Wow, do you have your hands full. But katclaws, you are a very capable person who will do beautifully! I am always in favor of getting help organizing things -- often, it saves money, too. I think party planners are GREAT. But if cost is an issue, you may be able to most of that help free, and with a minimum of driving around. If you know of a good place, like a restaurant, for your rehearsal dinner, I would talk to whoever is in charge of parties there and ask them if they can take care of flowers and music, too, or whatever else you want in addition ot food and drink. That pretty much just leaves invitations and maybe a photographer if you want that. The photographer you can hire over the phone anyway. If you end up going to a florist yourself, you can probably get away with one visit. For dresses, did you know that services of the "personal shoppers" at department stores are free? Perhaps you could call and tell her what you need, and then just have to go, with your mom, once to try on dresses and shoes that the shopper has waiting for you. If you are REALLY lucky, you can get her to agree to come to your home, but that would require over-and-above service, perhaps by a shopper who happens to live near you. If you want to wear makeup, then while you are at the deparment store, stop at the makeup counter and let them show you a few tricks. You will probably end up buying something, but you certainly don't HAVE to buy anything, let alone EVERYTHING they show you. Don't worry that you haven't worn makeup or a new hairstyle in a long time. You don't have to be done up by a professional -- this isn't the Oscars! I actually prefer to do my own hair and makeup. It sounds like it would help simplify things for you, too. A fresh haircut and perhaps a little mascara, lipstick, and blush are really 99% of looking "dressed up" enough for a wedding anyway. You can do the invitations on your computer. Use colored or bordered paper and colored envelopes (like you can find at Kinko's, and I'm sure many other places) for an inexpensive festive look. You can use either the little card-sized ones or 8 1/2" x 11" papers. Go ahead and print address labels on your computer if you want (although in my experience it's usually just as fast to write the envelopes by hand). I wish I could be there to stay with your mom that evening. My dad had Alzheimer's, too. Is there an Alzheimer's support group in your area? I wonder if they could give you some suggestions. We learned a LOT from an online support group in particular. People a little farther down this very strange road always have great tips and tricks for making other caregivers' lives easier. Good luck to you! I'm sure it will all work out great and your guests will have a lovely time.

Oh, Gardengal, I'm so glad you posted another picture. You and your daughter and mother all look gorgeous, and you all look alike, too. Tell whoever picked out the flowers that they are the loveliest I have ever seen! I adore all the color. You definitely look even better than the model in that dress. Here we come up on our children's first anniversaries! The top tier of their wedding cake was taking up half a shelf in the freezer all year -- then got ruined and had to be thrown out, along with everything else, after the long power outage in 110+ degree heat here a few weeks ago. Luckily, my daughter-in-law was fine with that. I was sort of relieved I didn't have to figure out a way to get it to them!

Oh dear. No, it was not a slam to the South. Not at all. It is a common phrase. It was a direct response to Glanda's comment regarding how much the media spent covering this fairytale wedding of a young woman who was once but a mere blip on the radar in the media during her rather cloistered teenage life in the White House, and has been virtually unknown in the public eye in the years since. I should have quoted her so everyone would know. I usually quote when I post so that there is no mix-up like this. Monica got it right. It is a reference to the media circus. And yes, I was drawn in too. A media circus often happens during, or just after a major upheaval of some sort, and provides a distraction for the populace. It is a philosophy that goes way back. Those "in charge" know that by providing some sort of mindless entertainment like bullfights or circuses, the plebians won't engage in intellectual discourse among themselves, and organize a revolt. The literal translation is 'bread and circuses'. You may hear pan y toros in Spanish meaning basically the same thing. I suppose the modern day equivalent in America could be 'Pringles and Jerry Springer' or maybe 'bratwurst and football'. Regarding how people dress in various regions of the country well, people DO dress differently. Nothing wrong with that. I've travelled and found myself feeling very out of place in some cities with my mode of dress. Even here in Wisconsin there is a big difference in what is popular in the rural areas for dressing up, (where most of my relative reside), and what is done in the big city, and even how people dress who live around the Capital. I never meant to imply that Hillary's dress looked like what a circus performer would wear taming zebras, but...........now that image has been put in my mind. Read here for an explanation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread_and_circuses Here is a link that might be useful: Bread and Circus

annie, you are right about the meger selection in the department stores at the moment. I saw that when I went to buy my 9 year old grandson a few new garments, at Kohls. I swear that there were no more than about six racks or shelves of anything, at all in that section. And, most of it was the same old, same old stuff on every one of them. All of it was awful synthetic stuff. I walked out empty handed and havent been back to Kohls since. The womens clohtes were just as limited and just as awful. Online purchasing is becoming more necessary when the stores are declining so very much. With online ordering you never know what it feels like, or where any element is going to rest on your figure. I simply cannot do it or be bothered with all of that shipping back and forth. So glad that I can sew, although about the only thing that I can find to sew with anymore is linen that I do order online. The quality of this vendor is consistent and reliable and there are no fitting issues involved with the ordering. I am convinced that many of these fashion photos are altered to make the models legs look so absurdly long! I have seen some that are so exaggerated that it is almost laughable. Shopping for just about anything has become a chore.