I am also thankful for this recipe...

For all of you hostesses out there, here is my favorite easy recipe for Thanksgiving dessert. I am hoping to make it for my family this year!

PUMPKIN DUMP CAKE

Ingredients:
29 ounce Can of Pumpkin
4 Eggs
13 ounce Canned Pet Milk
1 1/2 Cups of Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon of Nutmeg
2 Teaspoons of Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon of Ginger
1 Package of Yellow Cake Mix
1 Cup Melted Margarine
1 Cup Chopped Nuts (optional!)
Cool Whip

Directions:
Beat the first 7 ingredients together. Pour into an over sized (9x13 works) pan. Sprinkle the cake mix on top. Pour the melted butter over the top and sprinkle with nuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Serve this warm with some Cool Whip on top!

Enjoy! Here are some fun Thanksgiving Centerpieces that I love from Hostess with the Mostess...

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! In the spirit of this wonderful holiday, I wanted to take a moment to say THANKS to everyone for a great 2008! This is the perfect timing for a THANK YOU, as we concluded our year of weddings this past weekend with Jamey & Mike. It has been a great year...one of growing, learning, changing, and having a great time! It is all because of those who I work with that I am thankful.

I am thankful for my 15 brides and 15 grooms this year. Each of you had such distinct days, all beautiful and so unique to each of you. You brought joy to my days and taught me so much! It is for you that I strive to do my best.

I am thankful for the parents who were alongside us in the planning process. You all allowed your children to dream big, and have the weddings they had always hoped for. The love you all show your children is that which I hope to show to my own some day.

I am thankful for my wonderful team of Kristen, Ki, and Haleigh. You all have just outdone yourselves and have contributed greatly to our successful year. You each bring such individualized talents to the team, and I am thankful for the hard work and care you put into each wedding.

I am thankful for the great vendor community we have here in Northwest Arkansas. What a great world to be a part of! Each vendor I have the chance to interact with is so helpful, encouraging, and wants to work together for the best interest of the client. You all make my job an enjoyable one!

I am thankful for my supportive hubby, family, and friends who have encouraged me to follow my dream in this business. I don't think anyone else could sit and listen to me talk about weddings constantly as much as they do. I love you all!

Thank you everyone for a wonderful year of weddings in 2008! I am so grateful! Don't forget to stop and let those you are thankful for know it this Thanksgiving! Enjoy your turkey & travel safely!

All my love,
Jenessa

Your Date is Booked? Call Anyway!

Don't forget that if your date is marked as booked on our calendar you can STILL work with us! Some of the dates listed are Wedding Weekend clients and some are full scale planning clients. Since we have such a great team of 4, we have the capability to work two weddings on the same day!

Funny Fridays

I hope your groom is as excited as this one...the caption on the original video is he "caught the Holy Spirit!" Have a great weekend!

What a Great Team!

I am so proud of my Assistants, Ki & Kristen, who worked their first solo wedding in Fort Smith a couple of weeks ago. I was in NWA along with Haleigh at another wedding. I just wanted to brag on my girls and their talents in service, creativity, and organization. Here are notes from the bride & the mother of the bride from Ki & Kristen's solo wedding...the biggest compliment is that they felt our services were the best spent money for their wedding! Thanks Rachel & Cindy!

Jenessa, Ki and Kristen,
Thank you so very much for your guidance before the wedding and for EVERYTHING you did the weekend of Rachel and Brian's wedding. I can seriously say I could not have done it without you! Ki and Kristen were great. Everyone commented on how professional they were. I appreciate them taking charge and "handling" everything for the reception on the day of the wedding. It allowed me time to spend with Rachel and the girls, which meant alot to me. It was all great!
Thank you all so much!
Cindy McNally

Jenessa,

Just wanted to tell you what an AMAZING job Ki and Kristen did last weekend. We could not have done it without them! They were so great! When Brian and I go to our hotel room Saturday night, the first thing Brian said was how great they were. He was very impressed that he didn't have a empty drink in his hand all night, and his drink was cold at all times! (That's a big deal to him!). haha But seriously, they are so great- you all were- and we were so glad to have you involved. Mom said having you guys was the best money we spent on the wedding, and I agree. Thank you so so much for everything! I hope the wedding you were at went as great as ours! To my knowledge, everything went off pretty much without a hitch (Ki and Kristen might know things I don't know!), but it was absolutely perfect. I appreciate everything that you, Ki, and Kristen did! Y'all are the best!

Love,
Rachel

Book a Band & Make a Difference

Looking to book a band for your wedding or party? Here is a great opportunity for you!



The Peace at Home Family Shelter in Fayetteville is hosting its 2nd Top Chefs and Rock Stars on December 15th at the Fayetteville Town Center. This charity event includes tastings from locally renowned chefs as well as a live band auction. Local bands, including BigUns, Ultra Suede, Opal Fly, and many more will donate one performance to be auctioned off at the event. The performance can be used any time within the next year, excluding New Year's Eve. All of the proceeds go directly to support the Peace at Home Family Shelter!

You can purchase tickets to this event on Peace at Home's website, www.peaceathomeshelter.org or by calling the Shelter at 479-444-8310.

We've Been Published!

Check out Lauren & Stuart's wedding feature in Weddings in Arkansas, published by AT HOME magazine. I love the article and how Lauren's choice of citrus colors stands out and draws you in to read more! Jason Hudson provided the photography for their wedding day. You can pick this magazine up at places around the state. I got my copy at Barnes & Noble while I was sipping a warm cup of Starbucks. Perfect for a cold day!

Funny Fridays

Along with my job come lots of emails from friends & family who come across really funny things they think I would like to see or check out. This one comes from Meredith, and while it is really funny, it is OH SO SMART at the same time...



Can you just imagine a wedding reception full of people with "finger food?" Hillarious! Thanks for sharing, Meredith!

Winter Brides

The air is getting colder, night time comes a little bit faster...winter is almost here! (Since I am not a cold weather fan, it seems to me like it has already arrived.)

One of the reasons I wanted a winter wedding for myself when I was a little girl was solely to have a "muff." You know, like the Disney princesses had, along with their beautiful white fur shrug or wrap. Well, I STILL love this look with all of my heart. It is so classic & beautiful, and I just love to see winter wedding photos where brides go for this style.

I love taking the traditional elements such as these, and finding new ways to twist them with a modern style. Here's a great example of the winter muff, with a fun twist....why not make it floral? I love this idea, which I found on Style Me Pretty. If any of you winter brides out there go for this look, please send pics!

We Did It!

The J.Bailey Occasions team has officially survived its first 2-wedding-weekend.

Haleigh and I were in Rogers for Jessica & Jason's super-sweet ceremony and crazy-fun reception, while Ki & Kristen were in Fort Smith at Rachel & Brian's wonderful wedding celebration.

I never doubted that this weekend would be a success, but it is great to have this notch on our belt. Now we can offer even more services on some of those high traffic wedding dates!

More than anything I am so proud of my team for a job well done while I was not around! Kristen & Ki pulled off a full wedding weekend without any assistance from me, and Haleigh single-handedly set up the final details of the reception in an hour after I had to buzz over to the Chapel. They are truly pros and I know you would be so pleased to work with any of them.

We will post pics soon! Thank you to everyone for your continued business & support of J.Bailey Occasions!

Every Party Needs a Great Cake...

This week's Funny Friday post is coming a day early, as tomorrow is going to be a super busy day for us. We're looking forward to Jessica and Jason's wedding on Saturday, along with Rachel & Brian's wedding in Fort Smith too!

A few weeks ago, my brilliant best friend who just happens to be a FABULOUS cake decorator brought to my attention something fantastic. Now I get to share with you...

Every great party should have some really great sweets, right? Yes, I agree as well. There are so many incredible things that you can do with cakes these days---they can really look like anything! But what about when your cake goes wrong? It can be disheartening to you, all the while providing the rest of us with some fun laughs (after the fact, of course).

For instance...

You take this as your inspiration for your fantastic Curious George Kids' Party...


Upon delivery, you get this...


Which looks more like this...but run over by a dump truck...


If you know me at all, you will know that I will laugh until I cry at things like this. But, of course, if this were to happen at one of my events I would quickly solve the problem and find a way NOT to scare the kiddos with a smashed teen wolf cake. And then laugh later...

For more laughs, check out cakewrecks.blogspot.com. Thanks Alexis for this funny link!

The Morning News Bridal Fair

Thanks to everyone who stopped by our Brides for the Cure booth this Sunday at The Morning News Bridal Fair! We loved meeting everyone, and were thrilled with the response we had! We are super thankful for the vendors who stopped by and donated some fantastic prizes. It's off to a great start.

I also got the chance to stop by the Always and Forever Bridal Booth. Always and Forever is a new bridal gown shop in Fort Smith (which just happens to be my hometown). They had stunning gowns at the show, and even more gorgeous gowns in their books. I was shocked to find out that the dress on their manequin was only $800...looked more like a $2000 dress to me!

They are having a special sale in the month of November, so I thought I would let you all know about it. All of their markdown bridal gowns will be reduced to 1/2 of the original price! If you are dress hunting, stop by and you might just find yourself with the perfect gown for the perfect price. They are also offering all of their discontinued sample bridesmaids dresses for $50!

So, check out their website and tell them I sent you!