Carol and Chris: Camp Wedding

Carol and Chris's wedding was such great fun! Their "Camp Wedding" theme seamlessly blended into the environment at Hidden Valley and enhanced all the natural beauty. For now, enjoy a picture slideshow from their weekend of love and laughter! Oh, and stay tuned for more pictures, details, and gorgeous moments from their weekend!

Carol and Chris: Camp Wedding

Lori and Jake's Wedding!

Lori and Jake celebrated their love with grace and style. The whole family contributed to their special day, helping to decorate and pull together detailed elements. They used a rainbow of colors throughout their wedding, and played off the rustic, barn-like setting at Hidden Valley. Pops of red could be seen on their wedding cake, reception tables, and in their guestbook. 

Lori's mom also made over 100 jars of jam to give away as favors. When added to the rest of the decor, the homemade gift created a sweet, personal, country feeling for the day.

The rustic theme was carried over from the ceremony to the reception area. With burlap adorned tables and bright flower bunches in vintage tin cans, the overall effect was naturally beautiful!

Time and time again, we are impressed by the creativity of our couples. A perfect example of this is our archway that leads to the wedding circle. Lori and Jake decided on a natural, floral arrangement to

 enhance the surroundings of the oaks. 

The wedding circle was truly an enchanted space. Crystal strands hung from the oak trees to create sparkling light during the ceremony. In a moment of tenderness, Lori's father escorted her down the aisle. It was just the beginning of a beautiful day filled with love, laughter, and warmth.

For their reception, Lori and Jake chose our good friends at Bekker's Catering for a family style feast! They brought a skilled team of servers to provide top-notch service for the guests. As friends and family gave speeches and shared well wishes, the newlyweds could be caught enjoying the fun together.

 They carried the home-made, country setting into the cake display by creating a bakery scene full of pies and sweets! It was a gorgeous, rustic set-up with every fruit pie imaginable!

Congratulations, Lori and Jake! We wish you endless years of happiness as you start your life together. 

Thank you to all of the vendors whose hard work made this special day possible:

Catering: Bekkers Catering: 

Transportation: Sun Diego Charter Co

Golf Cart Rental: Escondido Golf Cart Center 

Photography: Kate Colosi

DJ: Rigor de Leon 

Cake: Crimson Cake- Alicia 

Mandi and Ben's Wedding!

For Mandi and Hidden Valley, it was love at first sight! From her very first tour, Mandi saw the property for all of its beauty and possibilities, and she knew that it would be the perfect place to marry her other love at first sight: Ben. From the very beginning, we knew that Mandi and Ben were going to be a really fun couple to work with. Their family was very involved in the planning. A big group of extended family came to tour the property as they prepared. Brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents all helped to build the detailed elements of the event. Mandi came to Hidden Valley with a clear vision for her wedding, and that vision carried through into a collection of amazing details. With the help of their family, this dynamic couple created a wedding that was well planned and very well executed. We want to share some of their special details with you! 

One of their incredible details appeared right in the men's clothing. Ben took advantage of his wedding day to gather his groomsmen and subtly reveal their super-identities. He made his wedding attire exceptional by equipping each of his groomsmen with awesome cuff-links to reflect their inner heroes. 

This family is handy bunch! They used their creativity and skills to hand-make many of the elements of their wedding. For example, they created a photobooth for their reception. It was assembled in true vintage rustic style, with cute frames and delicate vintage fabric. Mandi and Ben completed the set with masks, hats, and mustaches for dressing up. Their photobooth was a smash hit with the wedding guests! Local Escondido photography company, Dapper Images, did a fantastic job capturing these and all the other amazing shots of the big day!

Many of our couples choose to have a special lovebird's table for their reception. Mandi and Ben chose to place their table on the Wedding Stage. The display was thoughtfully constructed with numerous details including mismatched chairs, vintage picture frames, graceful florals, elegant china, and a celebratory bottle of champagne. Word has it that grandma hand-made the vintage-style chairs! The beautiful florals were constructed by our extraordinary friend Kelly Fiorito with Petals and Lace. 

We were impressed and inspired by Mandi and Ben's signage. The signs used an array of materials, textures, and hand writings to create the rustic, vintage flair that we love at Hidden Valley. The superstar family even built the entire wooden Bar booth themselves! They've inspired us to create our own new signs for the property (keep your eyes peeled for a blog when they're ready!).

As the evening progressed, the entertainment continued. We were especially impressed by the tender moments Dapper Images managed to capture between Mandy, Ben, and their parents during the dancing portion of the evening. It is clear to us that their family shares a lot of love.

Many congratulations to Mandi and Ben! We have nothing but warm wishes to send to you as you begin this new journey. We hope your happiness only continues to grow.

Thanks to the vendors who made this special day possible:

• Photography: Dapper Images
• Florals: Petals and Lace
• DJ: DJ React (949) 842-8465
• Caterer: Out Of This World BBQ
• Bar: GYD Bartenders
• Transportation: Wess Transportation (760) 741-9953

Mulberry season!

Summer fun is in full bloom at Hidden Valley Retreat! Our daughter and her friend were able to come up to the property this weekend. They took advantage of the warm weather and went swimming in the fountain. But most deliciously of all, they picked some home-grown mulberries!

The mulberry tree is one of the oldest at our property. It was planted many years ago by the previous owner, Dr. Bernard Jensen. These days, its boughs hang heavy with ripe, juicy fruit. If you have never had a mulberry, they are the most delicious, sweet, tart, purple berries you could pop in your mouth!

Check out the fun!

sticky fingers!

mulberries taste great with whipped cream!

Sharlene & David's Wedding

 It's been a busy few months here at Hidden Valley, but we wanted to stop amidst the chaos and bring you some gorgeous wedding photos of Sharlene & David. This couple was a joy to work with from start to finish. Just check out the photo of them walking along one of our paths! Visit First & Orange to see more photos of the happy couple enjoying their day and slicing pizza from David's very own Pizza Wagon. Congratulations, Sharlene and David!