“Busier Than A One Armed Cattleman During Branding Season.” Get Up. Dress Up. Show Up…
Cindy and I have been busy, busy, busy but… twinning is winning for the Texas Twins so we saddled up to hit the highway over and over again this week to make Dream Events A Reality from Fort Worth, Texas.
Monday was spent filing marriage licenses and meeting clients at Tarrant, Parker and Palo Pinto County Jails while juggling Cindy’s twin granddaughters, Maryssa and Makenna’s medical appointments. Asthma and seasonal allergies don’t mix. The twins are adjusting well to 9th grade and at fifteen years old, ready for driving lessons? Heaven help Cindy and I stay calm teaching the twins to drive.
Last night while on location in Dallas, someone asked “why did you decide to start an Events business?”
The truth is that Cindy had given up her “day job” to take on the role and responsibility of raising her twin granddaughters fifteen years ago.
At about the same time that my twin sister became the custodial parent at forty years old to newborn twin girls, I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and a lump in my breast. Talk about double drama!
For six years I’d been through surgery after surgery for complications of endemetriosis, a partial hysterectomy at 29 and now thyroid cancer and a golf ball sized lump? I didn’t expect to survive. By the grace of God and an amazing team at Baylor, Scott & White, I made it and continue to treat every day of my life as a gift. Time is incredibly important to me now. For years I took time for granted. I no longer do.
Finding time to spend with my family became a priority because I was uncertain just how much time I had to be frank and blunt with you. Since I was 15 years old, I’d been working 6 days and was determined to find a way to spend more time with my family while also finding an outlet to enjoy my life rather than “working for the man six days a week.”
Texas Twins Events was created as a low cost alternative for families who couldn’t afford traditional cost points intentionally. My goal was to reach the people no one else wanted to help.
To find funding, my husband and I sold our dream home and downsized. My husband has always believed that whatever I set out to do that I could. I knew without risk there are no rewards. Selling our dream home that my husband had built from the ground up and leaving his development was the start of a new journey. Texas Twins Events was born from the profit of our custom home.
Now, for the first time in my life due to my husband’s trust that at the time generated revenue from oil leases along with the sale of our home and my husband’s new role at McBee Homes, I finally didn’t have to work to earn a living. I could do what I wanted. Whatever my heart desired.
Finding out where my passion would lie was a “twin talk” discussion as I really wanted to do something Cindy and the twins could do with me while helping others at the same time.
Many of you will hear me reference passion frequently. Without it, Cindy and I wouldn’t be going stronger than ever all of these years later I can assure you. We are not only passionate but also creative, driven and saucy. We get the job done and find solutions. We are a Twin Team. Cindy is hilarious while Wendy is always serious. It’s a winning combination for us.
The first year of my twin grandnieces lives, my sister was dealing with doctor appointments, double strollers and little or no sleep. The twins spent 3 months in NICU when they were born. At two years old, they were flower girls on location for my clients. The novelty of twins in our weddings took off.
Cindy and I have taken her twin grandchildren on location with us for many years and we finally found the time to spend together our former careers in the sales industry had taken while earning a living.
Since we worked for ourselves, our clients never questioned having our families on site. In fact, many clients WANTED to meet the rest of our families.
This “people over profit” based endeavor made us different. We had no real competition. Why? Because we would help anyone. Our competition only cared about profit while we cared about helping others. In truth, we were giving people coming to us the event that we ourselves had never had. We are the people we’ve never met.
Our story and journey are unique because we didn’t set out to do elaborate events. We set out to make the world a better place by welcoming anyone from any background.
Years after starting Texas Twins Events, elaborate events came to us but, I was more interested in doing smaller events as was Cindy. Over the top events bring over the top drama. We look forward to going to work. Drama isn’t fun for anyone.
LBGT friendly from the start, many of our first clients booked Unification ceremonies because same sex marriage wasn’t legal in Texas.
A few years prior to the Supreme Court ruling, we also traveled to other states to perform legal LBGT weddings outside of Texas. We have never geographically limited services. 
In 2014, a client who had no money offered a barter in exchange for services. This client was why I decided to merge Texas Twins Events and Texas Twins Treasures to create a barter option, The Pawning Planners.
Cindy and I are experienced appraisers and we’ve been flipping items for twenty years or more. Our experience in the sales industry helped us make bartering work. 
Flipping items takes time. In the beginning, we had time because our bookings were seasonal. During the week Cindy and I went to appraise trades or refurbish and list items at Texas Twins Treasures. Weekends in season were spent on location with Texas Twins Events and Pawning Planners Clients.
Within the first year of Texas Twins Events, it became apparent to me that most clients couldn’t afford photography, floral designs and the “extras.” To solve this problem, I created an inventory to loan clients and purchased camera equipment to do our own photography. We loan bouquets, bouteniers, centerpieces, ring pillows and even clothing to clients with limited resources. How often? Up to eighty percent of our clients borrow OUR inventory.
Three years ago, a creative request for a Prison wedding would literally shift our bookings. Although I have never advertised, Prison Weddings now compromise up to ninety percent of all bookings.
Shocking I know. In fact, Cindy is now a TDCJ Approved Officiant too and we service several states outside of Texas. Previous inmate wedding clients also rebook upon release for Vow Renewal ceremonies.
My Tuesday began in Tennessee Colony a literal city of Prisons. I had been scheduled to begin at Michael then move to Beto. But, my Michael client was unconfirmed so I started at Beto. Effectively, I roll with inmate scheduling and “bounced from Beto to Michael.”
Wednesday, I headed to Gatesville another city of Prisons to meet my beautiful bride, Renee. I’m inside Tennessee Colony and Gatesville Units frequently. 
Thursday I was in Huntsville, Texas yet another city of Prisons in Texas. Friday, Cindy and I were meeting a client who had initially contacted me five years ago to marry in Arkansas. Why? Because LBGT marriage was legal there and not in Texas at the time.
Friday evening after five long years of waiting, Cindy and I finally met Tasha and Keandra at Dress Up Dallas. 
The rehearsal and joy of this couple and their friends and families preparing to celebrate a wedding years later cannot be described in words. My couple were ecstatic. Cindy and I were thrilled to share this Life Event.
Many best wishes to the new Mrs and Mrs Brooks!
“In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.” –Coco Chanel
I’m headed to Belltower Chapel where I’ve been on staff nearly five years now by appointment only and looking forward to another busy week of fun, families and adventure for the Texas Twins…
