Ciao Bloggers

This will be my last post for a week or so as tomorrow morning I fly to Italy!

I truly cannot wait for a relaxed week spent with my friend and our parents at their holiday home in a resort outside of Venice

I will share photo's on my return and think of you whilst looking at lovely things in Venice.

Till then....

Wedding Party!!!

Today i'm joining Saucy's wedding party

Again I completely forgot about this one so it'll just be a quick post!

I don't know what the matter is with me at the moment, thankfully i'm going on holiday Saturday and I can re-charge my batteries!

The first picture is from my aunt's wedding in the 80s.

The bridesmaid trend at this time was candy striped dresses and as we were leaving the next wedding arrived and the bridesmaids were dressed in exactly the same peach dresses!!!

I was wearing ballet shoes and wore them till they literally disintegrated!

Next up is my aunts wedding, my mum is the bridesmaid on the left.

My mum altered my aunts wedding dress for her own wedding, removing the Tudor-esq collar and creating a square neck line (sorry I don't have a photo to show you).

Unfortunately when my mum returned the dress to my aunt she cut it up into cushions!!!!!

Well that's all my wedding tales today, sorry it's so short. For some photo's of me in my bridesmaid attire please see this post

This post has also brought me to 100!!!!

Who could believe it!!!

When i'm re-charged and back from my hols I will host a giveaway and I have a little swap idea I'm planning so please check in!

My Town....

I am beyond fashionably late for Miss Laurence's Cities parties!

Apologies but it my parents were hosting my uncle's 60th birthday this weekend and I was running around helping them and haven't even had an opportunity to get on the computer

(yes after getting updated with my blogs I have 92 to go through again!!!)

To wet your appetites I have managed to pull some photo's off the internet to share with you of my town....

This is my local high street

Here's a view of my church in the High Street from long ago to today

This is where I hope to marry one day!

Out local war memorial where I attend the Rememberance Day parade

We're surrounded by Epping Forest which is often "spoken off" in EastEnders as the place to bury a body!

We also have a famous resident in Epping... Rod Stewart....this is his home

It is located on the Copped Hall Estate. Copped Hall being a burnt out mansion currently being restored. Prince Charles has even visited the site!

And if that tour through Epping has made you thirsty why not stop for a drink in my parents local pub

This is one of the last "proper" non-chain pubs in Epping.

I promise I will do a more personal post in the next month or so!

Sex & the City Tee's

Blogland has joined the rest of the world going crazy about the new Sex & the City movie that when I saw these great t-shirts I thought it best to share with you!

If you're in the UK go here and for those of you in the USA here

Parasol & Paper Swap

I had been admiring swaps in blogland for a while now and when I saw Shannon hosting the Parasol & Paper swap I decide to take the plunge and join in!

My partner was the lovely Bek of Beks Shabby Dreams & her daughter Mikayla,

Here's Mikayla with the swap goodies

Parasol "paper" tags I made them

And a cute pony and perfume bottle I found

I was so pleased they enjoyed them and can't wait to receive my package!

I had such fun on this swap and am fast approaching my 100th post and have a little swap idea of my own!

At the moment things are quite busy socially and I'm off on holiday next weekend so think I might have to post about that end of July but I'll see how I get on.

I still have LOADS of posts to get through on google reader so I'm off to do that now!

Back from a Break

Look what goodies arrived in the mail for me today!

I ordered these from Candice Carpenter's website Peacoats & Party Hats

I can't wait to start playing with them!

Well I've had a break from the computer for 3 days and have 138 blog posts to read through... I could be some time!

A Success

I am pleased to report the Baby Shower was a success and it was such a pleasure to throw

Here's my friend Kelly & I on Friday night getting things organised

We were really pleased with how we put together the presents in this hamper

(hamper £2 from a boot sale!)

I also had a go at making a nappy (diaper) cake

Not bad for a first try!

I was really pleased with how my cupcakes & cookies turned out

It was the first time they looked just how I wanted them too!

A friends mother in law is a florist so we have some floral arrangements made

(sorry I forgot to turn the picture round before loading)

Beautiful smelling Baby Powder candle

Nikki opening her presents

As well as things for the baby we put together an overnight bag for her visit to the hospital and some nice candles and toiletries

(dad got presents too, a babygro/onesie saying "Dishy like my Daddy")

And here we are playing a Baby themed quiz a friend put together for us

And my friends daughter Rianna arrived later in the day and decided to have a picnic with some of my dolls in the garden, she's such a cutie

Well i'm shattered after a busy couple of days, the house has been tidied, the washing up has been done and my mum (she put so much effort in to help me today) is asleep in the chair waiting for my dad to arrive home from holiday

I'm off to check out some blogs and then it's off to bed for me too

Baby Shower Planning!

Before I tell you about my Baby Shower zone I thought I'd show you the table we set up Tuesday evening in advance of my brother & SIL telling us the sex of the baby.....

My mum and I had both had the idea to do this so it was funny when I arrived home from work and we're both been out and brought girls and boys outfits and we going to say "which one's do you want then"!

We laid out the table with a boy and girls side (later adding some cute boy/girl playmobile figures mum had also picked up), a Baby Powder candle in the middle and on a chalk board I wrote "Boy or Girl?"

SIL really appeciate the gesture and it was a fun way to help them tell us!

So the Baby Shower... boy is this getting stressful!

Baby Showers are a relatively new concept in the UK but I love all the fun ideas America gives us and couldn't resist holding a shower for my friend and was able to pick up some fun stuff when I was in Vegas a few months ago.

I managed to find a company online and ordered some balloons... they've not yet arrived!!!!

I was able to contact the company and a lovely man has another order arriving special delivery today so I took the day off work (I mean would I get anything done worrying?!) to wait for the delivery and get a head start on the planning.

The photo's with this post show the "staging area" where everything we will need has been put in the one place.

Tonight I have some friends round to help decorate and set up what we can and then it's busy, busy tomorrow morning

As for me... I have some cookies to make and a frosting recipe that doesn't contain egg whites or cream cheese!

Hope you have a fun weekend!