Ladies and gentlemen- I have accomplished my first DIY project for the wedding.
Hooray!!
I have an entire bookmark folder dedicated to all these Do-It-Yourself projects I want to make, with things ranging from escort cards, a photo booth, table numbers, to the favors.
And now there is one down: the pinwheel boutonnieres!!
Photo: ruffledblog.com/diy-pinwheel-boutonnieres/
I've had these things picked out since before I got engaged (what? I was SO not one of those girls who planned their wedding before they had the ring.....)
I love how whimsical they look, and silly- just like Matt. He's going to have on a bright yellow bow tie, so it's only fitting that the boutonnieres were bright and crazy, too.
Here's how I did it:
Patterned 4x4 origami paper
Spray adhesive
Scissors
Hot glue gun
Buttons
Adhesive pin backs
1. Take two different pieces of paper and spray the back of one. Glue the backs together.
2. Cut from each corner to about 1 inch from the center. I eyeballed it. You could use a ruler and stuff but I try not to sweat the small stuff.
3. Put a thin layer of hot glue on the center. Glue alternating pieces down- it should look like a pinwheel now.
4. Add another thin layer of hot glue in the center and place the button on top.
5. Once the glue dries, place the pin on the back.
I have 11 guys in need of boutonnieres, so I made 15. I figured four were bound to be ruined.
Daddy and I are going to dance to "I'll Always Be Your Baby."
No. Not the Mariah Carey 90's hit. (That's what Matt thought.) Although that would be funny.
It's some random Natalie Grant song.
So here's the thing. I think she sounds like a 90s Celine Dion knock off. She's got a lot of obnoxious "ooohs" and "mmmmms" at the beginning, and she sings a little breathy.
Suzanne, my sister, said it has a contemporary Christian sound which means I'm right. It does sound like 90s pop music. Matt and I have this theory that Christian music is always one decade behind on the current "sound." That means ten years from now Christian music will sound like Ke$ha.
Wrap your mind around that if you will.
But I digress- this is the song I'll be dancing to with my father.
And while you may ask why after all my moaning and groaning about the sound, it all makes sense when you hear the words. No other song (and I did look) captures my feelings for my Daddy like this song.
I was listening to it on the couch while Matt played Civilization (yes... again). He hears me sniffling, he leans back in his chair to see me, and laughs.
I was crying by the first verse.
I'm posting the lyrics in case you can't get past the breathy singing.
You were my first love Always there for me
You taught me how me to walk and how to dream
God gave me your eyes
But it was you who showed me how to see
Now I can stand on my own
But I know you'll never let go
I'll always be your baby
No matter how the years fly by The way you loved me
Made me who I am in this world
I'm a woman now
Not a little girl Wherever this life takes me
I'll always be your baby
You are my hero
And that will never change
You still can dry my tears with just your smile The one I've leaned on
From my first steps
To walking down the aisle
Now there's another man in my life
But I know by the look in your eyes
I'll always be your baby
No matter how the years fly by
The way you loved me
Made me who I am in this world
I'm a woman now
Not a little girl Wherever this life takes me
I'll always be your baby
Your faith, your love and all that you believe
Have come to be the strongest part of me
And I will always be your baby
No matter how the years fly by
The way you loved me
Made me who I am in this world
I'm a woman now
Not a little girl Wherever this life takes me
I'll always be your baby
Songwriters: NATALIE GRANT, STEPHANIE LEWIS, GEORGE TEREN
So Matt and I just watched "Father of the Bride" (the 1991 remake with Steve Martin.)
Clearly it was my pick for movie night.
This movie is one of my all time favorites. My earliest memory of seeing this film is when Shelby gave it to Dad around the time she announced she was getting married. (I believe that's who gave it to him. Right, Shelby???)
I must have been only seven or eight (When did you get married, Shelby???) but I LOVED IT. And since then I've always associated that movie with my father.
Not that he and the father in the movie, George Banks, have too much in common.
George Banks freaks out over the cost of his daughter's wedding ($250 per person?! 150 people?! That's $37,500. IN 1991 DOLLARS!)
Fun fact? Kimberly Williams, who plays Annie, the daughter/bride, married Brad Paisley in real life.
Michael Bible... not so much. When I was glum over my 2000 wedding gown (on my 6000 budget), Dad was all like "I'll just get it. Don't worry about it."
(Luckily I found my dress for $500, regular 2300).
One thing my father and George Banks do share is their sweet, deep love for their daughters, and the anxiety over not being the most important man in their lives.
No, that's not me as a baby. That's my niece Julia when she was, like 8 months old. It's just my Dad's favorite picture of all time. Seriously. He got it made into a poster. I kid you not.
New York, 2007. Daddy and I at Rockefeller Center in New York City (my 18th birthday gift.)
Michael Bible had three daughters, and no sons, so he was constantly surrounded by sweet little girls wanting to play princess, host tea parties, and ride on his shoulders. I was born a little later in his life, when he had grown accustomed to his teenage daughter and nine-year old.
I was a bit spoiled, because I had him all to myself. I remember Sundays were the day Dad would take me out to lunch, just him and I, and I could order anything I wanted. Even if I didn't finish my plate. AND get dessert. I also discovered that shopping with Dad was more... how shall I say... fruitful? successful? Essentially I could come out of the dressing room with a dozen things, and while Mom would say, "Pick the three you really need," Dad (in his desperation to stop shopping) would say, "Why pick? Take them all!"
Fortunately by the time I became a teenager, Daddy was used to the mood swings, stress, and randomness that goes with being fourteen (and fifteen, and sixteen, and, okay, I'll say it: being a girl.)
I always remained a Daddy's girl, and Matt can attest to the fact the ANY father/daughter moments make me cry.
Like commercials.
Cheesy tv shows.
Sappy daddy/daughter songs.
Just thinking about him in general. Like now.
Seriously, I still can't listen to "Butterfly Kisses." One time, I was singing it to myself (don't ask how it got into my head) and I made myself cry.
Anyways, back to the movie, there is this scene that my father swears is EXACTLY what it is like when a father learns his daughter is getting married.
Love it.
Now, to find a song for the Father/Daughter dance AKA the song I'm going to sob uncontrollably into my father's chest while I remember him spinning me around the living room to country songs.
