Danielle & Eddie’s Garden Wedding in Alexandria, VA

This little escape from the city has been a much needed break. We were able to make it to the beach one afternoon, with mixed reviews from Charlie, and the rest of the time we’ve just been relaxing and hanging out with his grandparents. It’s been a nice little break for me as well, not having to do much cooking or cleaning. Hopefully you can find some time for a break, whether it’s just a staycation or a little getaway. I think we could all use a break right about now.

We’ve got a gorgeous garden wedding for you today, with lots of personal touches. Enjoy!

What was the most important thing to you when planning your wedding? We really wanted to make everything personal and true to us. For example, reading our own vows to each other, our signature drinks being named after our departed and beloved pets, LA street names for table numbers, one of our best friends as our officiant, Eddie’s cousin singing our first dance, etc. We spent extra time on the little, personal touches.

What was your favorite wedding detail? The signature drinks! Both of the dogs we grew up with have passed away so we named each of our signature drinks after them. “The Jake” and “The Ridgely”. It made us feel like they were a part of the day and with us in spirit even if they weren’t physically there.

What was your favorite moment from your wedding day?

From the bride: That’s such a hard question! There were so many amazing and favorable moments. These are some of my faves: 1. Reading our vows to each other. 2. My dad’s speech. 3. All of the dancing.

From the groom: There were so many great moments from the wedding day, but my favorite moment had to be the ceremony itself. I’ll never forget the image of Danielle walking down the aisle.

Did everything go as planned? If not, how did you make the best of it and why did you choose to do it that way? Haha. Funny you should ask! We had a terrible bus transportation fiasco that caused our ceremony to start an entire hour late. We made the best of it by just having the catering people begin serving alcohol to the guests that were already there, and then those of us in hiding just started poppin’ bottles of champagne! There’s always something that doesn’t go according to plan, and we just didn’t let that ruin the day. Everything was perfect outside of that anyways!

What advice can you give other couples planning their wedding? Just do what feels true to you guys. Listen to your families’ opinions, but ultimately do what’s in your hearts. Also, something will go wrong. Something always doesn’t go according to plan at everyone’s wedding and just try not to let it ruin your mood. Your guests will sense it if you do and plus, you only get this day once in your life!