Nanny's Big Shower

Pink and green made such a girlie setting!

No one throws a party like Wendi Shove, and if you've been to one before, you know what I mean!

Ryan's mom (a.k.a. "Nanny") threw us a baby shower today, and her list-making and crafting and cooking and decorating truly showed off her creativity and love for a theme. :)  Hot pink and green--it was 100% G-I-R-L from rock candy to polka dots, with a touch of baby birds to top it all off.  Never one to shy away from a motif, Wendi really topped herself this time!

When I walked into Wendi's house, beyond being overwhelmed by the extent and elaborateness of the party decor, my first thought was, "Man, she must be running on adrenaline!" because I know how much time and energy it must've taken her to get everything set up just right.  (I'm sure she will sleep soundly tonight! :) )  She hand-crafted almost everything, from a "custom" piece of art where each guest got to stamp a bird or leaf onto a tree to baby-belly shaped food labels to a tree centerpiece with fancy, feathered birds and pinwheels...so many details were carefully thought-of and executed!

Mmm...Piece of Cake!

My sister-in-law Lisa helped Wendi in her baby shower-ing, and the centerpiece of the dessert table was THE BEST strawberry cake from Piece of Cake.  If you've never had it, you should.  They only sell it during the summer (and on Valentine's Day, which I know because I got up at 8 a.m. this year to ensure that I got one for our Valentine's dinner!), and it is uh-mazing.  If there were ever anyone who knows where to get good food (of any kind) in Atlanta, it's "Aunt Lisa," and really she couldn't have read my mind better on this one!  (I even stole a piece for Ryan--news that he was very excited to hear even being all the way in Ireland.)

Wendi is very blessed to have an amazing group of women to call her friends, and they've been so gracious to Ryan and I throughout our life events.  It's a true testimony to her friendship to them as well as their love for her that they have been so supportive to us, and for that we are so thankful.  It was great to see so many of them because it's rare to see them beyond her annual Christmas party and the occasional run-in around Alpharetta.  It was also fun to celebrate this baby officially with my mom (although we've been informally celebrating along the way!), Ryan's Aunt Alana (who chose to be surprised with the baby's gender at the shower for the first time!) and a few sweet friends as well, making for a fun mix of people from different areas of our lives.

As for the shower itself, we ate, and talked, and ate, and ate...in usual Shove-shindig style. :)  This was definitely the shower that rounded out our baby girl's closet, with a TON of cute, girlie clothes that I know will be put to good use.  (Right about now I think we're at needing at least three outfit changes per day for the first year in order to get through all of the clothes!)  In fact, Wendi's grand finale was a cart literally FILLED (and even overflowing) with baby outfits--complete from head-to-toe with hats and shoes to match!  Everyone gasped when she rolled it out, knowing that she really outdid herself this time. :)  (Of course I didn't get a picture of it--boo!)

I did manage to get a picture of this girl, my mom's "big gift" for the shower...she's about four feet tall and so cute!

What should we name her?

Overall, it was a wonderful event, and I'm thankful to everyone who spent a Saturday afternoon helping us prepare for this baby girl.  You guys are a blessing.

And, of course, THANK YOU SO, SO MUCH to Wendi and Lisa for throwing a shower I'll always remember! We'll never be able to tell you how much we love you guys.