Clover Green and Papaya Orange

Our wedding colors were clover green with touches of papaya orange and saffron yellow. We kept it modest at the church with mostly neutral ivory and the clover green. At the reception we added all of the orange and yellow to make it have a brighter, party-feel. The colors were perfect for a June, Irish -inspired day.

The centerpieces consisted of various heights of glass vases with bold, fresh flowers of daises, wildflowers, and bells of Ireland and other greenery. We also put in LED lights in the water and it offered a warm ambiance throughout the room.

The Tapas Bar was decorated with orange and green of course!

I loved my bouquet! The blue ring, from my grandmother, was my something blue. I also added other charms that represented personal moments and memories to the bouquet.

Simple and fun describes our cake. Buttercream cake with nutella filling and orange, green, and yellow confetti of course! The best part is we served it with cartons of Ben and Jerry's ice cream for every guest!

The table runners were made by my mom, grandma,and me. I was looking for an anthropologie, picnic- feel.

our signiture drink was called absolut wedding. it was made with absolute vodka, citron liquor, lime juice. It was served with an orange slice and proved to be a hit! ( ps. I ll share the menu cards and favor next week!)

Our anniversary...

June 12, 2008 : We met.

June 12, 2009 : We got engaged.

June 12, 2010: We got married.

Kirk and I have a very special day. I was shocked when he proposed to me on our one year anniversary of dating in 2009.  When we got around to figuring out a potential wedding day, we realized that June 12, 2010 fell on a Saturday. We went with it.   

I like many different styles, themes, and ideas but I felt that I first needed an overall vision before moving on with the planning. I immediately got out my sketch book and started an idea board full of colors I love, flowers that make me smile, and traditions that mean so much to me. I also thought about what kind of wedding I wanted so I made a list of words : intimate, warm, meaningful, spiritual, creative, fun.  Kirk and I sat down and discussed what was most important to us (good food, making our guests feel special, music, dancing, honeymoon, and making it personal and full of love) and what we could do without ( doves, white shoes, and the electric slide)  and most important: BUDGET.

We got some engagement photos taken and shared some important information with guests six months before our wedding on our wedding website. Check it out at : www.mywedding.com/kirkandtracy

Six months prior we also sent out 'save the date' cards and I'll share those in my stationary week blog! We also had the church, reception venue, dress and suit, DJ, photographer, and florist booked. WHEW!

one of my sketch book pages full of ideas and inspiration.

my favorite engagement picture

engagement pictures = great practice for wedding day!

It's wedding season!

Kate and I got married last summer (not to each other).

We bounced ideas off each other, attended bridal shows, and shared many experiences and laughs along the way. In honor of the upcoming wedding season, I will be posting some aspects throughout June of my wedding that I enjoyed, details that I thought were most meaningful and ideas and thoughts that might help someone along the way of event planning in general. In August, Kate will be sharing her beautiful wedding ideas, too. We both served as our own wedding planners.  I created and came up with most ideas for my wedding. Kate did the same. We each had modest budgets and big ideas. I feel proud with how both evenings turned out.

My wedding in June



Kate's wedding in August

.Family Garden.day three.

Oh what a day...

.sweat.

.super soil.

.gloves.

.worms.

.ARMM truck.

.family.

.greens.

.H2O.

.COMPLETION.

Finally the Schwerzler Family Garden is planted and ready for growth.  I'll show you in pictures of our progress today!!!!!

after my father and I picked up the super soil from Evan's Landscaping...unloading!

.spreading it out.

...hehehe...

I'm super SUPER pumped about this green pepper starting already!!

.planting.

.putting the rain barrel together.

.i'm disgusting.yet proud.

ENJOY...can't wait for my veggies/flowers/ to GROW...

we planted:

.cabbage.

.banana pepper.

.red pepper.

.green pepper.

.yellow/orange pepper.

.jalepeno.

.cauliflower.

.spinach.

.a bazillion types of tomatoes.

.green beans.

.strawberries.

.sunflowers.

.zinnias.

.foxclove.

.hosta.

Here is a better shot of the plants so we will (hopefully) see some growth comparisons soon!

.hosta and foxclove seedlings.

 

.right side.

 

.left side.

 

.back.

 

I'm in love with the color of the cabbage leaves and it's purple vine. Nature is beautiful!

.finished.
{well, not really, have to attach rain barrel to the down spout and add soaker hose}

~have a happy Memorial Day weekend~

This was my morning/afternoon project, I'll post soon about my second project today...something for my school...

 

fears...

I (kate) have little fear in my life....for some reason I have always felt extremely calm and secure.  I know for many death, financial loss, etc. are huge, 'normal' (whatever normal is..ha) fears carried in our hearts in our daily lives.  However, I do not fear death itself or really for that matter most 'normal' fears (in my humble opinion).

I do have mini-fears though.  MANY mini-fears.

This specific one happens quite often in my life.

Notice the HUGE ash tree in my front yard...(which I adore)

couple fears:

1. the ash borer bug

2. it falling ONTO my mini-house...EEK!

So, when storms come a knockin', I get a frettin'

Last night I was getting very anxious about tree fear #2...

However, as you can see above my God watched out for me and my family!

I feel blessed that I only had to spend an hour or so picking up branches and limbs and not picking up pieces of my humble abode. 

I am praying deeply for those who are currently facing natural disasters and all the huge fears we carry with us every day.  Instead of focusing on the fear, focus on the positives in your life and be thankful for every blissful minute. 

I do have a family friend in my life whom I think of every time there is bad weather or something not so pleasent happening...Rob Weber! He is the #1 most positive person I have every had the pleasure of spending my time with.  I can hear his sweet voice and see his calm smile saying "Isn't it just a beautiful day, lets be thankful, bless Jesus." all the while a tornado could be blowing down the street!!

His everlasting faith and positive, thankful outlook on life is a TRUE inspiration!

Rob and his amazing wife Karen
(p.s. they have a gorgeous family of 10 children as well)

However...

...won't lie, picking up branches wasn't necessarily 'blissful'...

.Family Garden.day two.

todays plan went south...

My father, mother and I went to the church to get the huge truck...

but, it was in use by someone else in need.  Apparently my mission wasn't supposed to happen tonight!

We were going to go to Evan's Landscaping to pick up a huge load of topsoil to fill this beautiful space (it will become even more beautiful...promise):

my sweet {G} finished this part today..prep for the topsoil

 Oh...so you noticed the new addition to the left....YAHOO!!! It is our new rain barrel, and I am pumped about it.  I never thought I'd be so exicted about something that holds water, but little things excite me! We haven't set it up totally yet, the gutter will go into the top and then we'll attach a soaker hose at the bottom.  I have no doubt this was worth the $$$.  PLUS the top part of it is also a planter :)

...purchased at Sams Club...

I have purchased plants too :) Tracy joined me for this adventure.  This trip brings back SOOO many memories for me with my dad!  As a wee little one I'd go with him to our local market to inspect and he'd teach me how to pick the perfect plants and veggies!  They look great to me and I can't wait to put them in the ground...where they belong!!

Well, instead of picking up topsoil, I worked on another project (which I will share with you next week...its is turning out really great)

I will say this little sweet thang kept me company while I worked on it!!!

...happy tuesday...



what have you done for your bonsai today?

Bonsai: an artistic medium originating in Japan. Broadly speaking it consists of growing a tree or shrub in a container and shaping it in an aesthetic fashion.

I (Tracy) have been interested in bonsai trees for many years. I think it stems (pun intended) from my love of art, my passion for eastern cultures, and all things green (and lets be honest, one of my favorite childhood movies, karate kid). Last year, on my birthday my brother surprised me with a bonsai and tools and books to go with it. My excitement got the best of me. I was either watering it too much, fussing with it too much, or clipping it too much and it didn't survive. I blamed it on my lack of a green thumb but was so disappointed. Kate and her husband Geoff who also share an interest in bonsai trees, witnessed the tragic event.  This year, on my 30th birthday, I was even more surprised when my brother got me another one! I figured he must have more confidence in me growing one than I do or simply didn't know what to get me! However, with my husband 's help and consistent watering strategies, we have successfully kept the bonsai alive for three months now and it is actually flourishing! Our confidence has improved and we recently purchased another bonsai so now we have two!

Meanwhile, Kate and Geoff are looking into buying a bonsai; Kate is leaning towards a fruit bonsai. Geoff has a plethora of official bonsai containers that are ready for a tree planting! Kate and I are attending our first Greater Cincinnati Bonsai Club meeting tonight. I will take my two bonsai trees and I know Kate will be ordering one soon! We are super excited about the new found information we will receive as we emBARK on this new journey!