Wedding Books

One of my favorite things to do in the world is wedding sign in books. About this time last year one of my friend's was getting married. For some reason I volunteered myself to do her sign in book. Amanda did a book for me and so per usual I figured that I could rely on my sisters skills to get me by. (I have a really bad habit of volunteering myself when I am really volunteering my family because I only have half the skills and have to rely on the other individual for the rest but I am getting much better and I don't think I do it as often.) So my friend and I went and bought the product and later I pleaded with my sisters to please please take one night out of their busy schedules to have a scrap booking party. I figured if they would each do a lay out or two we could get it done pretty fast. Luckily they obliged and the book got finished.

Well about two months later another friend of mine was getting married. Again I told her I would make her sign in book. This time I had some friends help me with the project. Both times I kind of did them very last minute. (I work better under pressure). So one night starting at 3pm and ten hours later we finished at about 1am.

You would think I would have seen the error of my ways but don’t you worry I’m denser then that and my story gets worse. A lady saw the first book I had done for my best friend and asked her if I would be willing to do one for her daughter. We got the supplies and materials and she gave me all of the pictures to do the book. I kind of really put off this one and that is where this story gets really painful. The book was due two nights before June 3^rd 2007. All the family was together that Friday night when I got a frantic call from the sister of the bride asking where the wedding book was. It was about 5:45 p.m. and they needed the book by 7. I had already done some of the book but I wasn’t even close to done. With the help of my amazing sisters and Devin, we got the book done and as we finished Devin took pages at a time to the reception so that people could start signing them. Painful experience for all. Good thing I have such amazing, talented, wonderfully nice sisters.

Needless to say, I did learn from that experience and have since done two more books. One for my friend Shaina and presently I am doing Darci Weaver’s book.

I am almost done with Darci’s and now that the painful experiences are over and I start months before the wedding is scheduled, things go a lot smoother. My kitchen table doesn’t always appreciate the over use/constant clutter because it very often has a wedding book in progress on it but I love the hobby and spending the time making the books. I don’t really make that much doing them because the first couple I did for friends and gave it to them as their present and if I do get paid it never quite amounts to the time spent, or extra money I inevitably spend at ribbons and lace or scrapbooks etc for extra supplies but I love the hobby.

Here’s pictures from the latest book.

Laura (Jones) Fletcher

Grandpa and Grandma Blazzard
(my mom's parents)

I thought we'd begin with how I got my name My mom’s dad is Max Blazzard and he had an aunt named Laura. So I am named after my great aunt Laura. It was pronounced Lara as is mine and spelled Laura, which most people pronounce as Lora. This happens to be the bane of my existence. As a teenager, friends would call my house asking for Lora to which my dad would reply that no Lora lived there and hang up. Lots of confusion and frustration later, I would eventually find out who called and what they wanted.

left to right: Mae, Sharon, Dave and Max Blazzard

Anyway, I am named after this aunt because she was always particularly nice to my grandpa Max. My grandpa’s parents divorced early in his life and so he was raised by his grandma Julia (hence my lil sis’s name) and his aunt Laura. Aunt Laura was idolized by the family because of her kind and giving nature. She always tried to be extra nice to grandpa. When she would make ice cream, all of the kids would swarm around waiting to see who she would give the beaters to lick and she would always give them to Max. When the kids would all come in for pie she would inevitably give Max the largest slice. When Max was a boy his Grandma Julia would get so frustrated because she fed her chickens everyday and she still had to buy eggs because they wouldn’t lay any. Little did she know but it was because Max was gathering up the eggs before she had a chance and selling them to the local store for a nickel a piece so he could buy candy. Aunt Laura knew all along but never told on him.

So even though I've been called Laurel, Lora, and Laira throughout my life, I've always been grateful for my name because I know I was named for a purpose. My mom and dad wanted me to lo9ok up to my great-great Aunt Laura and try to be like her.

from left to right: Annie, Laura, Devin, Mae Blazzard, Max Blazzard

alright...

get excited (except really don't) because I have to start keeping a journalish writing notebook for one of my classes and in an effort to save trees I told my teacher she could look at my blog. lets hope this one keeps becuase lets be honest, they never do. be prepared for snoresville because I have to write everyday and for terrible endings because I never know how to end anything. example a. this blogpost.

stark contrast

so now that you know what a horrible person i am (a.k.a spending my life playing the team game and that the reason i didn't post for so long is because my post count was at 69 and i had to make that last as long as possible) i'm going to try and be a spiritual blogger.

this weekend devin and i went to the temple for a sealing for some kids in our ward who are being sealed together with their 2 year old son. beautiful and amazing ordinance espesh when they brought in the screaming 2 year old. no sarcasm intended. he stopped screaming right as they said amen.

anyway afterwards we wanted to go see our dear friend mele as an angel in the reflections of christ exhibit at the temple. as we were walking in we were told by the sister missionary that as we walked through we would know in our hearts who we should share the message of Christ with as she handed us two referral cards. by the end of the exhibit i knew who i needed to put on that card...

as for the exhibit, i can't explain it and still give it the credit it deserves. it was very profound and well done.

i heard from mele that mark mabry spent a huge amount of time reading the scriptures and other church material preparing for the project and i am grateful for his preparation.

i think we all appreciate Christ for different reasons and that our life's experiences reflect the reasons we are grateful for our savior Jesus Christ. For me, those reasons I am most grateful for Him are the atonement and the resurrection. Therefore as I was walking through the exhibit, the pictures that i loved and that struck me were different from the ones devin pointed out. I have always identified with the story of the adulteress in John 8:3-11, where the savior admonishes her to go and sin no more.

my favorite greg olson print is called forgiven.
there is a similar one in reflections of Christ that really stood out to me. In this picture the adulteress has her hand outstretched to the savior as if she is pleading for help and to be saved. it just reminded me of how grateful i am for the atonement in my life and how i needed it just like we all do to be worthy of the temple and to be worthy of the blessings we receive there like being sealed together as families forever.

which leads to my other favorite picture in the refections of Christ exhibit, the resurrected. i haven't ever seen another picture of the resurrected savior that i have found as powerful. to me it beckons a person, the person looking at the picture, to follow Him while reminding them that he atoned for our sins and died so that we might live. i am eternally indebeted to him all that i have and am. i know that he lives and that because he lives i will live again with daniel and my mom. i know that he has provided the way and i am grateful that i belong to a church that has leaders like Gordon B. Hinckley along with the other fourteen apostles that lead that way through their example
my testimony of the savior was strengthened by the pictures of Christ but more so by the spirit that accompanied them and the witness that was born to me that the most important thing i need to do in my life is build a solid relationship with my savior.

call me selfish but by the end of the exhibit I knew exactly who needed to go on that referral card.

me