My Mom is so great at party decorations. She is so talented! We had everyone come through the front-door (instead of the garage) and this is what they saw when they entered the house:
The lanterns really added a lot of color and were just really cool! This is the dessert table. We had coconut macaroons, sugar cookies, pina colada cupcakes, mini cherry cheesecakes, and Oreo truffles. My sis, Ashley made the majority of the desserts, including decorating the sugar cookies. They look professionally done!
Here are a couple close-ups of the desserts. They were all gone by morning! YUM!
Here is the happy couple... the future-Bride and Groom, Katie and Frank. We dressed them up in coconut bras and grass skirts and of course leis. We had leis for all of the guests as they walked in. Katie and Frank were super-fun in their "costumes".
Speaking of their outfits... I didn't get a picture of it, unfortunately, but my Dad and Frank were wearing the same Hawaiian shirt. So funny!
This is a pic of the food table:
We served shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches, potato salad, coleslaw, chips, fruit, and vegetables. The food was a big hit!
And isn't this a cool focal point behind the table?
The sign says What a Great Catch! and that, along with pics of Katie and Frank, are hooked to the fishing net with fishing hooks. The large picture of them by the waterfall is a pic they took the day they got engaged at Starved Rock State Park. It's a special place for them, and is where their Wedding Ceremony will take place on June 8, 2012.
I didn't get as many pictures as I would have liked. I wish I would have gotten a pic of the backyard with our new tent and light-up lanterns and tiki torches. Most people hung out outside all night. Carl set up the stereo system so that his luau themed playlist played inside and outside. Also, we had tables and chairs set up in the garage where a lot of people ate dinner. All the coolers with drinks were out there too. We had a lot of beer, pop, and water in the garage; and we had N.A. fruit punch and OJ/Pineapple juice inside. Of course we had some hard alcohol (different kinds of vodka and rum) for the non-pregnant people who wanted a "real" drink. We were pregnant-people friendly this party since both Cynda and I are expecting! My Mom also made a banner that hung on the garage that said Congratulations, Katie and Frank! Let's Luau! And we had an Aloha! welcome sign on the front door and tiki torches that lined the walk. It was a great way to welcome the guests, and I'm disappointed I didn't get a picture of all of that!
I also wish I would have gotten a pic of Cynda and me together in our luau dresses. Cynda is a little over 17 weeks along, and I was at the very end of week 24. I'm bad about taking "bump" pictures. :)
It was really great to be able to host this party for such good friends. Frank is one of Carl's best friends from childhood. They grew up together and have been friends for over 20 years! And Katie is one of my best friends. We grew up together in Forsyth, IL, and have been good friends ever since High School - almost 15 years! It's pretty cool that our good friends have found happiness with each other. We're really happy for them and know that they are going to have a great year planning their wedding and an even better married life together!
Note: Notice our new floors in the pics! Carl worked really hard to get the house in good shape before this party. We had carpet in the living area that really needed to be replaced, and I told Katie and Frank as soon as they got engaged in March that we were going to throw this party for them but that our floors had to be done first! So Carl and Nick (Frank's twin brother) installed the hardwood (in the family and "dining" rooms) and ceramic tile (in the kitchen, foyer, and downstairs bath) about a month ago. They replaced everything downstairs - the carpet and the pergo/laminate flooring. Our house and garage was a disaster for awhile, but Carl pulled it all together and it looked great! I'm really thankful for Carl's hardwork to get everything ready. The floors, the cleanup, re-nailing the trim and adding quarter-round...house projects have really taken up all of his weekends lately. We were glad to have the party to motivate us to get everything done, and now it's time for Carl to have his weekends back. Time for him to relax! Only a few more projects before Baby Larson comes in October. :)
