Beaufort Bash

Sorry for the posting delay but the long weekend, combined with the fact that Mary Loyal and Lash tied the knot this weekend has left little time for blogging. So now to play catch up! Friday afternoon we headed down to Beaufort for "Dessert and Dancing" in honor of the happy couple. Despite a few threatening clouds the weather cooperated and we had a wonderful time celebrating with the bride and groom to be before their big day:

Ann Spencer, me, and Cally at our hotel before going to the party Friday night.

Blair and I taking our standard photo before the party Friday night. He loves these.

Mary Loyal and Lash following along with the Laffitte family toast to the bride and groom!

Mary Loyal's family rewrote the words to "Be young, be foolish, be happy!" to apply to the bride and groom. It was so fun to watch and a really sweet family tradition

Justin, Blair, and Sean enjoying the band Friday evening. I only wish I had pictures to document the "dance circle" that emerged minutes later. Blair naturally felt the need to show his moves to the crowd. These pictures can be found on Facebook. You're welcome.

Saturday morning Blair and I met my mom and her friend Jenny for breakfast and then enjoyed the day in downtown Beaufort with all of our friends that were in town for the wedding. Lash was with the guys for most of the day and seemed so excited and you could tell that they are all really loved being able to reunite for the occasion. Around 4:00 buses picked up the guests from our hotel and we headed to the church and the evening began!

Following the ceremony, the reception was at Laurel Spring Plantation and it was truly unlike anything I have ever seen. The main tent had a clear top so you didn't actually feel like you were under a tent at all. Outside the tent guests were mingling on the lawn enjoying the scenery and waiting anxiously for the bride and groom to arrive...

Mr. and Mrs. Lash Springs during their first dance!

I really think this is one of my favorite pictures of the weekend; the bride and groom's families watching their first dance. They all look so proud and happy, so sweet!

Wofford girls at the wedding

Blair and several of his friends enjoying the reception. I know I have said this multiple times but these weddings and parties are obviously special as we are a part of that couples' special day but it is such a gift to be able to spend time with friends that we don't get to see as often as we would like since graduating

Blair and I at the reception; we don't have a lot of scenery like this in our respective home states of Georgia and Tennessee so we were truly in awe

Mary Loyal's beautiful bridal portrait in between photos of her parents' wedding with a photo of Lash's parents' wedding on the other side

Our roommates for the weekend!

It really was such a special weekend that I think I could go on and on for at least 2 more posts. Mary Loyal and Lash were so sweet to be around and their families were so accommodating and you could tell that they could really not be prouder of their children. Blair and I won't hit the wedding circuit again until his pledge brother Andrew gets married in July so I am giving my dancing shoes a rest for a few weeks. A big thank you to the Laffitte and Springs families for an unforgettable weekend and congratulations Mary Loyal and Lash! Can't wait to see all of the blessings that married life has in store for you!

Thanks for reading and I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!

Mary

Sister & Celebs

Ok so I know I keep talking about Laura's Tibi internship this summer but I can't help it; I am so excited for her. In a world full of people who settle I am so proud to have a sister who sets her mind on something, works hard for it, and makes it happen for herself. That being said, today Laura met a celebrity/socialite! Olivia Palermo, famous via The City on MTV is a Tibi lover herself and today came into the store and Laura met her! I asked Laura if Olivia commented on how precious Laura is, she said no but that Miss Palermo was very nice, maybe next time...

Picture via

Picture via

 

 

Picture via

The most exciting person scheduled to visit Columbia, SC was Donald Trump...and he canceled. I am definitely going to have to continue living vicariously through Laura.

Thanks for reading!

Mary

Weekend of Congratulations

This weekend Blair and I visited some friends graduating from Wofford and attended an engagement party for our friends Michael and Ashley (who met at Wofford). Friday night Blair and I went to Wofford to celebrate with some future Wofford grads and their families (yes, we were those people) and it was so much fun to see our friends and their proud parents:

Bev, Megan, and I. I can't believe they are graduating!

The Laffitte girls; this coming weekend we will be in Beaufort for Mary Loyal's wedding, the celebrations continue!

Back to our old stomping grounds

 Saturday night we went to a cookout for Ashley and Michael. They are getting married in August and somehow that date seems to be getting closer and closer, where is 2011 going!?!

The future bride and groom with the Wofford crowd

Such a great date!

October is going to be here before we know it for Anna's big day!

 It was such a great weekend and now I am just trying to rest up before we travel to Beaufort next weekend when Mary Loyal and Lash get married! AH!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend; thanks for reading!

Mary

Home Alone

Last night I was home. Alone. It was brutal. Sam is in Las Vegas with several friends for the weekend and Marsha was babysitting last night so I was all by my lonesome (I am laying on the guilt pretty thick Sam and Marsha, do you feel bad yet?! Only joking). However, in an effort to stifle the boredom here is what I accomplished:

1. Went to Target. This is a proven time killer.
2. Went to the gym. This was mediocre.
3. Did laundry. Necessary.
4. Baked this cake; which I took our of the pan too early and semi-ruined. Fail.
5. Made the icing for said cake. Ate from bowl; not a failure.
6. Painted my nails. Also necessary. Thanks sandal season.
7. Watched this show at 9:00; followed by this show at 10:00. Heart Thursday T.V.

So despite talking to myself a few times I feel like I got quite a bit accomplished but no need to make this a habit. Come home roommates!!!

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

Mary

Time Flies

One Sunday morning the Class of 2011 will graduate from Wofford College. That means that I graduated two years ago. WHAT!? I can't believe it; I really can't. It feels like yesterday...

The fam. They're the best!

Sister

I don't get to move back in next fall? Take the diploma back!

It's also hard to believe that Blair was graduating this time last year.

Choosing not to sport the really flattering hat...

Graduation is such a special time and they really do a wonderful job at Wofford of making sure that both the graduates and their families have a memorable weekend. I would still like to request however that time slows down just a little bit. Someone asked me the other day how old I was and I said 22. Uh-oh.

Thanks for reading!

Mary

That Sort of Tuesday

I am convinced that most Tuesdays are longer than Mondays. Today was one of those days; nothing unpleasant happened it was just a long day. Does this ever happen to you? I am trying to stay positive (Glee helped) but all I really want is some of this:

FEED ME. (Picture via inklemonade)

And by some I of course mean pretty much eat all of it until I am sick. Oh well, as Scarlett (yes, I am referring to Miss O'Hara on a first name basis) says: "Tomorrow is another day"!

Thanks for reading!

Mary

Movie [People] Watching

Tonight my roommates and I went to see Bridesmaids. If you have not seen it I recommend finding a spare $10-$30 (because that's how much it costs to go to the movies these days) find a seat, and get ready to laugh. My stomach hurts from laughing so hard; sure it was silly but I think that's the idea...

Oscar material, for sure.

It was one of those movies where all we did the car ride home was recite our favorite parts, Marsha and I were actually just talking about it in the kitchen, and laughing, again. Besides the movie being hil-ar-ious; there is something I was puzzled/am clearly still thinking about it. We arrived a few minutes into the previews and the only seats left were at the front. Marsha, Sam, and I sat town behind two boys with an empty seat between them. I thought to myself that they must be on a double date and their dates were in the restroom/at the concession stand. Nope. The movie started; I looked at Marsha and pointed to the back of the boys seats and gave her a questioning look, she said "I was just thinking the same thing!". So yes, these two boys watched Bridesmaids together. I never heard them laugh but guys, you have my respect for seeing it, maybe you started a trend?

Hope you all had a great weekend, thanks for reading!

Mary

Just What I Needed

Do you ever feel like you are just going through the motions? Sometimes I do (despite my best efforts not to). Shower, work, gym; you know the drill. Yesterday was that sort of day, an extra "Monday-ish" Monday....or so I thought! Driving to the gym with the windows down and music up (a mood lifting effort) waiting at a red light I hear someone yell "Mary Branch, pay attention to the road!". I look over to see a friend from Wofford [and Branching Out reader, holla!] we wave and chat as much as when can before the light changes and then we went our separate ways. I know it doesn't seem like much but sometimes a hello from a familiar face is all I need...that, and the Bethenny Ever After finale. Bravo to you Bravo!

Let me live with you guys...Please.

Thanks for reading!

Mary

A Day for Cay

I hope you all had a wonderful Mothers Day! My sister Laura and I spent the weekend in Hilton Head with my mom and it was so nice. Well actually, Laura spent the entire week there studying for finals. Rough life, I know. Lots of laughing and reading/sleeping by the pool was just what I needed to kick off the week

Oh hello little piece of heaven.

The paparazzi are always stalking Sister

The view from dinner Saturday night, not too shabby huh?

A little blurry but Mom AND Laura let someone take their picture so it was a small victory. Baby steps...

 In a few days Laura will be on her way to NYC to start her Tibi internship so one last hurrah before she moves off to the big city and forgets all about me was definitely in order. I think she is excited and a little bit nervous but I know she will be wonderful [Sister, this is me buttering you up in an effort to get some "free" clothes, ok thanks!]. Anyway, another Monday is well on its way so that's all for now, thanks for reading!

Mary

Night Terror

Well if you see me wandering the streets like a zombie its because I am getting zero sleep. Why you ask? Two reasons [stories].

First, last night when I was brushing my teeth I looked up in the mirror to see a roach crawling across our bathroom wall. Not wanting to wake my roommates, I [surprisingly] did not scream and looked for something to throw at it that would not make too much noise so that I could knock it off the wall and kill it. After throwing [flinging] a tube of toothpaste at the bathroom wall the roach FLEW across the bathroom, landed on the edge of the tub and then scampered into my roommate Sam's room. Uh-oh. After much discussion and searching, we found the roach when Sam closed her door and it landed...on her hand.

As if that wasn't bad enough, I came home from work and was leaning down by my bed to plug in my phone for a little while and thanks to my peripheral vision I spotted a dark spot on my lampshade. Yep, a roach. I was not going to be beat this time so I grabbed a shoe and a tissue and as I went in for the kill the roach felt the blow of death approaching and disappeared! Ok, well I may have frozen up at the last second and closed my eyes but I have NO idea where this thing is. I pulled my bed away from the wall, moved all of my shelves and tables and still no sign.

So, if you wearing some blood-curdling screams tonight it pretty much means I found the roach the roach found me.

Thanks for reading, I guess April showers bring...bugs?

Mary

Fast Forward

To Friday. I am going to Hilton Head this weekend to spend some time with my mom and sister and am planning on doing a lot of this:

Umbrella? No thanks. (Picture via Peachy Things)

I know it is terrible to wish time away but I just want to be outside so badly. Only 4 more days...I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and thoroughly enjoyed everything about the Royal Wedding as much as I did!

Thanks for reading!

Mary