Ok, I simply must admit it. I am TIRED!! I am hosting a “girly” baby shower (yay!) at my house tomorrow coupled with getting the kids ready for school to start on Monday. We have been trying to have as much fun as possible during the last week of their freedom before we are put on a set schedule.

Oh, yes this is about weddings, I know, but after weddings come babies and those babies grow up and go to school eventually, right? That is one thing about Hill City Bride that I love. I want you to have the best wedding EVER … have fun planning and making your day a celebration of you and your love while also having your tastes and style completely reflected. I also enjoy giving you some tidbits for after the wedding day, hence columns like Newly Wed and posts like first time home buying tips.

I have had a great week (which is probably why I am so worn out!!), and I will be posting some new vendors along with hosting some very fun giveaways over the next few weeks … I can NOT wait to share some of the things with you. Have a wonderful weekend, and I am leaving you with a beautiful bouquet photographed by Sabrena Deal of S Carter Studios. Enjoy!

Ok, forgive the slight play on words, but I just wanted to share this cute cake with you. Who ever knew that adding something as simple as rock candy to a cake could turn out so cute and fun!? This could even serve as a DIY project, and the rock candy can be made to match your wedding (of course!). Here is a recipe for rock candy … it would be fun to at least test it out.

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend. I have been doing a lot of blogging lately,  and I am looking forward to sharing more with you next week!!

If I am allowed to get sappy for a bit, I will. I had a few “moments” this week where I was truly overwhelmed with emotion about Hill City Bride. The site has been up and running for a mere 6 weeks, but the response has FAR exceeded my expectations! I am so thankful for all of HCB’s readers, and I am thrilled to have such quality columnists on board.

Also, I need to give a shoutout to the advertisers (see them there on the right?) as most of them trusted me right up front without seeing anything … they jumped on board with faith in what I was doing, and that in itself is amazing to me. I can not thank them enough for being a part of Hill City Bride.

The surveys have been great for me. I have had a few things to ponder, so I will be making some changes (yes, already!). You want to see MORE … more weddings, more details, so I am going to be moving from featuring one Everyday Brides session to two. We have such a great mix of quality photographers in our area, and I am proud to feature their work. If you would like to weigh in with any comments, please feel free to click here to fill out the survey.

For our Flower Friday, I chose a bouquet photographed by Heather Cheatham of Visions by Heather. I mainly chose this bouquet because to me the word “happy” came to mind, and that is just what I am feeling right now. Plus, the more I looked at it, the more I noticed each and every different color  and texture that was within the bouquet … very beautiful!

If you missed our giveaway, please feel free to enter … just click here. Again, you do not have to be a bride to be a part of the giveaway, so enter as much as you can. I hope that you have a wonderful weekend, and I will join you again next week!

What a fun week at Hill City Bride … especially with the giveaway! I love treating HCB’s readers to the thrill of being able to win something (I know I like to take my chances and enter for freebies!!).

Next week, there are some fun things in the works such as the new feature, “The Exclusive”, which will answer some of your wedding planning dilemmas … this column will also be an avenue for you to ask questions of a qualified, experienced wedding planning team (likened to the “Dear Abby” column of wedding planning!).

A beautiful bridal session will be featured that you will not want to miss (think parasols and bubbles of a different sort), and the next Giveaway Wednesday is full of fun for anyone … especially at a wedding reception (hint, hint!). I even have a creative DIY posting that was submitted by one of HCB’s talented vendors, and it has the bonus of being budget friendly!

If you have a little time, feel free to pop on over to Survey Monkey and fill out the survey. I would love to hear your feedback … after all, this is YOUR site.

Also, today’s Flower Friday bouquet (do you not love the unique color combination?) was photographed by Jeremiah Guelzo of Stone Blue Productions … I am also sending him a big “Happy Birthday” today from Hill City Bride. Everyone have a wonderful weekend, and I am truly looking forward to a great week ahead in postings!

Well, we are coming to the end of another great week here at Hill City Bride! Do not forget to enter our Giveaway Wednesday … you have until 11:59 pm on Tuesday night to enter. Our winner will be announced on Wednesday the 21st.

Next week we plan on showing you a great new cake trend (that we recently discovered ourselves!!) along with a fun DC E-session. Meanwhile, check out this beautiful bouquet photographed by Crystal George of Crystal George Studios, and have a wonderful weekend!