We were contacted by Freddy in January for a wedding on January 30, 2010. Freddy was very nice and excited to arrange a surprise carriage ride for his daughter Candace and her soon-to-be-husband Zach. Surprise? Sure, we're in. We enjoy surprises as much as anyone else. So, Freddy laid out his plans to us. He wanted us to pick up the bride and groom after their ceremony and take them over to the reception venue. The location? Jacksonville Beach, Florida! Oh, yes, we were excited and hurried to get ready for the event.

Freddy arranged to have the Cinderella Pumpkin top for the wedding. The colors of the wedding were pink and purple. Well, all we had were red roses and that wouldn't do. I set out on a quest to decorate the carriage to match the color theme of their wedding. What did I find? Michael's Craft Store to the rescue! I arrived there just as they were kicking off a sale on all their silk flowers. The light bulb went off in my head and started the creative juices flowing. In no time, I had ten garlands of white flowers collected up. Buy 1 Get 1 free! YAY! Why 10, you may ask? Well, one for each pole of the Cinderella Pumpkin Top. Why the color white? Well, it goes with just about any other color theme so it was flexible. I also had picked up a few pink rose garlands trying to incorporate some of the wedding's colors into the decorations.

Later, I was at Wal-Mart and found a tool for making bows. My thoughts were why not, I can make bows and swags to match the color theme of the wedding. So, I scoped out the ribbon section and found a light pink and purple, along with a white ribbon with gold embroidered words that said "With Love." Off at home, I made up two swags using the pink rose garlands and the ribbon as bows. The "With Love" ribbon, I used at the very center of the swag as my wish for happiness to the newlyweds.

We had a princess birthday party on the same day of the wedding. So scheduling was a bit tight but we managed to fit it all in smoothly. After a fun birthday party, we headed off toward Jacksonville Beach, FL. We arrived and started putting it all together. Big Ben got to munch on hay watching with amusement as we tried to figure out the pumpkin top and the decorations as well. Here's some pictures of us decorating:



Soon, we were off to the chuch to wait for the ceremony to be over. Candace and Zach got married at First Christian Church of the Beaches. On the way there, we were passed by a limo, which was odd. Mike and I joked that the limousine was headed for the same place that we were. To our surprise, it was! So, both the limousine and our horse carriage waited for the bride and groom to come out. The charming thing that caught me of the pretty church was the "C" and "Z" made out of flowers posted on the doors of the church for the first initial of the bride and groom. Very charming. Here's a picture of us waiting anxiously:



As you can tell, it was a very overcast day. We were very worried that we would get rained out but God had other plans and kept the rain at bay. Thank you! So, the time came and Zach and Candace came out to find us waiting for them. The result of the father of the bride's surprise = priceless. See for yourself.



Looks like a happily ever after to me. Best wishes to Candace and Zach!



Photography was done by the charming Corinna Hoffman! I wholeheartedly recommend her.