Cactus and Tropicals Wedding

A darling girl we know got hitched a while ago. It was very beautiful reception. They had it at a place called "Cactus and Tropicals". I had never been there before. But is is very pretty.

my cute husband holding our gift...And my friend Bethann....

Sign in book table..... Aren't they a cute couple? I think so....

It's kind of up on a hill in Draper. So you can see the hills of South Valley all the way to the West Hills of the Salt Lake City valley. It was a beautiful night too!

Cactus and Tropicals view of the valley.....

There was a lovely view off the upper deck....

It was a beautiful afternoon....

This young woman who was getting married I have a very soft spot in my heart for. She and her sister were the girls who spearheaded a Festival of Trees Christmas Tree for my son Danny after he was killed in a car accident one rainy October Day.

Some of her bridesmaids....hi girls! Aren't you so cute! 

 She had all her friends in the young women's organization at church make ornaments in Black and Red, the Alta High School colors. And she added hockey ornaments of every kind and had the Alta High Team Danny played on sign a hockey stick. Then they had Alta High Hawks flags on the tree too. It was such a beautiful thing.


Some of the boys in the ward who were Danny's friends helped too. Then later somebody anonymously  bought the tree and had it delivered to our house the week before Christmas. It's one of the nicest, sweetest things anyone has ever done for us,...... the Danny Tree. I love this young woman, her sister, and her family a lot.

Her name is Megan. She is beautiful inside and out...Remington is not too bad either ...:D

We keep the Danny Tree up at our cabin at Bear Lake. It is a wonderful reminder to us to be as giving to others at Christmas as we felt others showered us with love and generosity, and their hearts. Maybe it's something good to try to do all year?

Beautiful and unusual flowers were everywhere.....

BRIDAL PARTY....(don't the guys always look just SO INTERESTED in receptions?) LOL ..

And lots of pretty statuary and pottery too.... I've gotta get one of these for my house! Love it! 

I wanted to take this one home with me!

Pretty tables....

FATHER OF THE BRIDE....

Me and the MOTHER OF THE BRIDE...  HEY!   WE LOOK PRETTY HOT! 

Her mom, Heidi is so much fun. We sometimes go away with a bunch of us girls for a weekend girls getaway and laugh and stay up talking and watching movies till the wee hours. And then of course there is the SHOPPING!

SISTER TESSA ON HER MISSION.... I.LOVE this DARLING girl too! Such a sweetie!  Hi Tessa! 

cUtE! bRo 

Hi Megan!   Give her a kiss....SMacK! 

Cute cake and fresh flowers... purple and yellow flowers were everywhere! 

Brother of the bride.... Her brothers are both so cute and so funny! 

O

 Our friend Aimee Ferre made this cute swag with their pictures hanging....

Fresh fruit and yummy cake...but I liked the chocolate truffle best....I'm a chocoholic tho....

Delicious treats.... Everything's better with CHOCOLATE! 

yummy lemonades...

A happy girl on her happy day...

Lots of perfect orchids....one of my favorite flowers....

pretty stuff here and there....

Cute helpers.....I love these girls too! 

So cute....I loved her summer punch....

There were even interesting hanging plants on the ceiling.....

A lovely couple they are.....mhmmmm...

Mom of the groom.....and cute sis too....

Lots of good party goers.... Do we know how to party or what? 

Loved this pretty corner....

Family and friends....the most important thing in life...am I right?  

Interesting things everywhere you look....

The back of Cactus and Tropicals.....

Beautiful Bride..... Handsome Groom...who loves beautiful bride....

Beautiful ambiance....

and statuary.....

Beautiful Day....

Ah....don't ya just love weddings?    Me too...

VMAs 2011

Here are some of my favorite iconic music legends that were on the VMAs Sunday. I love the music these women write and sing. They have such heartfelt, haunting lyrics and their voices are kinda scratchy and deep. I like that kind of singer.  I loved this oil painting done to the song.

This artist is Adele from England. I've seen many of her videos and she is always awesome and can make me cry with her lyrics....this is one of those tear jerking melodies she wrote. Such an interesting, kind of raspy/deep voice she has. Love her.

It was fun to have Beyonce announce she's going to have a baby just by unbuttoning her jacket at the end of her song and rubbing her baby bump tummy. I don't think people knew. Her fans just went wild. That was so cute. I didn't love the song tho.  All in all a great show.

Fun Utah Festivals 2011

In UTAH they have lots of fruit festivals that I love. We just attended Raspberry Days at Bear Lake over this last weekend and it was a great arts and crafts exhibit. We also attended the Park City Art Festival (no fruit attached to this one LOL) and it was an array of amazingly talented artists. I love it!

Here's a Link to the Onion Festival.

Next coming up is the Onion Festival in Payson, Utah which we have not attended but we might this year. It is September 2nd through the 5th. Here is a schedule of all the events.

Payson's Onion Days

Payson

Sep 02 - Sep 05

Come enjoy a craft fair, carnival, live entertainment, and a parade on Labor Day.

Phone: (801) 465-5200
Event Hours: Varies
Admission: Free
Location: Memorial Park
Address: 250 South Main Street, Payson

Here's a Link to Peach Days.

       


And the Peach Festival in Brigham City September 7th to the Saturday the 10th. John Schmidt is one of the free nightly entertainers. I love that guy. Here is a schedule of the Saturday activities which we will drive up to attend in Brigham City.


Saturday September 10th
All Day SCUBA Burgers, Activities, & Raffles - Main Street
Art/Crafts/Food Vendors - Main St./Comm. Center
Carnival and More Activities - Forest Street
6:30a.m. – 10:00a.m. Fire Department Breakfast - Fire Station on Forest St.
Softball Tournament - Pioneer Park
8:30 a.m. 10K – 6.2 Mile Road Race Starts - Brigham City Tabernacle
10:00 a.m. Peach Days Parade - Main St
10:00 a.m. Bonnevills Rod & Custom Car Club Show - Watkins & Pioneer Park
12:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Helicopter Rides at Box Elder High School Soccer Fields, $25.00 per person for reservations call 435-752-3828
12:00 – 6:00 p.m. Book Sale - Brigham Library
12:00 - 4:00 p.m. Peach Days Flower Show - Community Center
1:00 – 7:00 p.m. Entertainment - Main Street Stage
1:00 p.m. Motorcycle Show - Forest Street (400 - 500 West)
2:00 p.m. Art & Photography Contest Awards - Museum
3:00 p.m. Melodrama - Fine Arts Center
4:00 p.m. Writing Contest Awards - Museum
5:00 p.m. Melodrama - Fine Arts Center
7:00 p.m. Melodrama - Fine Arts Center
7:30 p.m. Jon Schmidt Concert - Main St. Stage

http://www.utahparade.com/bf/mem/

The other fun thing that happens in Utah in the summer is the Parade of Homes. I love going and seeing million dollar homes and all the beautiful landscaping and decorating they have done. My favorite is happening now; the Park City Parade of Homes going on this weekend, next weekend and Labor Day weekend. It is one way to get some great decorating ideas. The price is $12.00 and the online tickets can be purchased HERE.

Here's a Link for Swiss Days.

The other few festivals I look forward to are the Swiss Days in Midway and Heber area. This is always on Labor Day weekend too and I have missed it the last few years. It is a fun one because everybody dresses up in Swiss garb and the music is playing and everything is decorated like a little Swiss village.



I love going to see the crafts, the fun festival food booths and games, the entertainment put on by the small communities and all the peaches and onions they have for sale at these festivals. I brought home some raspberry jam and fresh raspberries at Raspberry Days in Bear Lake, Utah and they were both delicious! I think it will be a fun time. I can't wait for these upcoming fun festivals and parades.