Southern Sweethearts: Dancing With Our Stars

They may not be celebrities, but to us they're stars. So we made sure to set aside some time to dance with the two ladies that mean the world to us: our moms!

I lost my dad when I was a kid but still wanted to have that special dance at my wedding. So my mom filled in and we took the dance floor first.

Somebody's Hero by Jamie O'Neal

We originally planned to dance to "Brown Eyed Girl" but made the decision less than a month out to switch to "Somebody's Hero".

Needless to say, I had to pull some major "try not to cry" faces to avoid the "ugly cry" face.

I failed.

Mom and I both realized we were in a losing battle on the cry front, so we struck up a conversation instead.

"OMG. No she DIDN'T!"

Still not convinced that we avoided the messy makeup cry, we invited some of my nieces onto the dance floor to finish up the song.

We made it through the song mascara-run-free. Then it was Mr. Lab and his mom's turn.

Twenty Years Late by Aaron Lines



Mr. Lab's sister watches on in the background.

Their dance was a little more drama-free. But it was so sweet to see them on the dance floor together. I know MIL Lab was just thinking about her baby boy being all grown up the whole time.

What special dances (other than the first dance) will you have at your wedding?

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
  

Next Up: Some Standard Wedding Traditions

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

Adding A Little "Thrill" To Our Wedding

Because our wedding is only a week after my favorite holiday, we decided to incorporate some "spooky" Halloween fun into it.

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We're starting off by having a ghost tour after the rehearsal dinner for any interested guests. We secured a group rate with Old Town Trolley Tours to go on their "Ghosts and Gravestones Frightseeing Tour". The tour is about an hour and a half long and is (according to their website) "an evening of fun, scares, humor and ghost stories as you are guided through America’s Most Haunted City.”

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But the fun doesn't stop there! For the wedding day, we've let our guests know that we are "Thrilling the Reception"! I linked up the website "Thrill the World" to the guest update page of our wedding website so our guests can learn the ever popular Thriller dance. So far, we have most of the wedding party and a few of the guests committed to reenacting the dance in its entirety on the dance floor! I'm especially proud of Mr. Lab for taking an interest in rehearsing it and surprised at how quick of a learner he is (especially for someone who claims he can't dance!).

Photo from our personal wedding website!

I can't wait to see how our practice pays off. But even if we don't perfect the dance in time, we'll do as the instructor says and play it off by acting like a ghoul for a few dance counts. No harm, no foul. :)

By the way, since yesterday was Halloween, I figured I'd share a photo of Mr. Lab and I's costumes! Special thanks to the hive for helping me decide on an costume!


Mr. Lab was a nerd and I was his mail-order bride! Pay close attention to his name and address on the shipping label. ;) And nevermind our friend "Heidi" in the back. It's just one of our wedding guests who flew all the way in from Germany! lol :D

If your wedding is close to a holiday, are you incorporating it somehow?

Must Have Music

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Since becoming engaged, I've kept my ears open to possible "must have" songs for our wedding. I'm still unsure whether to hire a ceremony musician/reception D.J. or be an iPod bride all the way, but in any case I'll want to have a say on a few music selections for the day. I'm doing things a bit nontraditional, especially when it comes to the ceremony music.

I've compiled a list of songs for different parts of the ceremony and reception. There are a few gaps where I'm not sure what song(s) to use, so feel free to suggest something that will flow with the choices I've made so far! Without further ado, I present my wedding day "playlist":

Prelude: Beautiful Day by U2

Processional:

Seating of Parents: ?
Minister & Groom: ?

Groomsmen & bridesmaids: ?
Flower Girls, Ring Bearer, and Jr. BMs: Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'Ole

Bride (ME!): Kingdom Come by Coldplay

Interlude: ?
(Not even sure if we'll have music in the middle of the ceremony at all.)

Recessional: Clocks (instrumental) by Coldplay

Cocktail Hour: Classical Music

Dinner: Laid back lovey-dovey songs

First Dance: Better Together by Jack Johnson

Cake Cutting: I'm Yours by Jason Mraz & a special song for Mr. Lab's groom's cake cutting

Bouquet Toss: Single Ladies by Beyonce ("All the single ladies put your hands up!" Classic.)

Garter Removal: ? (We definitely are thinking Mission Impossible or something along those lines!)
Mother/Son: Mr. Lab hasn't picked this out yet.
Mother/Daughter (because I don't have a dad to dance with): Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison (We both have brown eyes and picked this song out to dance to together when I was just a kid!)

Reception dancing: On our wedding website we've included a page for our guests to suggest songs to play during the reception. We figure that if they help pick them out, they'll be more likely to get on the dance floor. I'm a BIG dancer, so I want the dance floor packed all night! I think that by allowing song requests, having an open bar, and picking a wedding party that loves to get down, my wish will be fulfilled. :D We'll be sure to inlcude some songs everyone knows (YMCA, Baby Got Back, etc.), too. And as the night goes on, we'll move from the radio/clean versions to the "dirty filthy wanna make me shake my ass" music. Cause that's how I roll. ;)

Our website's music suggestion page.

Last Dance: Constellations by Jack Johnson

Etc. Music:

In addition to these songs, we're also allowing our entire wedding party to pick out individual songs tailored to their personalities to be introduced to at the wedding reception. For example, my MOH plays poker a couple times a week with her hubby and their friends, so she's chosen Lady Gaga's Poker Face! As for Mr. Lab and I's entrance song...we'll that's a HUGE surprise that will have to wait until AFTER the wedding to be revealed. ;)

Photo slideshow:

1. Mr. Lab growing up (I Go Back by Kenny Chesney)
   
2. Me growing up (Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison)
   
3. Our “courtship” (Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop by Landon Pigg)
   
4. Our engagement from the proposal all the way up to the wedding! (Better Together by Jack Johnson)

I'm including a homemade CD full of our wedding day music for the OOT bags (practically all the guests) so they'll have some songs to remind them of our day on the ride back home. They'll be more on that later, I promise!