Thank you to everyone who made this weekend so special. Having our family and friends together meant so much to us – and we had the most amazing vendors that brought it all together! Finally getting around to writing our recap wedding post, and I am so thankful we got to bring all of our favorite people together in our favorite place.
The weekend significance: We chose our 8 year anniversary weekend to get married, because we thought what better way to celebrate 8 years of being together, than tying the knot.
The venue significance: Michael & I both attended school at Colorado Mesa, so it was really special for us to be able to tie the knot on the Western Slope. More specifically, we stayed at the Palisade River Ranch together for a week and fell in love with the place. For us it meant quietness and a break from the hustle & bustle, a chance for us to reconnect & also disconnect from the world when we were both at our first jobs. We sat on the bench down by the pond and agreed if we were to get married, this would be the place. The trip was for our 4 year anniversary, Michael’s birthday, and to celebrate the end of the summer with one last trip. 4 years later, we got to tie the knot.
The Vendor list: I’ve gone ahead and linked everyones Instagrams, because that’s what I found most helpful when I was planning:
The Rehearsal:
We had our rehearsal dinner on site at Palisade River Ranch, and Michael’s Mom & Dad catered in BBQ. The rehearsal 🫣 A few too many beers but we had Vicky to keep us in line 😉 Get yourself a day of coordinator like Vicky! Vicky 🤝 Our Friends…I feel like a lot of people didn’t know this but we were on a budget so Vicky was kind enough to help with weekend coordination even though she works for the other venue — so thankful they worked with us. We didn’t have the budget to hire a wedding coordinator but she worked with us and kept our crazy 20 person wedding party in line & the weekend went off without a hitch. We needed Vicky to pull the weekend off! Wedding planners can be between 5K-100K – regardless, we did not have the budget for one, but Vicky stepped up and did an amazing job!
The Morning Of: The girls all god ready at Palisade River Ranch, while the boys were setting up, drinking beers, and as usual being reckless. At Palisade River Ranch, they have what’s called ’The Apartment’ on their Airbnb / website, and that unit has the girls getting ready suite. We spent the morning drinking mimosas, eating snacks, having my brother run in & out to get whatever we needed, and getting hair & makeup done. I linked vendors above, but again, Liz & Ashley did an amazing job! We love them, and all the girls looked great.
First Look With My Brother: A lot of people do a first look with Dad, but in place of that I did it with my brother. He’s the one who walked me down the aisle, and stood in most the night. I love him, and couldn’t ask for a better big brother than Jonathan. At the end of the day, I’m pretty lucky to have a brother like him. Jonathan, thank you for walking me down the aisle & for being there for me when I need you. You brought your paint brushes, got straight to work, brought the girls lunch, found baby’s breath for my hair, and really showed up for me 🤍 don’t get me started on your speech 🤧 So lucky to have you as a big brother.
The Ceremony: We’re not traditional people, and we’ve already been together for so so long, so of course the ceremony had to be more ’us’ and have some personal touches. Blaine, Michael’s cousin, and one of my favorite cousins officiated our wedding. We aren’t serious and I can’t reiterate that enough so we felt like some comedic relief, and someone we were close with would be the best person to officiate for us. I think he threw in jokes like Michael fixing up the truck in the garage, and me letting the guest room not just be my personal storage room, and it was hilarious. We are so thankful to have Blaine in our life, and it was everything we wanted and more. We’re committed for the long haul and have been for years, so to have some comedic moments and funny vows was so important to us. He nailed it.
The Reception & After Party: We literally didn’t want the day to end, but this was our favorite part of the night. We held our reception at Wine Country Inn, which funny enough is where I planned my sorority formal when Michael & I were in college. It was so perfect, and we couldn’t have asked for a better space. Most of our family & friends stayed at the hotel, so we avoided the drinking & driving which was also great. We got to spent up to the last minute with majority of our guests, and we are so so thankful for that. We linked all the vendors, but I cannot thank Wine Country Inn, Firefly Entertainment GJ, and our photo & video crew enough. This was by far the best part of our wedding day.
The Speeches: The speeches are amazing, and I can’t wait to share them. For now we’ve just shared our wedding video with family & friends, but I can’t wait to someday link them in this recap. My MOH, Michael’s Dad (AKA Best Man), Murph – Michael’s BFF, My Mom, My Brother, and Michael’s Grandpa all had speeches.
Our Friends/Wedding Party: We are so thankful most of our friends made the trip out, alot of them were in the wedding party as well. I could write something heartfelt, but the boys are going to never let me live it down, so I’ll keep it short and sweet. We are surrounded with the BEST people. We don’t know what we’d do without them, and the fact they made a 4.5 hour drive for a weekend to celebrate Michael and I means the world to us.
Sparkler Send Off & End of An Amazing Weekend: The weekend went so well, and we are so thankful. We ended with the cliche sparkler send off, and I wouldn’t have done it any other way. To capture that moment on photos & video means the world to us, and it just reminded us how many people we are loved by.
If you have any questions, you can always send a message. Planning a destination wedding is hard, and it’s even harder in a small town. If I could do it again, I’d do it exactly the same, and we are so thankful it worked out the way it did.
