerpieces and bouquets- I’m so excited!
After we left the florist, we
ate walked our way around the rest of the market, enjoying home made crafts, frozen blueberries, some delicious oils and vinegars, and some of the best cheese I’ve tasted in a while. Since we were both loving the beautiful day, we decided to walk around downtown Geneva afterwards. I took MJ to
Graham’s Chocolate, home of some of the best chocolaty creations I’ve ever had. After that, we literally just wandered around, stopping in a shop if something struck our eye. I seriously can’t remember the last time I’ve done that- just walked around, browsed, and relaxed. I even found another bridesmaid gift, but since some of my bridesmaids check in here I’ll have to stay silent!
Just before heading home, we grabbed a quick lunch and a sandwich shop- I had a prosciutto, roasted pepper and fresh mozzarella sandwich that was to die for. Then, we headed back home, and enjoyed a few beers on their deck, while Brian’s dad grilled some of the sausages we bought at the market. And Brian wasn’t even there- he was working late in the city! He definitely missed out on some fun and food, but since we try to do Sunday night pizza nights with his family every week, he’ll catch up soon.
Did any of you have a funday this past weekend? Or do you have one coming up? This coming weekend is another busy one for us, but we have lots of fun things on the calendar!
I'm loving the build up to your big day J, it seems you are taking the stresses and strains well in your stride and you seem to be enjoying it all too. I hope it all continues to go to plan. Well done.
It's good to have nice in-laws too. They can't be a substitute for your own folks I know, but I'm sure your Mum in law to be will always have time for you, if that makes sense.
Steve
Awe! Thanks, Steve! I've really been loving all of the planning, and while I'm sure it'll get more stressful as the day gets closer, I think writing about it is very comforting. I'm glad you're enjoying it!
And yes, that makes perfect sense. B's family is so amazing- I can't wait to "officially" become a part of it in September!
How nice! I like my mother-in-law too, though I don't hang out with her on a regular basis. Mostly likely because she lives 30 minutes away. But we do see her fairly often.
Your flowers sounds wonderful. I love gerbera daisies. Can't wait to see the finished products!
I'm pretty excited! I'm gonna have one heck of a wrap up post to expose all of these secrets/last minute details!