Overall theme for ceremony and reception
“I not sure that we had a specific theme in mind when we were planning our wedding. We wanted it to be beautiful and intimate. We are typically drawn to more rustic décor and I think that played into some of our choices – venue, tables, linens, etc. Everything had to be very family friendly – we had 14 adults and 12 kids at our wedding and reception.”
Best advice when planning your wedding?
“Surprisingly we didn’t receive any advice! However, my best advice to other brides is to enjoy every moment of the planning process. If you aren’t enjoying it, take a moment to consider what is going on and make a change. You don’t want to look back and say, ‘thank goodness it is all over.’ Also, this is YOUR day!! Make it what you want it to be. Make the choices for your day that feel right to you. You cannot please everyone so you may as well make sure you and your groom are happy.”
Wedding flowers
“Amazing work by Hana Floral in Mystic, CT. A variety of cream and peachy roses, ranunculus, lilac, tulips, peonies, and gorgeous greens and herbs.”
Music during the ceremony
“My children walked into the ceremony to Train’s ‘Marry Me’, Brian and I walked to Ray LaMontagne’s ‘You Are the Best Thing’, and we ended our ceremony with American Authors’ ‘Best Day of My Life’ – all performed by a family friend playing the acoustic guitar.”
Highlights from the ceremony and reception?
“The highlight of the ceremony for me was walking down the aisle with Brian. I struggled a lot with this – being given away by my father didn’t feel right at the age of 37, having my children walk with didn’t feel right, and I knew I didn’t want to walk by myself – too many eyes all on my. Brian and I decided to walk together which worked perfectly! We were walking together into the next phase of our life together. Another ceremony highlight was how our Justice of the Peace, Marie Tyler Wiley, incorporated my children. She made sure that the ceremony wasn’t just about me and Brian becoming husband and wife, but also all of us coming together as a new family.
“My favorite part of the reception was our first dance. Brian and I snuck away during the cocktail hour and had our first dance alone (with the photographers) – I wanted to have a moment of our wedding day just to ourselves.”
Wedding Favors
“We kept to the theme of our venue, Jonathan Edwards Winery. Each family went home with a bottle of Jonathan Edwards wine in a monogrammed jute wine tote.”
Where did you go on your honeymoon?
“We went to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and stayed at the Hilton Los Cabos Beach and Golf Resort.”
