as you know, we were in alabama this last weekend celebrating the nuptials of our good friends andy & hailey. since aaron was a groomsman, we decided to head down to the south a few days early & spend some time with the bride & groom to-be & the rest of the wedding party.
{redneck night at flora-bama bar.}
we spend thursday afternoon on the beach on the florida panhandle & then changed into our finest redneck attire to dance the night away at flora-bama bar (named for its location on the border of, you guessed it, florida & alabama).
{our travel buddies: colin & carolyn.}
{the groom & bride to-be: andy & hailey.}
{colin, hailey, & chris.}
{shannon, hailey, & two of andy’s adorable nieces.}
{andy & hailey.}
{the beautiful sunset. & also colin watching the nba finals.}
{andy, hailey, & jaime. andy & hailey were donning their new trucker hats. his says “hitchin’ a bride” & hers says “randy for andy.”}
{me, andy, tyler, & alyssa.}
{rehearsal dinner.}
the rehearsal dinner was held at oak hollow farms in fairhope, AL in a beautiful, old (air-conditioned!) barn. there were twinkling lights hanging draped from the ceiling – as seen in this week’s my weekend in photos – & wood chips on the floor. we had delicious southern food, including catfish, pulled pork bbq, sweet southern tea, & peach cobbler. the toasts by the best man, & maid & matron of honor were given, followed by lots of dancing & karaoke. aaron even got on stage & sang me everything by michael buble which is what he surprised me with at our wedding; it was wonderful!
{the rustic centerpieces.}
{me & carolyn.}
{colin & carolyn.}
{the hosts & parents of the groom: barb & alan.}
{hailey & andy.}
{me & aaron. the dress for the rehearsal dinner was southern, so aaron wore a bow tie, & it wasn’t even a clip-on (i learned to tie one before we left)!}
{hailey, andy, aaron, & me.}
{wedding day!}
aaron stayed in fairhope with the rest of the wedding party on friday night while carolyn & i stayed at a little motel in town. on saturday, the wedding party got ready in fairhope, took some pictures, & headed to mobile for the ceremony. carolyn & i spent the morning at target, before heading to mobile to lunch & do some shopping before we got ready.
{apparently this guy’s rack makes a nice place for hanging dress shirts.}
{andy getting ready for the big day.}
{the first dance.}
{me & andy.}
{me & aaron. doesn’t he look so handsome in a tux?}
{cutting the cake.}
{the cake was delish. so were the sugar cookies & the french macaroons. two thumbs up to the bride for the dessert selection!}
{the traveling four-some all the way from seattle!}
{my dress was matthew williamson which i got from rent the runway. (this is a referral link.) the wedding was black tie optional & since aaron was wearing a tux, i figured i should wear something a little fancy since i was his date. it was so fun to dress up & i think we should start dressing more formally in the pacific northwest. who’s with me?}
{the ringbearer with his cool shades on.}
{the bride dancing with her father, barre.}
{the groom dancing with his mother, barbara.}
{yes, that is the garter around her head!}
{the send-off. we showered them in rose petals on their way out to the get-away car while the band played.}
{congrats to the new mr. & mrs. steiner!}
{my up do.}
a few people asked about my hair, so i thought i would just include this quick note. i knew i needed my hair to be up & off my neck. also, my hairdresser always taught me: the more the dress, the higher the hair. basically, if you are wearing a strapless dress, you can leave your hair down, but if you have straps, you should have all of it up.
my hair is thick & super long right now, so i needed an updo that had different sections. i basically followed this hair tutorial, but did regular french braids instead of french fishtail braids (my arms get too tired to do fishtail!).
it is definitely wedding season. have you been to any recently or do you have any to attend later this summer?
M
