Since we are at weddings every weekend, we're always reminiscing about our own weddings. We find ourselves chatting about things that we did and things we would have done, so we thought it would be fun to share them with all of you! What better way to get to know our staff then to read about the biggest days of our lives!! First up is Nicole's wedding, enjoy!
My husband, Dave, and I got married on June 6th, 2009. I can't believe it will be 3 years since our wedding day! It was such a great day and I love to look at pictures from the day and think of all the memories. We didn't really have a specific theme in mind when we started planning, we just wanted to make sure we chose things together and had a few details here and there that made the wedding "Dave & Nicole".
I picked a light yellow color for the bridesmaid dresses. I really wanted summer colors for our wedding. The flowers were yellow, peach, pink, with some purple and greens.
I started the day with my mom, sisters and bridesmaids at the hair salon. Once we all got our hair done, we headed back to my parents house for some lunch. It was so nice to spend the morning with my family and friends and just hang out. Before I knew it, it was time to start getting ready. While my bridesmaids got their dresses on and did their makeup, I got into my dress. It really is true that once you put on the dress you feel like a bride. I was excited to begin the day.
Once our photographer arrived, we started some formal pictures with my family and bridesmaids. He then headed over to Pen Ryn Mansion to take pictures of Dave and his family and the groomsmen.
The girls and I headed over to Pen Ryn Mansion and stayed in the bridal suite until the ceremony started. We had a fun time watching the guests arrive from the window.
I was raised Catholic and Dave was raised Jewish so when it came time to plan the wedding ceremony, it took some compromise. We decided to get married outside on the River at Pen Ryn Mansion with a Catholic Priest and a Jewish Cantor. Due to some Catholic rules, the Cantor was the prime officiant but she was great and shared the ceremony with the Priest. We were able to choose the readings and songs we wanted and we also were able to incorporate some Catholic and Jewish traditions. We had my two Godparents and two of Dave's family members carry the Chuppah.
It was nice to be surrounded by our family during the ceremony. We also had our mothers light the Unity Candle, a Catholic tradition. At the end of the ceremony, Dave broke the glass, another Jewish tradition. He was so excited, it took him two attempts!
After cocktail hour, we got ready for our entrance into the reception. After our family and bridal party were announced it was time for us to enter as Mr. & Mrs. I made a banner for Dave and I to break through and our guests were told to start a slow clap. (You know when you start out clapping slowly and gradually get faster and louder). I have always wanted to run into a room with a slow clap, so what better time to do it then on my wedding day!
After our entrance, we started our first dance to U2's "All I Want Is You". After our first dance, the band played Hava Nagila, a traditional Jewish song and we danced the Hora. It was a bit scary being up on that chair! My cousins didn't realize that they were aiming me for the chandelier so I almost hit my head and then almost fell out of the chair. It was quite an experience! It was a great way to get all of our guests up on the dance floor and it stayed that way for a while.
After a welcome from my dad, my sisters and Dave's brother made a toast. These are some of my favorite pictures because you can see how happy Dave and I are.
This is a special organization that is close to my family. Alicia was the daughter of my mom's cousin. She passed away at the age of 17 due to a rare cancer. Her family has created the Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation and it has done great things for teens with cancer or other illnesses.
I put together a description of the ARVF and put them in frames at each table. Each guest received a purple ribbon to honor the ARVF.
Another personal touch that we did was our cake topper. Dave and I have two dogs, Oreo and Shadow. We wanted to incorporate them into our wedding, so I made a cake topper of our dogs. I found Christmas tree ornaments of a Boston Terrier and Black Lab and then added some wedding accessories. It was a fun touch that we added to our cake. We now use them as ornaments and put them on our Christmas tree every year to remind us of our wedding day.
After dinner and cutting the cake, we spent the rest of the evening on the dance floor. It was a wonderful evening. I loved everything about our wedding day!
-Nicole
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