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Camp Wedding and Baby

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Welcome to Day 5 of Wandawega Week!

Today I’m going to share a little bit about the friendly folks behind the oh-so-creative camp. David, Tereasa…and a sweet, little cherub-faced girl named Charlie.

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“Boy meets girl. Boy proposes. Boy suggests that they purchase his abandoned childhood summer camp to be wed at. Girl accepts on both counts.”

David and Tereasa’s wedding ceremony was held at Wandawega, atop a hill, and overlooking the lake. Tereasa, carried a bouquet of daisies, and her father, Tom, walked her down the aisle to Elvis’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” played on the guitar by Nicholas Barron. They hired a Nashville-based company called Hatchshow Print to create their wooden wedding invitations and silk-screened RSVP and Save-the-Date postcards. The invitation and RSVP cards were packaged inside a brown kraft-paper envelope, along with an old map of the Wandawega resort. The envelopes were secured with a gingham ribbon and fastened with a small embroidered patch.

Upon arrival, wedding guests were greeted by a 1955 Mercury Monterrey. The couple shares a love for vintage cars and motorcycles, so it was only fitting that they park one from their collection on the property. Next to the car, Tereasa placed a “D.H. + T.S.” sign, and surrounded it with pots bursting with bunches of daisies.

Even though the day was rain-filled, Tereasa and David still describe their wedding as being “the color of sunshine“. Partly because of all the yellow rain slickers, rain boots, and the abundance of daisies- but also because they believe that “sunshine is very much a state of mind“. (I whole-heartedly agree!)

Their vanilla wedding cake was decorated with buttercream icing and daisies. And, of course, no camp gathering would be complete without a bonfire, so following the reception, everyone gathered ’round to roast marshmallows, sing campfire songs, and enjoy the starry night in the woods.

*swoon*

Here are all the dreamy wedding deets:

Venue: Camp Wandawega; available for rental through Town and Country Locations
Stationery: Hatch Showprint
Band: Nicholas Barron Quartet
Photography: Chris Strong; Matthew Gore; Robert Jillson; Mitch Gordon; Landis Smithers
Cake & Catering: Rodney Oksuita, besteventscatering.com
Desserts & Brunch: Christine Busby of Busby Bakes
Daisy Wreath and Garlands: Pesche’s Greenhouse
Bride’s Dress: Jenny Lee

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Fast forward to nine months ago. David and Tereasa welcomed daughter, Charlie, to the world…

Tereasa created a woodsy-style nursery for her in their Chicago home…

…and another one at Camp Wandawega…

To create a paint-by-number (PBN) mural like the one above, Tereasa suggests searching eBay to find an old school PBN painting guide you love. Next, give each of the colors on it a number, and then match each number to a paint chip.

Once you’ve decided on your palette, take your paint chips to the paint store and buy ’em up, Buttercup! After that, use a projector to display your PBN guide onto the wall and begin tracing it out with a pencil.

Last but not least, fill in your numbers with the latex paint your purchased using a foam brush.

Tereasa also broke out her brush to brighten up a collection of old cuckoo clocks hanging on the wall in the Charlies Wandawega nursery…

Yesterday, I asked Tereasa about where she draws her inspiration from. She said…

“My inspiration is 3-fold:

1- Our biggest project yet, 9 month old Charliegirl

2- My dear (late) Dad, Tom (Turtle)

3- My freakishly patient husband, David.

Each of them has made me hyper-aware of just how fleeting life is, and that you have to chase down your dreams like a cheetah. My three muses inspire me daily to look at things with a lens of optimism, and quite simply, transforming the homes and spaces around my loved ones makes them happy, which makes me happy.”

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Outgoing and hospitable, David and Tereasa host a constant, rotating stream of visitors at Wandawega.

If you’d like to visit them and their magical camp, leave a comment on this post for a chance to win a 2-night stay for you and a friend, (if you’re parents with kids, the little ones are welcome too!) and we’ll randomly select a winner on Sunday (August 14, 2011) at noon (Central Time). Your getaway will include a welcome gift basket and access to all that wonderful Wandawega has to offer. Think: peace and quiet, boating, fishing, hiking, swimming, etc. David and Tereasa will be in touch with you to see about which dates will work best for you, based on availability. Good luck and may the fun force be with you!

PS- If you missed any of this week’s Wandawega posts- you can find them here: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4!

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Comments

  1. Kari

    I would LOVE to visit this magical place with my family. Looks so amazing. Thank you for sharing this with us!

  3. Nancy P

    What a magical place! Charlie is one lucky little girl to have the chance to grow up in such an awesome environment. I would absolutely LOVE to visit Camp Wandawega!!

  5. C

    Would love to take my grandkids there…….AND I have never been to that part of the country before!

  6. Amanda

    This place looks amazing. Would love a nice relaxing weekend there with my significant other.

  8. Micayla

    I so hope that the winner is eligible to stay in Tom’s Treehouse! Would love a getaway with my wonderful husband.

  9. Ashley

    What an incredible dream they’ve turned into a charming reality. I would love to visit with my hubby!

  10. Angela Fritz

    I would love this! We have yet to take a vacation, and Sunday the 14th is our 4-year anniversary. Hope it proves lucky, I’d love to go to Wandawega! I bet our 2 kids would love it, too.

  11. Kim

    I’ve been traveling this week so just catching up today and am fascinated by what David and Tereasa have created at their very own camp! Would LOVE to win a chance to stay there!

  13. Heather

    The pictures of this place continue to amaze me! How peaceful and serene it all looks! I would love to visit sometime!

  15. Kerry Zurn

    What an amazingly creative couple! Camp Wandawega is simply fabulous, and book publishing as well! Amazing!

  18. Katherine

    I’ve loved reading about Camp Wandawega this week and would love to visit.
    Katherine

  19. Sunny

    “Are we there yet? Are we there yet? ” yelled the excited kids. Not yet Mommy has to win the give away!! Waiting patiently 🙂

  20. bdaiss

    What a great idea for the paint by numbers! Love it!
    Thanks so much for the chance to win – we’d be in heaven.

  25. Megan

    Looks like such a blast! I would so love spending some time at this beautiful camp, filled with all the love that it took to put it together!

  26. Davey Bihl

    Peace, Love and Salsa everyone! We definitely ascribe to the notion that sunshine is a “state of mind.” What an amazing wedding, story, exhibition of photography and idea! We wholeheartedly have decided to arrange our minds to go visit Camp Wandawega, Savor~

  28. Lisa L

    I loved reading the story of how Camp Wandawega came to be (again)! I would sooo love to visit! My family’s favorite vacations have been camping/fishing vacations, so this would be right up our alley!

  29. Jody

    I love this couple!! They truly are grabbin’ life and lovin’ it – as we all should do every day in some way…thanks for the opp to win a getaway!!

  33. DJ Conger

    This is where I want to be. I love the motto: Where 5 stars is 4 stars too many. Thank you for sharing this amazing place with us. So inspiring. I want to re-do my suburb home in the desert to look like a camp.

  35. Gloria

    I’ve been SO inspired by Wandawega and already told my Chicagoland relatives about it! I’d love to visit!

  36. Ginger

    Even in pictures the magic of the place shines through. I would love to be lucky enough to win a stay there. I’m not too far away either, so it would be a perfect getaway!

  38. Courtney

    OH MY GOSH, this would be my ideal trip!!! seriously your week review on it has been amazing and so happy you opened my eyes up to such a beautiful place!!

  39. Cindy Smith

    Wow! It looks like a place where you can go and leave all your worries at home! I’d love a chance to go!

    Cindy

  45. Melissa M

    My husband and I would love this! I’m 14wks preggo and live in Indianapolis so this would be make for the perfect, quick babymoon getaway!

  46. Laura

    It’s absolutely gorgeous! I would love to go there with my husband and two girls!

  47. Lisa

    This camp is so AMAZING, from the Tents to the Custom Tree House. As a former Girl Scout it really brings back fond childhood memories. I would be honored to win this mini vacation! Thank you for the opportunity to win it!! 🙂

  48. Cathy

    I’ve never read or seen anything like this! What an inspirational blog posting, location and story. I loved the wedding, the makeover, just everything about it. I hope to visit someday 🙂