Jazzy Celebrations: 2016

50 year wedding anniversary...wow! They are slim and few these days. My parents celebrated their 50th anniversary this past June 3rd, 2016, and what a party it was. After months of sneaking around and planning, my brothers, sister in laws, grandchildren and family were able to keep it a secret until the morning of the party. Were they shocked? Beyond words. Stunned actually. To be honest we were afraid to tell them after the months of planning. Either they were going to run, or be mad at us for a long time. Well guess what. Neither. They were happy and didn't know what to say except you shouldn't have. But after 50 years of marriage I think a celebration was a must.

The celebration was held pretty much on my doorstep (Schmeider Hall, Camp Lutherlyn), so decorating and planning was so much easier. And we couldn't have decided on a better place. I loved the rustic nature to it, and if it would have been cooler we could have had a grande fire in that wonderful fireplace.

Dinner was served inside while drinks and appetizers were outside under the covered area. It was really a lovely flow. My husbands wonderful chefs catered the event for us, and we are so thankful to have had them. They completed the day with their delicious food. Another one of my husbands friends who happens to be a baker was so kind as to make a array of heavenly pies for the pie bar. It was a easy decision as pie is my dad's favorite dessert. I made the cupcakes for the kids and the extra tarts as it was a project I had to complete. That itself is another story.

Of course the color scheme was gold with ivory. I have to say it really came together with the ambiance of the room. Spray painted gold coffee jars and wine bottles made for the centerpieces. They turned out lovely. Unfortunately my plan to have fresh flowers fell through when the company decided at the last minute that they would not deliver to our rural area, so I scrambled to find flowers. Although they were silk, you honestly had to look closely to actually see they were not real. Sets of 3 candles with floating candles completed the look as well as boxwood topairies. Champagne runners, chair ties and napkins ran through out the decor with ivory lace down the runner and tied at the end of each table, made for a elegant, rustic look. The letter "H" which stood for my parents last name was adorned at each table and on the mantle. Black lanterns broke the ivory on ivory and made for a good contrast. When evening hit, the romance was throughout the room with all the candles lit.

Nothing was missing to this wonderful family filled event and I wish my parents many more years of wedding bliss.

Cheryl

Had it been a bit cooler, this fireplace would have been roaring. Oh, the podium that I said my speech at. I do not speech in front of crowds of people, but was able to pull it off.