The Star Shaped Crayons - How to

I know I have mentioned before, that we have invited many kids to the wedding. Usually there is nothing for them to do other than run around or dance. So my FI wanted to create a kid's activity table with an assortment of activities. This is where the star shapped crayons came from. I owe credit to a few people for the inspiration of this project but unfortunately I cannot remember the names of the Bees or the other websites this came from.

Supplies:

• 2 Box of crayons (preferably 48 or more qty.)
• Shaped mini tin pans (I bought stars but I have seen heart shaped)
• Cookie sheet

Star pan and crayons purchased at Dollar Store

Step 1: Preheat oven 350 degrees

Step 2: Choose your favorite color combinations for each star.

Step 3. Break the crayons in half, remove the paper and put half of the crayon in one tin pan and the other half in another tin pan (at least 5 halves for each star). I found it easier to use an exacto-knife to slice the paper off. I used 5 -6 crayon halves in each star and the crayon was fairly thin. Increase the amount of crayon halves to resolve the thickness.

Step 4: Place tin pans on cookie sheet and place in oven. It will take 3 - 5 mins to melt the crayons. Be sure to use a cookie sheet without holes or you will have a debacle that we had involving melted wax and a smokey oven =) (Whoops!!)

Step 5: Remove from the oven and allow to cool. I am not sure how long it took for the wax to re-set but I would say they should be ready in a hour.

Step 6: Peel the tins off and voila, a star crayon!

FYI... I will be putting them in plastic candy bags as favors for the kids and will label them crayons since my 6 yr old niece pointed out that they looked like candy.

Who is The Roddy Bride & Groom?

How rude of I not to introduce myself or my hubby-to-be from the get go. Well here's a little interesting information about us.

Well lets start with Mr. Roddy. He is my super Gringo A.K.A. my whiteboy=). Born in Lancaster, PA but raised in multiple parts of PA and Colorado. He's a computer techy by day and a student by night to achieve his Bachelor's Degree. He's had one heck of a childhood but has learned to overcome all the challenges he had faced to become the great man that his is.

Now for me. I am a Latina born and raised in Bethlehem, PA. I too am a computer techy. I love to read, watch movies, play sports and video games. With our wedding coming up I am trying to tackle my never ending list of DIY projects. I am oh so excited about marrying the man of my dreams.

So you ask, how'd you meet?

We met back on October 29, 2005 through Yahoo! Personals (yes, we are one of their success stories). After talking for a week or two on the phone we decided to meet in person at a local mall to eat dinner and go to the movie. I was so impressed with the person I met that I knew something was right about this. Sure enough I was right... Almost 4 years later we get to start a new life together with a whole new set of challenges... I can't wait to start!

Here is the story of our engagement: The Engagement

The Ceremony: Developing The Agenda

While attempting to cleanup and organize my personal email I ran across an email from my g'Mom (our officiant) outlining her suggestions for the ceremony... And I thought... Oh crap! I forgot about that.

So yesterday, I decided to review her suggestions and started taking mental notes. The question that came to mind is do we make this a religious ceremony or refrain from it? I had to ask this question because we chose to have our ceremony outside of a church due to my FI's personal feelings about churches and religion in general.

My FI is a true believer in God but is skeptical of the intentions of churches and religions and is not content with their "business" mentality. I have to say that I agree with him on a lot of what he believes. He has been a part of different churches and has seen all sides of them and I have only been involved with one Catholic church in my hometown. I tried a few other Catholic churches (like out by my College) and despised going there for I didn't feel welcomed and they never gave me the good vibes I get from my home church. Just too uptight for me.

Anywho, in reviewing the agenda I noticed that really the only thing religious about her suggestions are the officiant's prayer, the readings, and the wine ceremony (the replacement of communion). I chatted it up with Mr. Roddy and it seems we will be leaning more towards leaving the religious segments in the ceremony. Mr. Roddy himself (my FI not my future FIL) will go through his favorite verses in the Bible and pick out 2 of them for our Mothers to read. All of this has really got me excited with only 99 days to go =)...

So here is a peek at the mock-up ceremony agenda:
Ceremony

• Prelude
• Processional
• Prayer by Pastor
• Readings
• Gathering words
• The Ceremony

- Exchange of vows and exchange of rings
- Announcement of marriage
- Lighting of Unity Candles

• Closing Prayer
• Wine Ceremony
• Bride and Groom thanks family and friends for their love and support.

The 'R' - How To

The 'R' is going to be one large letter 'R' that will be placed on the cake table. It will be decoupaged with color photos of Mr. Roddy and I through the years. It will be a cool compliment to the funky cake that we have designed. This craft has not been completed but we are hoping it is as easy as it looks...

Supplies:

• Big cardboard letter ( I found mine at JoAnn Fabrics)
• Spraypaint - this is the base color (Optional)
• Mod Podge brand glue for decopauging
• Foam paint brush
• Favorite Photos
• Paper Cutter or Scissors to cut the photos
• Ribbon for sides (optional)
• Tacky Glue (for glueing ribbon)

The bare naked 'R'

Step 1: Spraypaint the letter. Let the letter dry completely. You will need very good ventilation for this. Be sure to wear protective gear such as gloves, goggles, and a mask.

Mama A (My Mom) cheesin' with the 'R' =)

Step 2: Pick your favorite photos and cut them to the shape of the letter so no picture hangs off the letter. Do this until the letter is fully covered. You have a few choices here. Only cover one side of the letter with pictures or collage pictures all around the letter. You can even overlap pictures if you wish for a different style. For this project I only covered the front with pictures.

Step 3: Using the Mod Podge and foam paint brush, apply a thin layer of the glue to where the picture will lie. Then apply another thin layer to the back of the photo and then place the photo on the designated spot.

Step 4: This step is optional. With the Tacky Glue, glue a ribbon (the width of the letter side) to the outsides of the letter. Be sure to smooth out the ribbon with your fingers to prevent bubbling of the fabric.

Step 5: Admire your work =)

Front View

Right Side

Left Side

Note: My Mom and I didn't feel the need to add the Mod Podge glue on the top of the photos but you obviously have the option.

The Cake: Crisis Diverted??

Lately, I have been receiving tons of spamming phone calls from slithering snakes.... er wedding companies claiming my FI and I had won something. So much so that I refuse to answer the phone if it is a number that I do not know and let it go to my voicemail since it is my cell phone. Well Friday was no different. BUT this time I had received a phone call from my cake vendor at 8:45pm and one from a man claiming to be from the vendor at 9:00pm. They both stated that they needed me to call them regarding the details of my cake. Now I am worried.

The first thing that came to mind was that the pastry chef (PC) has left. This was very scary to me since the design I wanted stemmed from something that the original pastry chef had completed. At the first meeting, the owner had raved at how wonderful the PC was and that she has won multiple awards and even interned with the great Sylvia Weinstock. Music to my ears...

Well, I called Saturday morning and I found out that my initial fear was correct. The orginal PC had left due to a buyout of some sort. My vendor was contacting me to notify us of the new change. The man who had called is actually the previous PC's husband. Apparently the PC and her hubby are calling all the brides (illegally I may add). According to my vendor it was in the contract that the PC cannot harrass the brides.

Anyway, my vendor had assured me that the new PC is just as good and has won numerous competitions. I have to believe her because since the quality of her PC threatens her the reputation of her company. She is the committee leader of local bridal organizations and other organizations so I am sure she will not take that risk. Let's just say I was more relieved. Really everything is out of my hands. Now I just have to wait and see what my cake will look like...

Pray for us or wish us luck!!

We've Been Approved...

To marry =)!!!

Our officiant (my G'Mom), had sent me and email sending us blessings on our wedding. Like other couples we had to take some compatibility tests by answering important questions about us individually and us as a couple. So we sent her our answers last weekend.

Anyway, my FI wasn't completely thrilled about answering the questions because he assumes that my G'Mom already knows us and knows we are compatible. BUT I know it doesn't work that way. First off, my G'Mom knows me and not really him. Secondly, she didn't know the priorities in our lives and what we thought about important subjects as children, finances and religion. I found this exercise to have been a great one that I would recommend to all couples whether they were getting married in a church or not. What I got out of it is that my FI and I really are compatible and not because I love him witha ll my heart. It is because we want the same things in life. We think alike and feel the same way about the important issues in life and that is the most important thing to me.

So her words of advice... "No matter what, there is only one correct answer, "Yes Dear". Now go ahead and grow old" =)... Gotta love her!