#like yeah of course Jimmy and Scott are the married couple they were called flower husbands

[smoozie]

Okay I want to say, I LOVED this gimmick. It was cute and fun, gave everyone some more resources to prep with and (for the most part) didn't have too deadly of consequences (from the povs I've seen). The most interesting part, however, was just what questions the ccs did and did not know.

I was justing thinking about this the other day, ironically. I think a lot of people assume the ccs remember a lot more of the series than they do simply because they lived through it, but I think the fans in general are more aware of things because we tend to rewatch seasons. And that was proven correct today. Most ccs play through a series and forget most of the details right afterward.

[prismadog]

Found Family AU character facts/background (part 7)

well, folks, we've made it to the last one of these posts - minus the upcoming master post. these just seem to get longer and longer, or maybe it's just because the past two have been about siblings? idk, all I know is that I'm a bit tired of writing these atm.

this last one should - SHOULD be shorter, but we'll see. this one will feature our last two characters - Mr. there's-no-such-thing-as-a-demon Joel Smallishbeans and good ol' Copper Dad Pixlriffs.

*did you know that Mesoglea is a word? I didn't until I kept trying to type "Mezalea" and my computer kept wanting to change it. Mesoglea is a gelatinous substance between the endoderm and ectoderm of sponges or cnidarians, or something. there's your word of the day and it's all thanks to the red squiggly line that appears every time I type "Mezalea"

*edit: guess what? y'all get two of these in one day because I felt like writing this last one! [technically, it's already Saturday but to me, the next day doesn't start until the sun comes up so yeah...two in one day! whoo!] the master post will be tomorrow sometime but idk when.

Joel

Joel is the only child to the Mezalean King and Queen, and was less born to them and more born from the Mother Tree - they couldn't have children so they begged the Mother Tree for an heir, She granted them a child who they raised as their own.

he was often alone growing up, never really played with the other children, but he wasn't lonely - so he and others would say - because he had his terracotta clones. he built many of them with his own two hands and the Mother Tree gave them life. he was raised as a prince and often went to the Gathering of the Empires with his father.

he got on well enough with the other children but kept mostly to himself - that is until he met the princess of the Ocean Empire. he noticed the other noble children seemed afraid of her so he took it upon himself to befriend her - plus, she was so different from the humans/clones around him, she was interesting with her pink hair and pearlescent skin and unnaturally blue eyes.

they would meet at the Gathering and spend the whole time together talking about their kingdoms and their hobbies - Joel was really into building and playing pranks on people, Lizzie was into raising axolotls and has a brother who she looks after. the short meetings weren't enough and Joel talked to his parents about visits with the Ocean Empire - it only makes sense since the two empires boarder each other. unknown at that moment, the Oceanic rulers proposed the same thing to the Mezalean rulers.

visits began between the two kingdoms and Joel found himself in love quickly enough - he loved Lizzie, he loved her little brother, he loved the Ocean Empire itself. but he kept his feelings to himself for fear of rejection, that is until he was about 16 when Lizzie came to him with talk of marriage - their parents had been discussing it but didn't want to force their children into it. he and Lizzie talked it over then went to their parents together and promised a future wedding, he also promised that Jimmy could be his best man.

life was peaceful, there were plenty of long visits between kingdoms, him and Jimmy often got into trouble - then the King of the Ocean Empire was killed. Joel tried to be there for her but found travel between kingdoms difficult due to the ongoing storms surrounding the Ocean Empire, he still managed to write Lizzie and once was able to visit - though getting back was just as difficult as getting in.

then several months later the storms stopped and Lizzie wrote to him about her taking the throne - she had said the Queen returned to the sea, though, he didn't really understand what that meant. he returned to the Ocean Empire and was there for Lizzie's coronation. he started visiting regularly for a time and each visit seemed to last longer than the one before it - he was there so often that Jimmy suggested he just move in. he did, with both his parents' and Lizzie's permission.

two years after that, he asked Lizzie to marry him and she said yes. they had two ceremonies, a proper land-dweller one in Mezalea, and another smaller Oceanic ceremony. being King now to the Ocean Empire meant he was basically a trophy husband but he didn't mind, he was happy as long as he was at Lizzie's side. if there was a Gathering, he or Jimmy would go with her, though usually Jimmy stayed home to watch over the kingdom - but he made sure to bring him plenty of stories and food from the Gathering.

Joel received word from his parents that an illness had struck Mezalea and the King and Queen had caught it. he returned home immediately to help where he could, Lizzie often sent aid to him, as did the kingdom's ally Pixandria - he had hardly ever spoken to the Copper King but he was glad for the aid. his parents unfortunately didn't survive and he lost a good number of civilians to the illness. but it was cured, with the help of the Mother Tree and magic from the Crystal Cliffs, and he became King of Mezalea.

with the illness cured, visits started up again between Mezalea and the Ocean Empire, though there was a lot more time spent apart than together but he and Lizzie made it work. Jimmy sent messages and gifts between the couple, often getting some for himself, until of course Jimmy became of age and wanted to travel the world.

Joel and Lizzie saw Jimmy off - it never ceased to amaze him how his two best friends could turn into giant sea creatures that could wipe out a fleet of ships. they managed visits on their own and sometimes he got letters from Jimmy. the letters stopped for a time and Lizzie grew worried, worried enough that storms nearly threatened the kingdom - but then Jimmy finally wrote them again and things were okay, he was in a swamp settlement and the people were taking care of him.

he and Lizzie went out right away to see him and found him at home in the swamp amongst a bunch of fish-human hybrids. he watched as Lizzie lectured her brother then babied him, then helped set Jimmy up as the ruler of the swamp settlement - the Cod Empire. they left Jimmy sometime later but saw him again at the next Gathering.

Jimmy got on well enough with the other rulers, despite the cod head he wore, though Joel noticed some rulers picking on him. he helped Jimmy from time to time, just so his brother wouldn't be alone, but didn't worry too much since Lizzie wasn't worrying - she was extremely protective of Jimmy but if she wasn't stepping in, then there was no need to worry.

Joel had met many of the rulers when he was a child so he knew pretty much everyone there. the only ones he hadn't met before was Count fWhip of the Grimlands, Wizard Gem of the Crystal Cliffs, and King Joey of the Lost Empire. Gem was all right for a mage, he ended up becoming frenemies with fWhip due to the teasing of Jimmy, and Joey was just weird so he didn't really talk to him unless need be. he got to know Pix a bit more when Pix decided to ally himself with Lizzie and Jimmy, and he started calling the man "Copper Dad" since his main trade was copper.

Pixl

Pixl was found by a pair of miners in a cave beneath the sands and was taken back to a large desert village, nobody really knew where he had come from, only that he was gifted with visions of death - of those around him and of rulers of the kingdoms outside of the desert. the villagers thought him odd and a bad omen, at first anyway, because he always knew who would die next and would light a candle for them when they passed.

they accepted him after a time, once they realized that he wasn't actually the cause - he would preach to them about Lady Death sometimes and how she would care for their loved ones. everyone in the village had a hand in raising him, as well as raising other children which was their way - it takes a village to raise a child.

Pixl learned how to farm and mine and care for animals, and he learned to build. his first build, guided by his visions, was the Vigil - it stood tall in the center of the village and was home to 12 different colored candles - only two of which were lit - one for Elfking Scott of Rivendell and one for Queen Katherine of the Flower Fields. the rest remained untouched. these flames never went out and the villagers often questioned him about them - he told them that there will be 12 mighty rulers that would change the world, for better or worse he didn't know.

over the years, he continued building up the village, he watched over the Vigil as Prophet of Death, and started working with copper and trading it for other goods. the people began to go to him for help and looked up to him as a leader, they named him the Copper King - a new candle was lit for himself when he was crowned, something he hadn't known would happen.

he continued leading his people and made a few alliances with other kingdoms - with Queen Katherine and the King of Mezalea. there wasn't a lot of contact between the kingdoms other than the Gathering, of which, he never failed to go to. over the years, he watched rulers age and die and watched their heirs take over. it took a long time for him to meet the children who would one day have their candles lit.

the next candle to be lit was for Pearl of Smallholding, though, he didn't know who she was at the time, he didn't even meet her until many years later. the next few happen fairly quickly - Queen Lizzie of the Ocean Empire, King Joel of Mezalea, and a couple years later Dwarf King Sausage of Mythland - these three he had watch grow up through the Gatherings. shortly after Mythland, Wizard Gem took over as the ruler of the Crystal Cliffs - he had known the previous Wizard and through them, knew of their protégé. a year after Gem was her twin brother, Count fWhip of the Grimlands - a new kingdom that managed to rise up from its own sort of desert. a few years later was King Joey of the Lost Empire and Codfather Jimmy of the Cod Empire - Joey's kingdom had once been named Maztec but had been in hiding for so long that it lost its name. due to his alliance with Joel, Pix decided it best to ally himself with Lizzie and Jimmy as well, somewhat through association but mostly because he liked them.

one candle remains unlit and no matter how much Pixl prays, the answers as to why remain a mystery. he still watches over the Vigil and keeps a count of each rulers' deaths - for some reason, the 11 rulers are allowed to revive themselves every time they die. he finds this odd as well, and a bit concerning.

[emilyemcnabb]

Kristen and Michael’s wedding at Country Club of Rochester

Kristen and Michael’s wedding day at Country Club of Rochester was “organic and natural with a luxe edge.” As always, we love to see a fresh point-of-view and Kristen’s vision for her day was definitely that. The mix of wood, grasses and greenery with brass metallics and dripping black candles makes for a complete twist on the typical country club affair. Lush, graphic florals and greens are by Arena’s, with invitations by Papery & Cakery and coordination by Events By Jen. Lucky for us, Alexandra Elise Photography was on hand to capture all the cool details is these lovely fine art images.

What made the wedding special and unique? 

The tone of the wedding was an organic/natural feel with a luxe edge. Natural to me means elements produced by nature such as fire, wood, light, grasses and greenery. Luxe says sumptuous, lavish, subtle yet extraordinary. The black candlesticks give off the fire element yet at the same time the black color gives off that subtle yet bold luxurious feel. The farmhouse head tables comply with the wood element. The clear top tent brings in the natural light element. The combination of greenery and floral were an absolute dream come true; a phenomenal work of art by Charles Arena and crew at Arena’s Florist. Greenery with accents of white orchids, chocolate sunflowers, menthe roses, dahlias, jasmine, and anemone. Also, tying in gold dipped branches, decorative pheasant feathers, and mini cactus’. We decided to do a tent wedding because it acts as a clean slate. You are able to incorporate your own design and style without having to cover up the style of an already decorated ballroom or country club. Design and decorating has always been a passion of mine. Since I was a little girl I always wanted to be an interior decorator. It was a dream come true to design a space from scratch as we did here.

For the dessert portion of the night we decided to go big! Being an owner of an Italian bakery we naturally had to have a huge display of pastries, Italian cookies, and of course a 5-tier wedding cake. We went with a slightly different theme in the dessert tent as we did in the main tent. We had bistro lighting strung from the top of the tent and small bistro tables to give off that Italian bistro feel. Pastries including cannolis, cream puffs, sfogliatelle, mini cheese cakes, mini pies, tiramisu, napoleon, eclairs, and more. Cookies including cuccidati, neopolitan, almond paste, Italian meatball cookies, tea cookies, biscotti, etc. Coffee and tea were also served in the tent. During the ceremony we did a butterfly release dedicated to our deceased family members.

Words of wisdom:

Don’t stress! Everyone told me leading up to the big day that it comes and goes in the blink of an eye. It is something that stuck with me throughout the process. I thoroughly enjoyed each and every moment of the planning process even when things wouldn’t go as planned. I wanted to remember what each part of the process and big day felt like, even the most dreadful parts like the seating arrangements. Does anyone enjoy that? On the big day I would recommend to all bride and grooms to take a couple minutes, just the two of you, and step out of the spotlight. Look around the room and take this moment for it all to sink in – enjoy the company of your new husband or wife. Tell each other how much they mean to you and acknowledge the love that is surrounding you from friends and family. It truly is the most amazing day of your life. You want to be able to feel what that feels like in the moment, not just afterwards.

Tell us how you met and became engaged.

Mikey and I met in Chicago, IL back in 2012. I had lived there at the time and he was in town visiting his sister who lived in Springfield, IL. My sister was friends with him and told him to call me and get together for lunch. So we did just that. It wasn’t until Christmas of 2012 that I ran into him again at the restaurant that he had just opened. He and my sister, being close friends, hung out a lot. She would go to his restaurant and drag me there while I was home over Christmas break. He told my sister “I am going to marry your sister someday” and my sister Lisa’s response was “Yeah, okay Mikey!” Telling him she isn’t going to put up with you – being the protective sister that us sisters are.

I head back to Chicago and every now and then I would get a call from him (confused at why he was calling me because I barely knew him). A couple months had passed and at the end of March my sister, cousin, mom, aunt and I went down to Florida for a girls’ trip. Mikey happened to be there the same weekend with one of his friends who is ironically someone I’ve known since childhood; all planned on his behalf I’m sure. The boys picked me up from the airport and brought me to my family. I had just gotten out of a 4-year relationship so I wasn’t really looking to date again anytime soon. I guess it’s true that love happens when you least expect it. The whole week we were there it was like I had known him forever. He was always a gentleman, I will say that. On the last night we were heading home from the bar we were at and he asked, “when will I be seeing you again?” I replied without thinking that he would be as persistent as he was and said” I’m sure I’ll run into you back at home in NY.” That must not have been good enough because a few weeks later he had booked a flight to Chicago to see me. It quickly escalated into a relationship and a lot of trips back and forth from New York to Chicago. It took about 8 months of a long-distance relationship to realize that we didn’t want to be without each other. I always knew I was going to end up back in my hometown of Rochester, New York but I had never anticipated that soon.

The proposal took place on April 9th, 2017, which also happened to be my 27th birthday. The night before he proposed we went to dinner with my parents at Louie Bossi in Fort Lauderdale, FL. We were sitting at dinner and I said all I want for my birthday this year is for dad to come to yoga with me. I was trying to get him to hop on the yoga train. Shockingly my dad agreed. Little did he know that Mikey had planned a proposal for the next morning. He now had to change his plan.

We woke up on Saturday, my birthday, and headed to yoga. Mikey told my dad he was going to propose to me after yoga back at our condo. He had asked my dad for my hand in marriage a few months back. Now, not only is my dad nervous about doing a 110 degree power vinyasa class for the first time in his life but is now panicked thinking he is going to have a heart attack from the heat and ruin this special day. Needless to say, my dad finishes the 1 hr. and 15 minute class like a champ – he heads to his house and Mikey and I head to ours. We get home, very quickly, we drop our stuff at our lobby front desk and head out to our uncle’s yacht that is docked at our place on the intercoastal. He tells me, “come out to Jimmy’s boat. I want to say hi to them before they head out for the day.” Now, mind you, we just finished hot yoga- if you’ve ever done heated yoga before you know you come out of there nothing shy of drenched. I asked, “can we please just get out of these wet clothes before we step on his beautiful boat?” The answer was no. So, we got out to the boat and there were these huge vases with gorgeous white flowers, which happen to be my favorite. It still didn’t register what was about to happen. I stepped on the boat and stopped to admire the flowers thinking that the crew is setting up for the day at sea. In hindsight, why there would be vases of flowers set up before a boat ride is beyond me. I walked inside the boat where his parents and some of the crew were. He tells me to come outside on the sundeck. I walked out to where the flowers were, admiring them again and I turn around and he is on one knee with a gorgeous serving platter with the diamond ring in the middle. I was so in shock! I had no idea that was coming. It still to this day gives me butterflies!

  Photography: Alexandra Elise Photography // Event Coordinator: Events By Jen // Florist: Arena’s // Invitations: Papery & Cakery // Programs & Stationery: Anna Marino // Venue: Country Club of Rochester // Dress Designer: Berta // Bridal Boutique: Chic Parisian // Bakery: Savoia Pastry Shoppe // Hair Stylist: PCK Salon // Makeup Artist: Scott Miller Salon // Tent Rental: LT Rentals // Custom Lighting & Rentals: RES Exhibits // Accent Decor Rental: Warehouse 127 // Linen, Chairs, & Drapery Rentals: Hank Parker// Videographer: Kraig Adams // DJ: Breakthrough Entertainment // Sax player: Danny Win // Pianist: Giovanni Fazio // Quartet: Felice String Quartet

  The post Kristen and Michael’s wedding at Country Club of Rochester appeared first on Grey Likes Weddings | Wedding Fashion & Inspiration | Best Wedding Blog.

[prismadog]

Found Family AU character facts (part 4)

look, it's ANOTHER character facts post! idk why I put myself through this...I keep writing little stories here and having to go back through and be like "no, these are FACTS, Mykael! it is not story time, get yourself together, dude!"

so...yeah, another one. there's a few more after this: Gem & fWhip, Lizzie & Jimmy, Joel & Pixl. and then, I'll make a master post linking them all together for better reference finding whatchamacallits. I'm trying to do one a day until they're finished but I'm started to get a bit burnt-out [still not completely over being sick no matter how much medicine I take or how much sleep I get, which honestly, is not a lot of sleep - damn insomnia, dudes, it sucks, do not recommend 0/10]

anyway! Katherine and Pearl below the line thingy!

Katherine

Katherine is a faery born at least a couple centuries after Scott and nearly a century before the other rulers. she is daughter of the Flower Queen and princess of the Flower Fields.

she was raised on stories of benevolent Watches and loyal Guardians who protected the Fields with all the might of a thousand warriors

she loved sheep with a passion and would often be found laying in a pile of them. the sheep she played with often escaped their pens and could always be found following the princess around

life was fairly easy in the Flower Fields, hardly any scuffles or problems. she did learn how to fight from some of the guards, and also from the children of other rulers - the Ocean Empire had some fierce warriors that were always eager to teach anyone that was willing to learn

when she was in her teens (fairy years), the Queen began to wither and soon passed on to become a watcher herself - such is the fate of Queens. she became Queen shortly after and wore the crown with pride.

one of her first acts as Queen was to establish alliances with neighboring kingdoms, one such being that of the elves - the elf kingdom was fairly isolated from the other empires.

she wrote letters to Elfking Scott and visited often enough that his people knew her by the sound of her wings when she flew overhead. being of magic, she knew that the elf was lonely and needed proper companionship - even if he didn't know it himself.

so, she treated Scott well and as if they'd known each other for years. her good excitable fun nature eventually wore him down until he was able to be his true self around her - a boy who could laugh and joke and goof off without being judged by his subjects

the two became really good friends who could share their secrets with one another or share the heavy burden that is ruling their kingdoms

about a century later she met some of the other rulers, but not at once, usually within a few years of each other. the first she met was: Guardian of the Harvest - Pearl of Smallholding, and Prophet of Death - Pixlriffs of Pixandria. the next she met was: the dragonlings - Wizard Gem of the Crystal Cliffs and her brother Count fWhip of a new kingdom called the Grimlands, and the dwarf King - Sausage of Mythland who was best friends with the dragonlings. after that was: the merfolk - Queen Lizzie of the Ocean Empire and her younger brother Codfather Jimmy of the newly built Cod Empire, and King Joel of Mezalea who was married to Lizzie - she also suspects that he is either a God or a demigod of Life.

there were some conflicts every now and again over a few years - mostly involving the Codfather and the chaotic duo of Count fWhip and King Sausage, but she tried to stay on the sidelines, offering peace to everyone.

sometime within her life, whether it was before she was crowned or after - she's really not sure, it was such a long time ago - she began to collect the heads of various mobs and turning them into decorations. while her people were at first wary of this new hobby, they have long accepted it as just another quirky part of their Queen.

Pearl

Pearl was not born in the traditional sense like many of the others - she was originally a scarecrow who was given Life.

there was a farmer in Smallholding, just a little hamlet with only a few houses and farms, that had problems with birds terrorizing their crops. so, the farmer built a scarecrow - 6 foot tall, made of cloth and straw, and given a pearl on a string that was handed down from their grandparent. they gave it the pearl because it felt like something they were meant to do.

the birds were practically repelled, saving the farmer's crops, so they started giving tribute to it - nothing sinister, obviously, maybe a hat here or some flowers there, simple things to show their gratitude. the others in the hamlet questioned the farmer cause, hey, you're treating this scarecrow like it's a person or something, that's weird. farmer, of course, doesn't care, their crops are spared from birds and that's all that matters.

the scarecrow watched over the fields, gathering magic from every small tribute and from the love the farmer showed it, and began to wish for the power to return the favors, to show the farmer how grateful it was to be here. its yearning must've been heard because not long after, a being appeared to them, a God.

the God and the scarecrow talked for some time and at the end of the conversation, the God breathed Life into the scarecrow - what once was cloth and straw became flesh and bone and blood.

the farmer found her at dawn and offered her a place in their home for the services she has provided since her making. they also gave her the name Pearl because she was precious to them. they lived together for years after, until the farmer grew old and passed, and she continued living there.

the hamlet grew into a small village over that time as the people saw the land was prosperous. when the hamlet grew, the God of Life visited her again and they had a second conversation, one that ended with the God of Life granting her the title "Guardian of the Harvest". she swore her life to the land, to the people who's crops she had protected over the years.

the people dubbed her "Queen of Smallholding" after some time, seeing her fit for the title. they continued to prosper under her watchful gaze.

some time after that, maybe a few years or more, Pearl met her first rulers - Queen Katherine of House Blossom of the Flower Fields and Dwarf King, Mythical J Sausage of Mythland who's kingdom was surprisingly very close to her settlement. and through them, she met the other rulers - Elfking Scott, the Copper King Pixlriffs, Wizard Gem and Count fWhip, Queen Lizzie and the Codfather Jimmy, King Joel, and King Joey.