Showered

My beautiful little sister in law Kate is getting married in December and this weekend, we had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate her upcoming nuptials. You might remember from Kev and my 'how we met' story that I actually knew his family first because I was Kate and Mike's babysitter. It was such my honor, 12 years later, to be able to help our other sisters Kyle and Beth host the shower and bachelorette party at my house. 

We've improved with age a bit, agreed? (2002, 2013)

Our theme was 'around the clock', where each guest was given a time of day to inspire their gift and we also tried to incorporate the idea into our food and drink as well.

Our drinks were for morning (mimosas with Army champagne since Kate is marrying an amazing Army officer and setting off on their military adventure), noon (apple cider) and night (wine).

And the food was split the same way: Morning (muffins and fruit), Noon (salad and sandwiches), Night (a variety of appetizers).

I love any excuse to break out my china, but selfishly, a great moment for me during the day was when one of my mother in law's good friends came to get a cup of coffee and I served her the and saucer in the back right of the picture below. Years ago, when Mrs. Greenwood found out I was collecting different patterns, she gifted me a place setting that had belonged to her grandmother because she loved the idea that it might be used. Not only had she already seen it proudly in its place in my china cabinet, but then to be served from it too, really touched her.  It was so special and only gave that setting more meaning to me. 

 Kev, being the amazing husband that he is, had taken the big boys down to my inlaws on Friday night so I could get the house clean without worrying about them and their inevitable dirt. Wells got to hang out through the shower then went home with Deb so we could have the bachelorette party later that night. He was definitely the life of the party for a few grandma-aged women without grandchildren. 

 Our 'game' was to leave advice for Katie for the morning and night (keeping with the theme) for her marriage. This was actually one of my favorite parts, as Kate was reading the sappy advice (Always kiss good morning), totally unplanned, the women in the room would blurt out real advice (kick him out of bed to take out the dog).

 The rest of the shower was spent mixing and mingling, while ooh-ing over all Katie's amazing gifts (can I get an 'Amen' for how much we all need bridal showers roughly 7 years into marriage? For real.) 

Kate with her future Mother in Law and sister, Hannah.

 Friends and family

 Our sweet bride

 The L ladies: Kyle, Deb, Kate and Beth (who flew in from Washington State for the weekend)

 Having no real sisters of my own, I can't tell you how grateful I am to have all these amazing women in my life. 

All in all, it was a beautiful and fun afternoon of celebration. 

And when the shower ended, the bachelorette party started and we quickly dumped that apple cider and filled the drink dispenser up with margaritas...but the rest of that post is for Tuesday.

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Happy Veteran's Day to my hero of a husband, and all those who serve and have served in our Armed Forces!