A young woman who grew up in our church was getting married. Two friends and I decided we should throw a bridal shower for her and arranged a date. The bride, Abby, just happens to be our pastor's daughter and is beloved by many in our congregation. She and her family came to Lake Stevens when she was just 5 years old so we have all had the pleasure of watching her grow up and mature into the lovely woman she is today. Abby is one of those young women that you can't help but admire!

The guest list was size able, so we decided to look into several affordable venues in the Lake Stevens area. A friend of ours had a connection to Ashley Pointe, a local Assisted Living facility. We checked it out and found their dining room to be quite lovely (much better than our church basement!) and the price was right, so we booked it!

We kept the menu fairly simple since it was an evening shower. With three of us working together, all the planning and arranging and party prep came together pretty smoothly! Plus, we had fun doing it! The stress that often comes from having to clean and decorate and prepare everything yourself was simply eliminated :).

Assorted cheeses and crackers, nuts, olives, fresh veggies, and fruit kabobs...

Shower cake in shades of blue...the wedding colors!

Norwegian traditional Krunsekake...some call it the wedding ring cake!

Here is Abby, giving us all a little update on their plans for the fall.

I gave a devotional on the topic of marriage and we skipped the bridal shower games so that Abby could jump into the gift opening while we enjoyed our cake. Just one more picture of the beautiful bride to be!