Parties & Entertaining

Gift Guide – Father’s Day

| The Bee Life

It’s less than a week away from Father’s Day! Here are some ideas in case you can’t think of something different or unique this year for your dad.Dad

  1. Booze – If you’re dad is like mine, he like’s a good scotch or whiskey.  Now is the time to indulge and buy something a little more expensive for him to enjoy! If you don’t live near your dad (but will be seeing him soon) you could also plan a sampler pack of local favorites near you. My dad is particularly fond of a whiskey made in Cleveland – so he wouldn’t be sad if I bought a few for his bar!
  2. Beer/Scotch Tasting – Part 2 of gift number one would, could be to plan a weekend trip to a favorite brewery and partake in the tasting festivities. Of course, you’ll pick up the check! It’s a fun way to enjoy one of Dad’s favs and create fun memories.
  3. Golf – Plan an outing or buy Dad lessons! To make this even more personal, make a golf gift basket filled with a new outfit, a sleeve of balls, new golf gloves, a new towel to get him looking snazzy this Father’s Day while he’s hitting the links.
  4. Manual Labor – Since my dad is always helping us around our house whenever he is in town, it’s time to offer up an opposite treat and give him a weekend pass to use our services to help get some projects done around his house! I am sure this would be a welcomed treat (not to mention, would make mom happy too!)
  5. Get Crafty – Think about something that your dad has been wanting or needing; and make it! Some ideas; a custom bottle opener (perfect for my Dad’s new garage), a decorative tie rack, or a fun piece for grill accessories!

Father’s day is this upcoming Sunday, June 19th – don’t forget to get Dad a card too!

Flirtini – The Recipe

| The Bee Life

To help get ready for the weekend, I’ve got another summery, fresh drink to share with all of you – so add this one to your roster of must-have’s.  Although, I can’t take the credit for this one either, Katie introduced this one to me over our girl’s weekend, it’s called the Flirtini. (Make sure you can flirt with a cutie while sipping on this, preferably your own cutie ;-))DSCN1956What You’ll Need:
– Champagne
– Vanilla Vodka
– Pineapple Juice (6-oz cans)
– Raspberries for Garnish
– Martini Shaker

Directions: First, mix one 6-oz can of the pineapple juice with a 2-shots of the vanilla vodka, over ice and shake well in your martini shaker.

Next pour your mixture to fill up half of your martini glass. Pop your champagne and pour champagne over top the mixture to fill the rest of the glass. Drop in some raspberries as garnish to enjoy! You can also freeze your raspberries to help keep your drink chilled.DSCN1959It’s pretty easy and delicious, and it has champagne. Win, win.

Enjoy!

 

Weekend Recap – Family Wedding

| The Bee Life

This past weekend was full of family as we celebrated my cousin Tim’s wedding to his long time girlfriend, Morgan! So here is a quick recap of the weekends events.

Friday, we both took a half day in hopes that we could head out mid-afternoon and get down to Columbus early evening… but I had a little too much on my to-do list before that happened. Running around making stops, getting an oil change in, and then forgetting about our call with a wedding planner that I was expecting to have while we were already in the car, pushed back our leave time by about 2-hours, oops! We dropped Moz over to our neighbors, and then finally hit the road and got into Columbus a little after 7pm.

Dinner reservations were at 8:30pm, whenever my family has a weekend of any sort together (especially weddings) it is ALWAYS jammed packed with family dinners, activities, workouts, you name it. So we headed to Bravo! Cucina Italian – my first time there, andddd I know it’s a chain, but I wasn’t impressed at all. Service was slow and the food wasn’t that great. Which only led me to snack on Doritos later in the evening. *smiles* After dinner was over, some people went to the casino and others headed back to the hotel.  We stopped and grabbed some adult beverages to hang out at the hotel with my parents, Nate and Kiera.

Saturday morning we slept in until 9:30!! We haven’t slept in, in so long, it was so amazing! We got up and headed to Starbucks and then came back to workout and hang with the family. The hotel had a basketball court so everyone was hanging out between there and the pool while I sweated through a 45-minute boot camp workout, luckily my cousin Niki joined halfway through! From there we headed to lunch at First Watch, yum! (Avocado toast for days, please and thanks.) By the time we got back after lunch it wasn’t long before we had to start getting ready for the wedding.

IMG_2908
The ceremony; was so nice and the vows were beyond sweet. Tim and Morgan have been together for nearly 11-years, not to mention living long distance, so this has been a long time coming. My cousin Tim is a bit more reserved than the rest of us, so it was so awesome seeing him pull out his handmade scroll with his vows and reading them with so much love and truth in what he was saying.  After they said their vows, and kissed the rest of the night was about celebrating!

Tim & his adorable Mom
Morgan coming down the aisle
The kiss!
The send off – big smiles.

The reception was at La Scala Restaurant, which had a back room for the reception area and was the perfect size to accommodate everyone. The staff was great catering to everyone and we had our own private bar in the back which worked out perfectly too! Although it took some tweaking for the mixed drinks, since I’d like to say my family is a bunch of alcohol snobs, it would’ve been easier if we could just get behind the bar, ha! The dinner was served family style, which I really liked. It was a mix of lasagna, two types of chicken, green beans, and mashed potatoes, with salad and bread as the starter. Yum!

Forever Wedding Date ❤
Our Table!
Kiera & Nate
Their cake!
Most of the Fruit Loops!

Once the dancing finally started, the rest of the night was toast (unless a country song came on, then the dance floor was nearly cleared out, yet the DJ still insisted on playing his set-list).  Everyone tore up the dance floor and definitely got a second workout in. I think B danced the most out of all the weddings we’ve been too together, it was so much fun! Of course, there were a few breaks for shots – although we had to order them in the main restaurant, so it was funny to see the bartender mix up 25-lemon drops and a rowdy crowd come into the main area demanding shots.

B and Tim
The First Dance
Jordan and I cutting a rug
Me and Niki
Hampel Ladies
With the beautiful bride
Final Dance!

It was a great time,  and family drama was at a fair minimum, minus a few situations which I am currently ignoring for the time being. *smiles* You could tell how happy Tim and Morgan were and how excited they were for their big day and commitment to each other. They’re truly just a sweet couple. It’s always a great party when we are welcoming another person into our family, needless to say everyone was hurting the next day.

We had a family brunch Sunday morning so everyone could see each other one last time before we all went our separate ways, a family tradition for wedding weekends. B and I were back home by 12:30 and got our little pune baby back (Moz). She was exhausted from her weekend with her friend Maybel! We were exhausted too, so it was a lazy afternoon.

Cheers to another beautiful wedding and fun weekend!

#CoakleyEverAfter – Part 2

| The Bee Life

Ready for Part 2?!

Katie was one of the most beautiful brides. Her dress was perfection and she was glowing. We made our way to the venue after everyone got ready at the hotel, the rain was starting to pick up on and off as we got to the venue, so came the decision of keeping the ceremony outside or setting up inside just in case. It was touch and go for awhile, and it got set-up inside just in case. About 15-minutes before the start of the ceremony, Katie decided to make it happen outside. The venue was beyond accommodating and made it happen, sprinting to clean off the wet chairs and getting everyone from inside to the outside location.  After all, her vision for the last year+ was having an outdoor wedding, and it was going to happen, rain or shine!

Bathroom Mirror Shot
Almost ready!
Ready to go!
The Ceremony

Katie and Travis wrote their own vows, which were very sweet and touching, in fact that was one of my favorite parts – it was truly personal and unique to them and their relationship. And the rain held off! Woo!!

From the ceremony we went and took pictures while the rest of the guests enjoyed a cocktail hour before the festivities got started around 7.  We were announced and quickly got into the speeches, Katie’s dad spoke, then the best man, and then myself. I was surprisingly so nervous, like shaking nervous! I think it was the setting, and I wanted everything to be perfect. I was told it sounded great! Phew.

After dinner, was the cake cutting, first dances, and then real dancing! It was such a fun night, and like I mentioned before completely surreal to see Katie and Travis married, yet so awesome because they’re completely meant to be. My family was at the wedding too, so it was great to hang out with them, and B once all my official duties were finished (although they never seemed to be, we had to get Katie ready with a new up-do after all the key moments).  There was also a photo-booth, which is always fun to take a few photos with everyone. Enjoy some of my favorite pictures from the night!

Cake Cutting
First Dance
B + Me
Nate, Kiera + Mom
Dad, Me + B
Me, Travis, B + Katie
Katie and I with Lori, her mom
Genesee Light, in cans.
Katie & Her Dad dancing
Best Friends.

The night was just perfect mainly because it was Katie’s wedding. I can’t wait to see her professional photos from the day, not to mention her photographers were awesome. We helped shut the place down and clean up. By the time we got back to my parents it was probably 2AM. It was strange saying bye to Katie with no future plans in hand like we’ve had for the last few months, which I’ve truly enjoyed. But I know we will be seeing each other soon. Hopefully they’ve landed safely for their honeymoon!

Cheers to the bride + groom!

 

 

5 Unique Wedding Gifts

| The Bee Life

With wedding season quickly here, I wanted to share some unique gift ideas for the bride and groom.  If you’re like me and in the wedding party, you seem to bring gifts to every occasion you go to, so coming up with fresh, unique ideas without just buying off the registry can get hard after awhile. Wedding Gift Guide - the bee lifeAlso to clarify; these gifts could be for any of the many wedding festivities from the bridal shower, bachelorette/bachelor parties, rehearsal and day of the wedding.

Make Something. Find a local shop/studios were you can create and make you’re own ceramic pieces, whether it be from scratch or painting a pre-made piece. My future MIL, owns a studio (Studio Clay) where you can create plates, bowls, dishes, ornaments, figurines… you name it, out of clay.  Visiting a place like this, not only gives you a fun experience but also allows you to create an original piece for the couple.

Remember Memories. You may need to get a little creative for this one, but this will help the couple remember all their memories, especially as they start their journey as husband and wife. You can make the couple a custom jar (decoupage), a box, or basket with instructions for the couple to fill it with love notes or memories throughout the year. Then on New Year’s Day each year, instruct the couple to take turns and read them to each other reflecting over the year. This is low cost, genuine and something the couple can use year after year.

The Honeymoon. Think about the honeymoon, especially if your in the bridal party, buy some special necessities or gear for the bride and groom. Whether it be matching swim suits, sunglasses, or even a honeymoon survival kit with sunscreen, condoms (or not!), lingerie, lip balm… you name it. Or just focus on the bride, a cute carry-on, new make-up bag or even a fun purse she can rock.  Just think of things that they couple may not be thinking of, but want/need!

Pitch-In. If you know the couple is saving up for a house, or big home renovation, find some family and friends to help pitch-in on a fund for their future projects as they start their life together. When you tie a meaning to the money, it can add that much sentiment and use for the couple. To make it a little more personal, accompany the money with a gift or trinket, like a toaster (if the couple desperately wants a new kitchen).

Photo Gifts. Here is a little plug for Shutterfly, simply because I just love them.  They’ve expanded their offerings immensely, you can customize table runners, candles, ornaments, mugs, pillows, blankets… shall I go on?  Use pictures from the couples engagement session to help customize these pieces for a unique and special gift for the Mr. + Mrs. (Not to mention there are always a few good promos going on to take advantage of!)

I think it’s easy to get lazy and just buy the couple a gift card or something off the registry (guilty), especially when you have multiple weddings to attend in one year, but going the little extra step will not only create something memorable for the bride and groom, but will also remind them of the special time you took for them.

Cheers to Wedding Season!

Weekend Recap – Katie’s Bachelorette!

| The Bee Life

Where do I even begin? This past weekend was Katie’s bachelorette party, after months of planning, it was finally the day to actually celebrate!!

We started the afternoon with a toast to the bride, I selfishly wanted some practice for my MOH speech, although totally winged this one.  We then piled onto the limo bus with our coolers and started the party.  Apparently you can get pretty buzzed in 30-minutes thanks to Jell-O shots, wine and champagne – oh and some fun music.  We were also lucky enough to have some hotties join us for the days festivities, you may know them… Channing Tatum, Ryan Gosling and Benjamin McKenzie (famously known from the OC).IMG_1877Our first stop was Monet & Merlot. A wine and painting place, which is all the rave lately.  This was my first time at one, and I ended up liking it way more than I expected! It went off without a hitch, for having 17ish buzzed women, not to mention we actually finished under the estimated time frame!  We did a pretty simple picture, but I thought it was amazing how everyone’s picture came out differently, even though the directions were all the same.

After paint, we made our way to dinner, although the drive again was a good 30+ minutes, so more jell-o shots, dancing, and drinks. By the time we made it to dinner, I’m not sure if many people were hungry but most people were definitely tipsy. But hey, that’s the point of a Bachelorette party, right?

I loved everything about Katie’s bachelorette, especially because we were celebrating this beautiful girl and everyone truly let loose and had a good time.  I seriously want to consider renting a limo more often just to drink and dance without having any cares!  But all-in-all, we danced, drank maybe a little too much, laughed a lot, took way to many selfies, and had an awesome time. Oh, and the guys were a hit.

The party was definitely a success! And I can’t wait for the wedding, I was a little sad when I said good-bye to Katie realizing the next time I would see her would be DAYS before her wedding as opposed to WEEKS. It amazing that after so long, her big day is finally going to be here.

Gift Guide – Mother’s Day

| The Bee Life

Mother’s Day is May 8th!

If you’re like me, I have a few different “moms” in my life, of course no one takes the cake over my actual mom, Sal, but they are near and dear to my heart. So every Mother’s Day I like to try and give them something different and unique each year, but without going completely overboard – because, let’s face it, I usually do that for my mom. Oh and as much as I love these moms, it’s always usually last minute, (oops!), so hopefully we change that this year, I just looked at the calendar and said, oh crap! It’s almost a week away!
A Gift Guide to Mother's Day! - the bee life
Flowers – Don’t get me wrong I am a huge advocate of flowers, however not your traditional bouquet, I prefer to give an actual plant or tulip bulbs that can be planted after the fact and will return year after year.

Framed Photo – This can be an easy and inexpensive, but still meaningful gift. Framing a picture of you with your mom (recent or old) or even an old photo of your grandma, can be very sentimental.  You can find a number of inexpensive frames at various stores, and make a copy or have an image printed in minutes at a number of stores, like Target, for pennies and cents.

Cards – Always. No matter what gift you give, ALWAYS give a card, hand making one can make it that much more personal, but ALWAYS have a card. And go stock-up now, because if you’re last minute like me, they will be picked over when you actually need one.

Treat Yo Mom – I don’t know about your mom(s), but mine rarely treats herself, and if she does it’s not the best or often.  So providing her with a spa day or certificate to use for a mani/pedi, massage, or facial will most likely be a treat for her! Last year we were able to make a trip out of it, which was that much more fun! If you do try and make a trip out of it, be sure you make that clear when scheduling appointments so they can arrange services in line with each other.

Something She Wouldn’t Buy – Similar to the Spa/Nails, I like to try and get my mom something she wouldn’t normally buy herself. A more expensive top, a decorative piece for the house, kitchen appliances, a fancy purse… you get the drift.

Handcrafted – I’ve been big into DIY’s, especially reusing old wood from our house projects (I’m sure I sound like a broken record).  So making some handcrafted, custom signs that can be put up around the house is on my list this year. Of course if you have a particular craft or DIY you’ve been dying to try, do it for this Mother’s Day! I just pinned this adorable hand painted flower pot that would be perfect to pair with some flowers.

I’ve gotten to a point in my life, that I can give gifts and show my love and thanks to these special women in my life like I would like too… in college or even younger when money was a bit tight, I had to be clever and creative to give back, I still like being creative and unique with my gifts, but now I can just think a little more outside of the box!

What’re your favorite go-to gifts for Mother’s Day?

Bikini Tini: The Recipe

| The Bee Life

With the weather starting to be continually gorgeous and finally warm, here is a drink recipe that will surely get you in that summer mood. A friend asked me what a “Bikini Tini” was and I told them, it’s a beach vacation bottled up in a drink, all you need to do is close your eyes while you take the first sip and you’ll be transported to someplace tropical. Oh and get your bikini ready. TheWhat You’ll Need:
– Malibu Rum
– Vodka
– Pineapple Juice (I recommend the 6 oz cans)
– Grenadine
– Fruit of your choice to garnish
– Martini Shaker

I mix the Malibu Rum, Vodka, and Pineapple Juice 1-to-1-to-1, I usually eyeball, but a serving for two you’ll want to do at least a shot and a half of each.  Then literally just pour a ‘dash’ of the grenadine to get a nice pink color. Give it a shake (with some ice cubes of course) and pour in a martini glass for your enjoyment.  If you’re nervous about this being too strong you can pour a little extra pineapple juice in.

CAUTION: This will go down smooth and quickly.  
I promise this will be your new summer go-to drink! I am planning on making a pitcher for Katie’s Bachlorette party and it’s always a favorite at my aunts – they got me hooked.

Cheers!

DIY: Bridal Shower Decor

| The Bee Life

The fun thing for every party or event, at least in my opinion, is in the details! It’s the little things that make an impact and can really elevate the look and feel, every little thing, from the signage to the centerpieces to the activities and photos. You may remember a few of my inspiration ideas for Katie’s Bridal Shower from THIS POST, back in January… well now you get to see the spin I took on them and even how to make these yourself!

Photo-Booth Ribbon Wall

You will need…
1) About 5-6 different types of ribbon (different thickness, patterns, colors) and about 2-spools of each type (total of 12 spools; try and go when it’s on-sale or you have a coupon!)
2) Rope or cord long enough for 6-ft length (can vary based on your need)
3) Hot glue gun and glue sticks
4) Measuring Tape
5) Scissors

I cut my ribbon pretty much at the same length and did a little over 4-ft, again you can customize as you please but this may affect how much ribbon you buy.  I did a little over 4-ft to accommodate for a fold-over in the next step.  So, the purpose for my ribbon wall backdrop, was to simply serve as that, a back drop for a make-shift photo booth that the shower (not intended for full body picture taking!)

Once I had all of my ribbon cut I began to start a pattern of how the ribbons would be organized, I did a little mix-matching too because I wanted to make it look more organic.  I tied the ends of my rope, so that it would be even, and then I started gluing the ribbon by folding over the edges and gluing these tight.  I would suggest doing this on a surface you don’t mind getting sticky and hot glue residue everywhere.
CAUTION: You will burn your fingers, it might be smart to use a utensil of some sort to push down the folded ribbon, unless you don’t mind burning your fingers (like me).
CAUTION #2: Be careful where you put your hot glue gun down, and to not rest your hand on it and burn your pinky (like me).

So hopefully you can finish this with only minor or no burns, and have a beautiful backdrop for your special day!

A few other tips: knowing where you’re going to hang this banner ahead of time (and the color of the walls) may be helpful, as I mentioned in the post about Katie’s shower I had never been to the venue, so I was hoping and praying it would all workout. Luckily the venue didn’t mind tacking things to the wall (but other venues might not!) and the tacks were a bit tricky with the thickness of the rope.

Mimosas & Bride-to-Be Banners

So you can buy these on Etsy for $18-20 each or you could make these for a grand total of $6-8 each and a little bit of your time!

You will need…
1) Scrapbook paper sheets (you should be able to get 4-letters out of one 12×12 sheet – buy a few extra is you think you might mess up! I would also recommend the heavier card-stock pieces too, usually solid colors.
2) Roll of ribbon of your choice (at least a half-inch thick)
3) Paint/stencils or markers
4) Hole punch and scissors

I fold the scrapbook paper in half, and cut and then cut halves of the half’s, to get four squares.  For the mimosas banner, I used different patterned paper and for the Bride-to-Be banner I used a darker, burlap like color to mimic the inspiration I found on Pinterest, aka Etsy. You can then start lettering on the squares, again for these two banners I did a mix of markers and then paint with stencils to do a more rustic look. Once everything is dry, I use the hole punch to cut two holes at the top corners of each square and then I thread my ribbon through and cut appropriately for length. These both worked out perfectly for a little something extra at the shower!

IMG_1133IMG_1113A few other pieces that help top everything off where mason jar centerpieces with ribbon glued around the center, with baby’s breath and carnations filling the jars! Adding something fresh to the tables, definitely made an impact. I also had mini-chalk boards that were signs for a table with goodies and even for the photo-booth.

The cost to make these vs. buying them definitely saved money and I was able to create completely custom pieces that fit a theme to have everything match, while incorporating her bridal colors when and where I could.