Missouri Wedding Packages

Looking for a special setting for your outdoor wedding?

The DragonFlyIn B&B is 80 wooded acres and a 6 acre lake, perfect for a lakeside wedding and reception.

The large main lodge with two guest rooms, plus private luxury cabin provide plenty of space for most formal or informal outdoor weddings, receptions and overnight guests.

Please look through the pictures of our facilities on this website and call Linda McHenry, your host to discuss your wedding plans and prices.

9 Steps To Enjoy Your Wedding Cake on Your First Anniversary

Most brides are so absorbed with wedding-planning tasks that it’s asking too much of them to think beyond the honeymoon, let alone a year later. How they might celebrate their first wedding anniversary may not be on her mind, but one romantic tradition has endured over the years – saving the top tier of the wedding cake.

The long-standing tradition of the happy enjoying their wedding cake on their first anniversary is an easy process, but it will need to be included on the bride’s to-do list or delegated to someone trustworthy.

When followed through, step-by-step, the top tier will remain fresh and tasty for you to celebrate one year of wedded bliss.

1. As the reception draws to a close, it’s time to remove any ornaments, such as a cake topper or flowers, from the top layer.

2. Check the bottom of the layer. To keep any odd flavors from seeping into the cake while it is in the freezer, make sure the layer is set on a plastic plate or a cake board wrapped in foil.

3. Now it’s time to firm up the icing by placing the layer in the freezer for anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours. Do not wrap the cake with plastic wrap at this stage of freezing, or you will end up with plastic wrap frozen to the cake.

4. Remove the cake from the freezer. Using plastic wrap, cover the cake completely. In order to avoid freezer burn, make sure it is airtight and that there are no bubbles of air between the cake and the plastic wrap. Any air left between the cake and plastic wrap could zap moisture from the cake itself. Be sure to cover the cake three or four times, checking for air bubbles as you go.

5. Cover the cake in foil.

6. As an extra precaution, at this point you might want to slide the cake into a large zip-lock freezer bag, remove all air, seal it, and then slide this into a second zip-lock freezer bag and seal.

7. Place the wrapped cake in a small bakery box in order to protect it from other items in the freezer. Cake boxes are easily found at bakeries or arts and crafts stores that sell cake decorating equipment.

8. At this point, you are ready to place the box in the freezer. However, let me suggest taking your duties a few steps further in an effort to have an even fresher cake in one year. Now that the cake is in its box, get out the plastic wrap and, this time, wrap the box itself with several layers of plastic wrap. Cover with foil or place in another zip-lock freezer bag.

9. Place the box deep within a non-defrosting freezer where it will remain for the year. If the freezer self-defrosts, your cake will be ruined.

Don’t move the cake from one freezer to another during this year. It’s best to leave the cake deep within the freezer to avoid the possibility of allowing it to partially thaw while in transit. If the bride and groom have not yet settled into their first home or plan to move around during this year, it may be best to leave the cake in the freezer of a close friend or loved one with no plans to move, and then retrieve the cake from that person the day before the one-year anniversary.

Remember to begin the freezing process as soon as possible following the reception. You’ll have much better results – and a fresher cake on your anniversary – if the wedding cake is frozen while it is still as fresh as possible.

Unfortunately, if your cake has a crème filling, freezing it is not recommended.

One day before your one-year anniversary, you’ll need to begin defrosting the cake by moving it from the freezer to the refrigerator. After two or three hours in the refrigerator, unwrap the cake and allow it to continue defrosting in the refrigerator.

Two hours before you plan to serve the cake, take it out of the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature.