Bridal Shower

When I found out my future daughter-in-law’s favorite flower is the sunflower, I had to have Melissa’s bridal shower at my house. Here’s why.

My kitchen and den are decorated with sunflowers all over. The colorful fabric valences in both rooms have a large sunflower centered with smaller sunflowers and fruits surrounding it. In addition, the five placemats and the vase on the kitchen table are full of sunflowers.

Another yellow-orange vase, under my waterfall table in the den, also holds several yellow and orange sunflowers. Additionally, I picked up more artificial sunflowers at Dollar Tree. Then, I arranged them in an umbrella stand by the entrance to the house. Also, there is a sunflower throw on the den sofa with four pillows that match the valences.

The powder room has sunflower towels, a picture of a large sunflower and a sunflower soap dispenser.

As if this is not enough, there is an 8″ x 10″ picture of a sunflower on the kitchen bulletin board. “One can never have too many sunflowers,” I say. Sunflower picture frames on the shelf above the half wall between the kitchen and den hold family photos. (One has a picture of my mom, and the other houses a picture of my grandson when he was a baby. The onesie he is wearing says, “I love you a latke!” from his first Chanukah.)

The bride’s sister, Stacey, brought huge sunflower ornaments and a gold tablecloth we placed on the table on the screened-in porch. These decorations were scattered in various areas throughout the house She even placed one large sunflower on the mailbox, which was great, as I did not have a chance to buy balloons.  

Now, you can see why I had to host the bridal shower! It was my pleasure.

In attendance were 23 people, including the bride’s mom. We served a delicious brunch menu consisting of bagels, lox, assorted cream cheeses, Muenster and American cheese, kugels and an egg casserole. And, for dessert, there were cupcakes decorated with icing to resemble a sunflower! Although it was a cool day, it was also a very sunny one, so we served drinks on the porch.

After brunch, we played some “bridal shower games.” The guests filled out a questionnaire about Melissa and Barry and guessed how many Hershey Kisses were in a jar. Another game was to collect colorful rings. They were put in strategic places throughout the kitchen, den, living room and dining room. Finally, we were asked to write helpful hints on cards about how to have a great marriage. Melissa opened all of her presents and read the suggestions out loud. The future bride and groom received beautiful gifts, such as dishes, assorted cooking items, picture frames and various other household items. This couple was now ready to start their lives together.

So many of Melissa’s friends, as well as the bride’s and groom’s families, helped make this sunflower bridal shower the huge success it was! Now, we look forward to the wedding on May 25, 2025.

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Read more by Marlene Wolff Solomon.