Southern Sweethearts: Toasts & Tosses

Right after we danced with our moms, it was time for some special toasts from our two closest friends.

I just broke out these flutes in anticipation of our first anniversary!

My best friend of over a decade and MOH Amanda went first. One year later, I admittedly can't remember her exact speech, but I do remember feeling all warm and fuzzy while listening to it. Thankfully, we had a videographer. We'll be receiving our full wedding video soon so I'll be able to relive those moments that photos alone simply can't capture.

Amanda spoke of the "old times", way back to some of our embarrassing middle school antics. Then she seamlessly transitioned into when I met Mr. Lab and how she watched our relationship grow and how Mr. Lab became her friend, too.

Amanda finished her speech and raised her glass to toast. Then Best Man Don walked up to the mic. He went off-script and settled into his funny-man status with some hilarious stories about Mr. Lab.

At times I reconsidered my choice to marry Mr. Lab....(I kid I kid!). But then Don got serious and I remember him saying that I made Mr. Lab a better man. That made me :D big time!

He finished by giving Mr. Lab his simple yet brilliant secret to a successful marriage: "Happy Wife, Happy Life!"

After the toasts, it was time for the tosses!

Like my super simple single button booty bustle? Say THAT 10x fast!

I told my girls to get ready and as Beyonce's "Single Ladies" began playing, I picked a target and turned around.

The girls actually dove and fought a little for the bouquet but one of my adorable nieces won out.

Then it was time for Mr. Lab to go fishing for his garter. The DJ started playing M.C. Hammer's "Can't Touch This" and he dove in!

Close-up of the special Georgia garter I got for him.

Just like the bouquets, I had two garters: one to keep and one to toss. I bought the special UGA-themed garter as a little surprise for Mr. Lab. Judging by the photos, me thinks he likey!

Mr. Lab is a trooper. I think he thought it would be all sexy to take the garter off with his teeth, but...

...I had some legit Britney Spears barefoot in a gas station bathroom-feet going on! I did spend most of the day shoe-less because of my missing Louboutins!

He breathed a sigh of relief when he finally got the garter off.

He checked to see who was waiting to catch the garter and got ready to snap it.

But it hit the floor and slid to my brother's girlfriend's son. There may have been some blatant avoidance by some of the guys along the way. I wish I had made time to attach some lottery tickets or a ten-dollar bill to the garter to encourage more participation!

Although the tosses were fun, I never considered the kids taking part. I wish I had designated the tosses as adults only. I had a couple friends who really wanted to catch the bouquet but weren't willing to completely plow over my niece to get to it. ;)

Will you have a videographer to capture things photos can't like the toasts? As for the tosses, will you have an age limit on those?

Previously on Southern Sweethearts:

• Southern Belles Do Tea
• A Rude Vendor Interrupts Our Rehearsal
• We Have Dinner on the Savannah River
• A Spooky Ghost Tour and My Last Fling
• Our Wedding Trailer
• Becoming a Blushing Bride
• I Slip Into My eBay Wedding Dress
• The Fellas Get “Sessay”
• He Got Boudoir, I Got Bling
• An Unplanned First Look
• Our Wedding Party…and Paparazzi
• Details Tell the Story
• Years of Waiting for This Moment (Ceremony Part: 1)
• We Tie the Knot with Faith, Hope, & Love (Ceremony Part: 2)
• My Wedding Party Poses for Mug Shots While We Take Formals
• We Shared a Private Dinner for Two During Cocktail Hour
• Our Wedding Party Lines Up for Introductions
• We Nom on Publix and Sanford Stadium Cakes
• Dancing with Our "Stars"

Next Up: We "Thrill" Our Guests

*All professional photos by Lindsi Jones Photography. Some images may have been slightly altered by moi.

Southern Sweethearts: Our Wedding Papa...Paparazzi (and Party)

Apparently Mr. Lab and I are kind of a big deal. Look at the paparazzi that showed up for our wedding!

So what if we tipped them off ourselves. Don't celebs do the same?

Okay okay! We paid them to be there! :P

But we also had a member of the paparazzi in our wedding party. GM Jimmy caught some "behind the scenes" action for us.

BM Brittany sipping on a Sofia mini.

Best Man Don STILL getting ready. I told you the guys took forever to get dressed!

I thought this was funny. The boys took forever to order their suits (do you see a trend here?) so they didn't have time to perfect fittings and had to improvise.

Mama Lab. :)

FMIL Lab taking charge and showing the wedding party where to go for photos.

Everyone began making their way to Forsyth Park for formals.

Newly married BM & GM Brooke & Jimmy.

A little motherly love:

Look who's finally dressed!

Soon enough, it was time to take photos with my gals who've been with me through thick and thin.

Special love to MOH Amanda! Friends for over a decade!

Clockwise from top right: Ashley, FSIL Leslie, MOH Amanda, Brittany, & Brooke

Remember these? Yeah, I finished them less than 48 hours out from the wedding!

Now it's the boys' turn to work the camera!

Clockwise from top right: Little Brother Lab Phillip, FBIL Jay, BM Don, Trey, Jimmy (Side note: The order of photos matches with the girls' photo to show who paired up down the aisle.)

Mr. Lab doing a little last-minute flirting with my gals. ;)

While the boys were off getting their photos taken, I asked our second shooter to capture my FMIL putting on my "something borrowed" necklace. I was so thrilled to be in on the new tradition of handing down FMIL's engagement diamond to the ladies in the family getting married!

Now that my wedding ensemble was 90% complete (STILL missing my Loubs), it was time to take group shots.

The first time I looked through my pro photos, I literally LOL-ed at this one.

No, that's not my brother getting fresh with a BM. I've never seen that kid before in my life!

Okay, okay! I kid, I kid! That really is my little (well, not so little anymore...) brother who had double-duty as a GM and my escort down the aisle.

Speaking of the aisle, our ride was waiting to take us there:

I was about to take my last ride as a single gal! But I didn't want to walk down the aisle barefoot! Would my Louboutins show up in time?

Previously on Southern Sweethearts:

• Southern Belles Do Tea
• A Rude Vendor Interrupts Our Rehearsal
• We Have Dinner on the Savannah River
• A Spooky Ghost Tour and My Last Fling
• Our Wedding Trailer
• Becoming a Blushing Bride
• I Slip Into My eBay Wedding Dress
• The Fellas Get "Sessay"
• He Got Boudoir, I Got Bling
• An Unplanned First Look
  

Next Up: All The Small Things (Or: Details, Details, Details!!!).

*All professional photos by Lindsi Jones Photography. Additional photos by GM Jimmy. Some images have been slightly altered by moi.

Bridesmaids' Tea Party Luncheon

Bride Wars was SO much fun! I had a blast with Ashley, Brittany, and Amanda (except for the part when they kicked me out of the car so they could discuss secret things about me that I can only assume were ideas for the bachelorette party! :P). The movie was super cute and I identified so much with Kate Hudson's character, Liv. If you're thinking about seeing it, go! Especially if you're a soon-to-be bride! But I'll just say this: if I were in their situation, it would have never gotten that far. Someone, namely the wedding planner, would have gotten their butts sued BIG TIME. haha Oh, and Anne Hathaway's legs during the bachelorette party scene made me want to get my "cottage cheese" legs in the gym quick! ;)

I've slacked on updating the blog because I had so much to do this weekend. Besides the movie, I met up with old work friends and met Chris' best man, Don, for the first time. Don and his wife Meredith were so awesome. It felt as though we've known each other for years! They recently moved to Greenville, S.C. from Charlotte, N.C., so we should be able to see them more often now since it's only about 2 hours away. Now I just have to meet Dan, the only other groomsman I've never met. I already speak to him a lot on Facebook, so I know he and his wife will be awesome as well. I am loving making new friends, especially ones that are already Chris's friends and are married. I'll still love all my single friends, but there's something comforting about having married friends to go to for advice or to just hang out with as couples.

Back to wedding planning! I've realized how much my A.D.D. is interfering with my planning. I simply don't plan in a logical order because I'm at the mercy of ideas spasticly popping into my head at any time. The latest idea is for my bridesmaids luncheon. I want to do something really fun and girly. So I've decided that I'm going to treat my ladies to an old fashioned tea party!



I did some research and found a place in Savannah called the Savannah Tea Room. They have a variety of teas and sweets and lunch items and even wine and champagne. But to make this even more fun, I want the girls to dress in "tea party" dresses & hats (think Kentucky Derby style!). I told the girls about my idea for the luncheon this weekend and they love it! Now I just have to find a place that sells affordable hats for the tea party. Any ideas?

Good Lord. I just glanced at the clock and I need to go to bed.

Photo Source