Holy Hannah banana! I have been neglecting you my loves and I'm terribly sorry. It's amazing how busy life gets sometimes. I have no idea how people with kids get anything done. I'm just a fur mama and that's all I can handle at this point. Add to that winter illness and work and here we are...almost a month since my last post. I've even been neglecting some of my favourite fun things, like Pinterest. I used to have two minutes to spare and I'd spend them pinning pictures of animals smiling and flowers I want. Not lately. My boards are well, bored.
* Note: I've been trying to upload this post since Monday. None of the pictures were loading and I never had much time to spend on it. Here's to hoping this attempt works!
Anyways, here's what's been occupying my mind lately: bestie's wedding next month! We're almost in the final countdown to Matt and Rachel's wedding bonanza at the beach in Mexico. As MOH I'm planning her bachelorette and I'm stoked. The funny thing about party planning is how much it brings out a few usually hidden tendencies in people. Have you ever seen a side of yourself you hadn't been previously introduced to while planning an important event? Did you ever find yourself in the marker aisle at the craft store comparing the subtle shades of blue ink to ensure the ones you chose for the guest book matched the colour of the bride's eyes? Oh...that's just me, eh? Well, let's meet some other party planning types.
For example, when I plan parties I become 1: The Beverly Hills party planner - meaning I forget there's a budget. My budget. My money and FYI, I don't have a Beverly Hills bank account. Since I'm so focused on the event for so long, I make purchases I'm not entirely sure I'll make use of but want to have "just in case."
I also become 2: The Magician party planner. This means basically I'm wishing up extravagant decor, elaborate themes and imagining it all goes perfectly. No, I am not a magician. My visions far exceed what's within my capabilities at this stage in life so at the end of each party, I'm disappointed. Really, there are worse problems to have in life than thinking you're the magician party planner. I liken this persona to Clark Griswold from the National Lampoon movies. He wants big and he wants the best and he can't keep up with his own ideas.
I've also been known to morph into 3: The Martha Wanna-be party planner. If you're stressing yourself out because all your party ideas come from
Martha Stewart Living - get off the ledge right now. Martha has been in the biz for years. She has an uber talented team of artists, bakers, floral designers and super creative people working for her. When you see an image of a Martha styled party, you better believe it's not the work of an average person. There is only one Martha Stewart and that's okay. We don't need to pressure ourselves to live up to expectations we set for ourselves because of the drool-worthy images in her magazines, on her website or her blog. Breath in and say, "I must accept the fact that I'm not Martha, nor do I have her party planning budget." Everything is gonna be okay, I promise.
Surely you've all heard of bridezillas. You may even have met one. Their weddings are meticulously planned. Every detail surely looked to with some tears (apparently people fight when they're gettin' hitched y'all) and when the day arrives...well I'm not sure. Remember? I told you I'm not married? Sheesh, pay attention my loves.
So ya, I'm not engaged. I'm not planning a wedding. I'm not a bride. When I am in a bridal party however, I become 4: Maidzilla. I want the very best for the bride. I'm not generally a fan of Microsoft Excel (yuck, math tool) but when planning time arrives for the bridal shower and bachelorette, out comes Excel. Multiple pages in my Excel books. Countless emails to the bridal party, parents of the bride on speed dial, make up and hair crew researched and at the helm is Major Gal, known during the pre-wedding months as Maidzilla. Again, my grandiose visions of bachelorette parties on the Vegas strip or the beach in Cabo mean nothing I plan lives up to my own expectations. Interesting note, I can barely survive planning bridal showers and bachelorette parties. I'm so consumed with a guest list of 20 that I'm guessing a ballroom of 250 would send me to the looney bin, so Papa always suggests I elope. Truthfully, he probably doesn't want to feel my wrath the days leading up to my nuptials. Can't blame him.
Maybe you've been to a party where the 5: Oops party planner has appeared. In this case, you might run out of ice before the bar closes. You watch guests try to shove massive appetizers into their mouths from a silver serving tray when really it should be served as a sit down meal. Maybe the napkins don't match the flowers which don't match the invitations which don't match the balloons. And maybe, Oops doesn't care or just never thought about these details. I try to be hands-off in some cases and go down the Oops party planning journey, but I just can't. Maidzilla paired with The Martha Stewart Wanna-be means I honestly try to think of everything.
So here's the deal. I don't want any of you mumbling to yourselves on a busy street corner because the macaroons you ordered for your sister's baby shower weren't the exact shade of mint green you sent the baker. You should get what ya pay for in party planning, but not at the expense of your sanity. At least that's what I'm learning :)
