a whirlwind weekend!

Things in the O'Steen family never seem to happen easily as far as weddings go... When I got married three years ago, I had six bridesmaids in six different states, my parents were living in FL, I was living in MD, Brian was in IL, and the wedding was in NC (where no one lived). The planning process was a bit tricky and complicated, but we made it work. We always knew Natalie's wedding would be easier because it would be local.. or so we thought. Now that my parents are in Los Angeles for three years, my mom is planning yet another long distance wedding! Who knew... But, we will make the most of it! 

I went down to FL with my mom this past weekend to help with some of the planning... My mom flew to Atlanta on Thursday evening and we drove that night to Natalie's house in Gainesville together. The next morning, we drove to St. Augustine for a day of wedding appointments! It was a full day and much was accomplished! 

Mom is using the same wedding notebook she used for my wedding. Did I mention that there will be four O'Steen weddings in three years? 

First stop: St. Francis Officer's Club Barracks. This is where the reception will be right in the heart of downtown St. Augustine. We met with the wedding coordinator and discussed ideas for the layout. 

Next stop: The Oldest House Garden, which just so happens to be across the street from the reception site! Guests can simply walk across the street to the reception after the ceremony. Look how beautiful this place is! Dan and Natalie will be married under this huge tree!

After that, we headed over to The Bistro for a food tasting! We were hungry when we got there and completely stuffed when we left. While meeting with the caterer (who we love!), we tasted stuffed mushrooms, shrimp and grits, chicken marsala, a yummy salad, tomato basil pie, and an olive and goat cheese crisp. DELICIOUS. Let me just say, the food at this wedding id going to be tasty. 

A cake tasting followed the food tasting. We were so full, but there's always room for dessert! We headed over to Sweet Weddings to eat cake! Of course this was my favorite part!

Loved this presentation! Our favorite fillings were key lime, coconut, raspberry, chocolate mousse, dulce de leche, and guava. Really, they were all pretty good!

And then we headed over to St. Augustine Paper Company to choose invitations. Natalie decided on the most adorable invites. And we fell in love with Shelly, the designer. 

After deciding on invitations, we drove over to the rental company to discuss the rentals of the tent, china, and linens. Then we grabbed a quick coffee and headed to my parents' house in Ormond Beach... stopping at the J.Crew outlet of course! 

The next day we headed to the BEACH for some much needed down time. It was the perfect weather, and the clouds were amazing! 

Momkept talking about how California beaches just aren't the same as Florida beaches...

That afternoon we went back to the house to see Silas! Mom bought him a pumpkin, and he painted a face on it.

 He placed it inside his tent to dry while we played in the pool.

While drying off, Silas and "Manna" sang songs together.. Here they are singing some alligator song. :)

After John and Tiffany left with Silas, Mom, Dad, Natalie and I headed back to the beach. We just couldn't get enough. A lovely way to end the weekend!