High School Reunion

My high school reunion was the 2nd weekend in October. I was honored to be one of the two co-chairs. It was truly a labor of love. We worked on the reunion for over a year. This picture is of the fabulous Courtyard at Gaslight Square in Corpus Christi, TX. We were so fortunate to have wonderful vendors: Arnold Medina, DJ with Blue Moon Entertainment, Alisa Demers with Ashed Photography and the crew at Gaslight Square and Diamond Point Catering. One of our classmates, Don P., put together a video featuring pics from our high school days and another classmate, Marcie D., made a beautiful cake. People also donated items for door prizes. Several classmates made very generous donations so we were able to pay the bills! LOL

 I really get a kick out of attending my reunions. It's fun seeing people I hadn't seen in many years. We created a Facebook group during the summer of 2014 so we had a head start on finding people. In fact, due to the FB group, I got to know people I never knew in high school.  The reunion festivities were spread out over the entire weekend with an informal gathering on Friday night, the big event Saturday night and a beach party on Sunday.  During the weekend, two of the committee members volunteered to co-chair the next reunion in 5 years.  Thought we'd better not wait a full 10 years!

Gay Wedding Institute Training

Last Friday, June 26th SCOTUS released their 5 - 4 decision making same sex marriage legal in all 50 states. This could bring a large boost in business to wedding professionals in Houston. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've been working with the Gay Wedding Institute since January of this year to bring their training to Houston.  Laura from A La Carte and my company, Meetings and Milestones, are the local co-sponsors. The training will be hosted by one of the most beautiful and popular venues in Houston, The Parador. All wedding professionals including planners, florists, caterers, bakers, invitation designers, decorators, etc. who plan to assist same sex couples in planning their weddings and/or receptions would benefit from this training. The training is coming up this next week.  I'm really excited!

Graduation Parties

Graduation is a special time for family members and friends. Graduating from a school, be it high school, college, graduate or professional school, necessitates a celebration. The party could be just family and close friends or it could be an all-out blast.  Whichever you prefer, I'd be glad to help you plan your celebration. We're in the midst of graduation season now but it's a good time to plan your parties for the future. Do you have a family member or close friend graduating in December or next May/June? Give me a call or e-mail me; I'd be glad to assist you in planning a great party!

The picture I've included is my nephew right after his high school graduation last Friday. Such an exciting time! He'll be going off to college in the fall for a new adventure.

Training for Wedding Professionals

Around the first of the year, I was doing research on the internet. I happened upon a website that offers training for wedding professionals on how to work with same-sex couples as they plan their weddings. I noticed that only two people from Texas are listed on their website as having taken the course so I e-mailed to ask if they've had a training in Texas. The answer was "no" so discussions began between us about scheduling one here. I called a colleague who works in the event planning/catering business and she agreed to collaborate. I found a venue as well so the training is scheduled to take place this summer at one of the most beautiful and popular venues in Houston.

This training comes at a pivotal time in Texas. The Supreme Court is expected to rule in June on whether or not same-sex couples have a right to marry nationwide. During the recent Texas legislative session, HB 4105 was introduced that would have prohibited state or local funds from being used for an activity that includes the licensing or support of same-sex marriage.  Also, a state or local government employee would not have been able to recognize, grant or enforce a same-sex marriage license. The bill did not come up for a vote before the deadline.

Business people who offer merchandise or a service to the public have at some point or another probably sold or provided their merchandise or service to the LGBT community. It make sense then, that if there is the chance same-sex marriage could soon be legal in Texas, wedding professionals would want to be trained by experts in the field on how to assist same-sex couples in planning their weddings so they could be prepared and "ahead of the game,"so to speak.

Good to Be Back!

I'm BAAAACK! It's been a while since I've posted on this blog; I'm happy to be back. Lots going on with Meetings and Milestones. I just completed a project for the Ft. Worth Riverside Lions Club. I planned the April 25th 75th Anniversary Celebration of their chapter. Since it started in 1940, the party had a 40s theme. I collaborated with some great vendors in the Ft. Worth area. The venue was the Golf Club Fossil Creek. Creatively Printing designed the Save the Date, invitations and programs. Fete and Frivolity provided framed, lighted posters from 1940s movies. The McKinney Dance Band played 40s tunes. Guy Phillips from What's That Guy's Name/Photography by Guy T took portraits and candid photos during the evening and Texas Star Bakery made the fabulous cake. I had such fun planning and coordinating the event as well as making all the centerpieces which also followed the 40s theme. I want to thank my high school classmate Eloy and the Lions Club for hiring me as the event planner. It was a blast!

Here are two photos of the party: one of the venue and one of the beautiful cake and the feather centerpiece I made.

My next project is planning a training for wedding professionals. More on that later.

Glad to be back!

Fall is a Great Time of Year!

The photo here was taken in the fall of 2007 at the Balloon Festival in Albuquerque.  I love this time of year in Houston, too. The weather starts to get really nice. From October to March the highs are usually in the 80s then the 70s (yeah!). My husband and I take walks in Hermann Park (we live half a mile away) and just enjoy observing nature and people. This morning on our walk, we noticed tons of families. The zoo must have had some kind of special program for Halloween. The line of cars was unending but lucky for us, we don't have to drive there! There have been lots of changes in the park this year. The whole Rose Garden and Garden Center were redone. It was open last Saturday for one day only and is supposed to be open all the time in December. Looking forward to that. The fall looks like a busy time for me. Next Saturday I'll be a vendor at The Wonderland Gift Market at Cinco Ranch High School in Katy, TX.  November 15th I'll be a vendor at the 2014 Mom's Holiday Market at The Woodlands College Park High School. Meetings and Milestones is also currently planning three events for 2015: a dinner/dance for a service organization, a large business conference and a high school reunion. I have space on my calendar for more events so e-mail me (meetingsandmilestones@gmail.com) or give me a call (832-215-1863). My present projects are being planned long distance so please keep that in mind if you're looking for an event planner but don't live in Houston. Happy Fall, everyone!

The Life Changing Conference for Women

Coming up next week in the Houston area there will be three opportunities to attend The Life Changing Conference for Women. It will be held Wednesday, August 27th in Pearland, then Thursday, August 28th in Sugar Land and Friday, August 29th in North Houston/Spring (see flyer). I'll be selling my faux flower arrangements at the Sugar Land event then attending the North Houston/Spring event as a participant. 

Pictured here is one of my favorite creations. This is from my "Wedding Collection." This arrangement would be perfect as decoration for a bridal shower, bridesmaid luncheon or party, rehearsal dinner or the reception. It should last for years as a keepsake and can be used for again and again as decoration for future events like the couple's anniversary parties. Take a peek at the Meetings and Milestones Pinterest boards; I have my creations on display there.