Partying together

Little Spoon and I have been preparing for a party for my work for three days now, and now that it's finished, I can safely say I would have made a mess of of it by myself. She helped substantially with cleaning up the house, and she had several excellent ideas regarding drinks (e.g., getting a couple of tubs at Big Lots to contain ice and beverages, putting the bottles and cans into the tubs before pouring the ice in them) that saved me. I took charge of picking up the living room, vacuuming the house, hosing off our outdoor tables and chairs, and arranging the tables and chairs for maximum viewing pleasure and traffic flow.

However, we would have both been run into the ground had we not gotten the event catered. Fortunately, I was given permission to hire someone to provide the food, and I chose Down South Delights for the job based on our successful tasting for our wedding reception. I called Rita on Wednesday morning; after learning that she didn't have any events planned for this weekend, we planned out the party on the phone. She guided me through the process with aplomb, calming my nerves and making loads of helpful suggestions to make a nice, informal party. We started with our wedding reception menu, keeping the finger sandwiches, chicken salad croissants, and fruit and cheese platter. We replaced three heavy reception hors d'oeuvres with buffalo wings, spinach dip and cheese, and flatbread pizzas. The food was a big hit, and many people complimented us on the plentiful spread.

It was great to have this catering to take the load off us both, and I appreciated Little Spoon's help in assembling a party for over 30 people. It's the first time I've ever hosted something that large, and with her help, I'm sure we'll be able to do so again easily.

Outside the Box

I am finding more every day that planning our wedding together is bringing us closer as a couple. Big Spoon has been very patient with me as I wane back and forth on the "details", knowing that I will find a creative solution that pleases us both. We do well with the big things - from our decision to not have a traditional wedding cake to choosing our photographer. I'm also finding that if I keep an open mind, Big Spoon has great suggestions and keeps me grounded.

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to go wedding dress shopping with my mom, my MOH (who is also my little sister) and one of my best friends. Although dress shopping wasn't exactly what I had anticipated (as one person described it "it's like shopping for a bathing suit!"), it yielded a fun "girls day out" as well as the inspiration for our color palette.

Upon returning home, I discovered that Big Spoon had started laundry and organizing the office. Being in a relationship with him is easily the most rewarding and joyful experience I've ever had: we work as a team, talk through our problems and allow each other personal "space" - to have a girls day shopping, to work late or have friends over on short notice.

Oh yeah, here's our color palette: black, white, ivory, champagne, silver. Its super neutral and will allow me to detail the event without fear of mis-matching a color, simplify things like linens and bridesmaid's dresses, as well as open up possibilities of flower colors.

Taking care of the domestics

While Little Spoon was out dress shopping, I realized that I needed to take care of some domestic tasks that have been lingering. Though she usually does the laundry, I picked up the two large loads and stuck 'em in the machine so that she could rest upon returning home. I also finally cleaned up the floor in the office to let her get the space in order the way she wants it.

Sometimes, a guy's gotta do his part.