Our Wedding: Part 3

Now on to all the reception fun! Like I mentioned earlier, Jesse and I really wanted a laid back and fun atmosphere for the day. We literally took a completely empty field and turned it into the most beautiful setting for the reception. A few things that I insisted on were: string lights, simple table decor, fruit + soda crates and sparklers for our exit. There was really only one thing that Jesse insisted on and that was the grass dance floor. At first I completely disagreed, but soon realized I should just trust him. And, so glad I did! People loved it.

Our food was also a huge hit. Jesse and I knew right away that we wanted Mazzi to cater with his pizza oven. It was the perfect fit for us (we LOVE pizza) and complemented the casual atmosphere perfectly. Not to mention Mazzi was a total blast to work with. Every time we met with him pre-wedding to discuss details I was beaming for hours.

In addition to the pizza, we served appetizers prepared by our mothers. Caprese skewers, veggie cups, fresh fruit, cheese and crackers. We really couldn't have done it all without them.

We decided early on not to do a formal cake cutting, so cupcakes were an easy choice for us. The Sassy Cupcake is a local cupcake shop run by the sweetest woman, Melissa. She, too, was incredible to work with! I really do think we had the very best vendors.

People always tell you that you're going to be too busy to eat at our reception and I definitely did not believe them. We had amazing food! Why would I want to pass that up? But, alas, Jesse and I were buzzing all over the place greeting as many guests as we could. I think I had just one bite of pizza and maybe a cupcake all night!

We ended the night with toasts, dancing and the perfect sparkler send off! This was an incredible day shared with the most amazing friends and family a couple could ask for.

Our Wedding: Part 2

When you don't attend a church it can be somewhat difficult to find someone to officiate your wedding. Afterall, it is your wedding. An extremely special day and Jesse and I didn't want to just ask a random pastor to do the ceremony for us. We wanted it to feel intimate and personal and decided that Jesse's dad, Mike, would be perfect. I still remember when we asked him. Jesse didn't beat around the bush and just asked him outright. Mike was so sweet about it and was almost speechless.

It couldn't have turned out better. Mike talked for just a few minutes and then we said our vows. I insisted that Jesse and I write our own vows and I'm so glad we did. They were personal and unique to us, which is how I think they should be. And, even though we had rehearsed our vows, saying them to one another on our wedding day was absolutely amazing. 

I can't believe I forgot to mention this earlier, but our wedding photographer was Dmitri of Monovita. If you hadn't noticed, he's amazing! :)

Our Wedding: Part 1

We've had our wedding photos for just a couple weeks and I've been waiting to share them with you until our family had a chance to see them. Today I'll just start with getting ready and everything before the ceremony.

From the moment we started planning our wedding, Jesse and I knew we wanted a fun, casual wedding celebration. I'd like to think we did a pretty good job of making it fun for everyone and staying true to our style.

Here are my favorite pre-ceremony images. Enjoy!

Berry Picking!

I went strawberry picking back in June with Renee and Jesse's little cousin Jillian and had such a good time! I picked berries for a couple weeks during the summer when I was younger, but hadn't since so I couldn't wait to do it again. Jesse and I decided to give away strawberry jam as our wedding favor and this was the first step.

The next morning I went over to Renee's so we could make the jam. I was so so so excited to make jam, but it wasn't exactly what I expected. It took us like 5 hours, but it could have something to do with the fact that we had so many little jars to fill. And, everything had to be so hot, my fingertips were toasted by the time we were done! 

Overall, it was worth it. The jars were perfect and we tried some of the extra jam and I'll admit homemade is mucho better than store bought! 

Bridal Shower (part 2 and 2 months late)

I'm not quite sure what happened here and why I it's been so long since I posted, but here we are. Nearly a month after my wedding and I'm just now posting the remaining photos from my bridal shower. Oh dear. Well, here they are! It was indeed a lovely shower and my sister did an amazing job putting everything together. Love you sis!

Cupcakes! Made by my MIL.

Loved the table decorations!

Jesse + I. My sister read about an old tradition of bridal showers where the fiance would stop by to meet all the ladies and give his fiancee a gift. Jesse brought me an adorable hand-picked bouquet of ranunculus. :)

Me, Jenae (sister) and my mom

Family!

Linda, me, Olivia (SIL) and Renee (MIL)

Renee was in charge of my ribbon bouquet!