April Winchell shares her wedding planning wisdom.

While perusing wedding sites I came across a column written by April Winchell for Brides Magazine.  She is in the process of planning her own wedding and had been commissioned to write each month about her experiences.  This being her second marriage and the creator of regretsy.com, she has been there and done that.  This creates a candor and frankness that when applied to weddings leaves nothing but a meaningful event for all.

I have pulled some snippets from her articles that I think descibe our feelings towards weddings.

"...I'm not talking about spending money. It doesn't matter what favors are on the tables if you never stop to say hello to your guests; and your bridesmaids won't care about Tiffany key chains if you've been on full-throttle Midol alert for six weeks. I'm talking about thinking about others, and doing meaningful things to ensure lasting memories for everyone. It's a concept that's hard to keep in mind when everyone keeps insisting that it's "all about you." "

The reason behind the weekend wedding.  A wedding where you actually get to see and spend time with your family beyond the receiving line.


"...the wedding is not your marriage. It's really just the best party you can afford to throw for the people who love you most." 

Do what you love.  Make the memory of your wedding include the time you spent with your family, not the cost of it.

"All I really know is that if I'm true to myself, I can keep my wedding from turning into something I can never get right. I can have what I truly want, and not pile a lot of expensive and ultimately meaningless gestures into something that already has enough meaning to last a lifetime."  Enough said :)

"To be fair, choosing the venue is probably the hardest part of this whole exercise. I know it's been almost impossible for my fiancé and me. For one thing, our families live on opposite coasts, so someone's going to have to travel. But who?" 

Well if you have it at Hidden Valley at least they will have a place to stay when they get there...

April goes on (very hilariously) about her DIY wedding.  To read more you can pick up a copy of Brides magazine or go to http://www.brides.com/wedding-answers-tools/2010/08/April_Winchell_Column_3

Enjoy!!

Jessica and James's Wedding

Hi Everyone,

We are very happy as our 2010 wedding season comes to an end. We would like to share with you a few of the photos and details from Jessica and James’s wedding. Jessica’s mom, Pam, acted as the planner of the entire weekend wedding. The event was beautiful! The ceremony was held at the Garden Stage with musicians playing on one of the terraces followed by an outdoor reception. The bride and groom took advantage of our gorgeous nature views and took beautiful pictures by the Garden Stage, the Orchards and the Amazon Fountain. Here is what Pam had to say after the event was over:
“We had a wonderful time, everything was absolutely perfect. The Weekend Wedding went super well and everyone loved the place. Thanks so much for everything.”-Pam Wertz (Mother of the Bride) 10/26/10

*We wish all of our 2010 couples all the best, and thank them for allowing us to be a part of the most important day of their lives.*

Special thanks to Paul with Photography by Paul for the wonderful pictures he sent us.