An Outdoor Ceremony in Spring

Sarah and Erich are two very special people who found each other and fell in love. They are both very expressive and they often are talking at the same time! But that is what makes them so adorable together. They both love their families deeply and love spending time with them whenever possible. And the most important person in their life is their little Chloe who is the center of their world.

Beck and I met Sarah and Erich several months before their wedding. We immediately clicked and we were so honored that chose us to assist them with planning their wedding. There were emails, phone calls, texts and meetings over the next several months making sure that all the details...big and small...of their wedding day were coming together. Sarah, Erich, Chloe and Maureen (the bride's mother) now hold a very special place in our hearts.



We want to share their very special wedding and the beautiful pictures that Trinity Photography captured from the day. Enjoy the pictures and how it all came together for Sarah and Erich.

Sarah says, "We wanted to have a destination beach wedding but more than anything, we wanted my 95 year old grandma to be able to watch her granddaughter get married. Both of us really enjoy golfing. So the look of The Links at Stoney Point was a perfect substitute for the beach theme we were going for with a classy golf green twist!

The weather was a very important element because our wedding ceremony was being held outside. Many days were spent worrying about the 50% chance of rain and storms in the South Carolina afternoons in spring. The overall atmosphere was also a big element because we wanted it to be perfect and enjoyable not only for us but for our families and friends as well.

Erich and I were able to personalize our wedding with several different touches. We had some lovely paper fans for all the guests to stay cool with during the ceremony. They were personalized with our names and wedding date. The fans also acted as our wedding favors. We made our guestbook together with a collage of pictures from our engagement shoot. Everyone was able to see and enjoy the pictures while signing the book.

The flowers (The Floral Case) were well worth the money that we splurged and they made the wedding absolutely perfect. They were all shades of purple and white...from calla lillies to hibiscus to some gorgeous greens.

We are also glad we splurged and got It's Your Party to help in coordinating everything and making the day perfect and go so smoothly. (Ah...so sweet!)  It helped me to keep a clear mind and know that someone else was in charge.

For the ceremony, we chose the traditional Episcopalian vows which are gorgeous in their own way. We had the wedding party walk down the aisle to "Marry Me"  by Jason Durelo. I was escorted down down the aisle by my mother to the classic " Cannon D". Even today, Erich tears up when he hears Cannon D start playing.

The entire wedding day was perfect but my favorite part was seeing my amazing groom tearing up as I walked down the aisle to him. Being able to finally see him was a big relief to me and warmed my spirits. Watching my little girl walk down the aisle as my amazing little beautiful flower girl also made Erich and me so happy. It meant that we have finally become one.

Erich's favorite part of the day was watching his bride and her mother walking arm in arm down the aisle to say I do. It meant he would be able to hold on to me the rest of the night and celebrate with our wonderful family and friends. Having his brothers, father and closest friend by his side through it all meant so much to him as well.

My amazing bridesmaids and maid of honor surprised me with a gorgeous picture of my father in a turtle locket to walk down the aisle attached to my bouquet. This made me so happy and really brought a very emotional aspect. It meant the world to me that my mother gave me away. It also meant so much to me to have my grandmother there as well as all my family that traveled from all parts of the world including England. It was so heart warming to see all the support from all of my family members.

When it was time to go, we had sparklers for everyone to light up the stairway as we left to go home to finish packing and head to Jamaica for our honeymoon and begin our life as husband and wife.

You can't have a real wedding without a real love story!  Sarah and Erich's love story adds a very personal touch to their beautiful wedding.

It all started when I walked into Skin's Hotdogs and applied for a job.  I finally got the job by calling and checking on my application over and over. By about the third call, Erich said to me "I lost your application. I will call you when I find it."  I never got a call so I called yet again and finally he said for me to come in for the job.  That's when it all began.  Three months later we hung out together for the first time. It was magical and for the next week we spent time together every night getting to know each other better. I soon discovered that I had met "the one".  We quickly found out how much each of us enjoyed traveling together.  We traveled to Georgia for me to meet his mother and also made several trips to the coast. Seven months later we took our first plane trip together to San Juan, Puerto Rico to visit Erich's family for the first time. Instantly I fell in love with the amazing town, the beaches and the history of Puerto Rico. A few short months later we traveled to Puerto Rico again. This time we took our sweet Chloe with us. We then made it a regular thing to travel down. On March 17, 2014, we took a trip as a family down including my mom. Little did I know Erich had asked my mom for my hand in marriage and she had carried my ring on the plane to Puerto Rico, the Island of Love.  On March 19th, Erich and I went for a lovely walk on the beach at sunset. Erich was behind me and he asked "What would make this even better?". I turned around and he was on one knee and said, "if you marry me". On May 17, 2015 at sunset, I said "I do". Who would have thought all this would have come from me begging for a job with a 6 month old adorable little girl. I could not be a happier mom and wife. We have come a long way in our relationship from the first meeting to overcoming many arguments. We have grown from the mistakes and arguments into having a lovely marriage and this is just the beginning! ~ by Sarah


Vendors:
Venue and Caterer - The Links at Stoney Point
Photographer         - Trinity Photography
Florist                    - The Floral Case
Coordinators         - It's Your Party! Events & Weddings
Rentals                  - The Rental Center

Wedding Planning Questionnaire for Engaged Couples

Wedding at The Farm - A Gathering Place by Jen Yuson Photography

When starting the wedding planning process, it's important to know that you as a couple are on the same page. This will allow you to make decisions independently, when necessary, knowing that it fits the look and feel of the wedding for both of you. It will also help you avoid arguments with each other during the planning process.

This short questionnaire can be filled out together as a couple, or print out two copies and fill out separately. You should discuss the reasons for your choices because it will help you when making decisions together.

If there is another person who will be an important decision-maker in the wedding, such as a parent, you may wish to get them to fill this out too. But I would recommend that you as the couple fill out the questionnaire first.

Wedding Planning Questionnaire

1.     Rate the following in order of importance (put a 1 next to the thing that is most important to you, through a 10 next to the thing that is least important to you):

___Food
___Liquor
___Apparel
___Aesthetics/Appearance (flowers, decorations, centerpieces, ambiance)
___Music
___Convenience
___Spirituality
___Photography
___Family and Friends

2.     When I look back on our wedding, I want to most remember: (choose 1)

___How exciting and fun everything was
___How romantic it was
___How beautiful it was
___How proper and tasteful everything was
___How smoothly and easily everything went
___How happy my parents and family were
___How relaxed I was

3.    Circle two to three words that you think will describe your wedding: 

Fun -- Romantic -- Classic -- Unique -- Loving -- Classy -- Tasteful -- Glamorous -- Elegant -- Funky -- Casual -- Relaxed -- Formal -- Themed -- Well-appointed -- Luxurious -- Decadent -- Old-fashioned -- Kitschy -- Preppy -- Sporty -- Morning -- Afternoon -- Evening -- Coordinated -- Cute -- Solemn -- Religious -- Secular -- Traditional -- Other ____________

4.    Even though you may not yet have put together a budget, or know who is contributing to your wedding, select how much you think your wedding should cost: (choose 1)

___Less than $5000
___$5000-$10000
___$10,000-$25,000
___$25,000-$45,000
___$45,000-$70,000
___$70,000-$100,000
___more than $100,000

5.    I want to get married: (choose 1)

___in the spring
___in the summer
___in the fall
___in the winter
___on our anniversary
___on an easy to remember date like 1/3/2013
___on a holiday (Valentine's Day, New Years, Etc.)
___on my parents' wedding anniversary
___on another special date _______________

6.    Colors that might make good wedding colors: (choose 3 or 4)

Red -- Green -- Yellow -- Blue -- Purple -- Lilac -- Amethyst -- Eggplant -- Lavender -- Wine -- Bordeaux -- Burgundy -- Sky blue -- Teal -- Royal Blue -- Navy -- Midnight Blue -- Raspberry -- Light Pink -- Hot Pink -- Fuschia -- Coral -- Magenta -- Peach -- Tangerine -- Apricot -- Pumpkin -- Orange -- Curry -- Mustard -- Brown -- Chocolate Brown -- Camel -- Tan -- Beige -- Apple Green -- Grass Green -- Kelly Green -- Mint Green -- Lime Green -- Moss -- Sapphire -- Deep Aqua -- Gold -- Silver -- White -- Black -- Bronze -- Copper -- Cream -- Champagne -- Vanilla -- Marigold -- Electric Blue -- Neon Yellow -- Blue Grey -- Grey -- Other _____________

(weddings.about.com)

Once you have both completed the questionnaire, use your answers to start planning your wedding. You might use the budget number as a target to discuss with anyone who might be helping pay for the wedding. If you both agree that flowers are more important to you than music, for example, you might choose to allocate a greater percentage of your budget to flowers, and save money on music. 

Here’s to a great experience with planning the wedding of your dreams.

Set Wedding Budget Before Choosing Your Date

Once you have gotten over the excitement of becoming engaged, creating a wedding budget is what should be first on your list of things to do.  Too often couples start planning the wedding and hiring vendors before setting the budget. Budgeting after you have started spending money can most often lead to regret. You realize you have spent so much on your venue that now you can only afford half of the flowers you would like for the reception area.

Although it is tradition for the bride’s parents to pay for the wedding, this is not necessarily true for today’s couples.

There are several options:

• ·         Parents may pay for all the wedding expenses.
• ·         Parents may specify an amount they will put towards the wedding. The couple will pay the difference.
• ·         Parents may decide to pay for certain aspects of the wedding such as the wedding dress, catering, etc. 
•       The couple will pay for everything else.
• ·         The couple can set a specific budget and ask everyone to pay evenly. This is a great option in a divided family. For example, the mother of the bride, the father of the bride and the couple split the costs. If the groom’s parents offer to pay a portion of the wedding, include them in the equation.
• ·         The couple can decide on their budget together and pay for all the expenses of the wedding.

All Free DIY Weddings

   Now comes the question of how much money you will really need.

    

      Depending on where you live, you can figure $100 per guest is a good start.  This comes to $50 per guest for catering and $50 for all the rest.

       Start by using a wedding budget worksheet.

• ·        Put in the actual numbers that you know, such as, venue, band/dj, wedding attire.
• ·         Prioritize what is most important to you, choosing 2 or 3 must haves for your wedding day.
• ·         Look through the budget and cross off the things you will not need.

     

      Once you have set your budget, stick to it!  It is easier said than done, but will alleviate the dreaded post wedding spending regret.