Katy & Kyler’s Wedding at District Winery in Washington, DC

I didn’t watch the “debate” last night. It was Andy’s birthday and we both wanted to be happy and feel GOOD and we knew the “debate” would do neither. So we both enjoyed a beverage (after enjoying some birthday cake with the kids), and watched Tiffany Haddish’s Black Mitzvah stand-up and LAUGHED A LOT. It was the right decision.

For those of you that did watch (what I’ve come to learn / read / see) the circus, inside a WWE, inside a dumpster fire show that was supposed to be a debate, here’s a nice palate cleanser for you. That deep burgundy is making me feel ALL the Fall wedding vibes and I love a good District Winery Wedding. Sound off!

We chose District Winery for a few reasons – one is we are huge winery people! We’re members at a few out west, but given that we were getting married in February, we didn’t want guests trekking down Skyline Drive in snow. When we found District Winery, it was the perfect mix of city and winery. Also, it is in the Navy Yard, and Kyler’s family are the biggest Nats fans, so being down there only made sense! (in fact, his sister’s reception was actually IN nats park!) This was made all the more special when my parents surprised us by hiring the Nat’s racing presidents to come crash our reception for a bit!! Lastly, we picked it because it’s absolutely gorgeous and the exact aesthetic we love…huge windows, water views, industrial space that could be softened with candles and florals.

We didn’t really have anything ultra special or unique when it came to decor exactly, but we knew we wanted tons of greenery and candles to warm the space up on a cold February day. Our florist, Rockingbird Flower Company, KILLED it with overflowing flowers on wine barrels, greenery and light florals down all of the tables, and the prettiest bouquets for my bridesmaids.

We had a small shelf of pictures of loved ones who have passed, and reserved a seat for them in the front row with a memorial bouquet, since we know they were absolutely there with us. Another special thing for Kyler and I was having Kyler’s closest family friend officiate our wedding. He’s known Kyler since he was born, was in the Marine’s with Kyler’s father, and has remained their closest family friends for decades. In fact, his granddaughters were our flower girls!

We didn’t really overthink colors…I let my bridesmaids pick dresses they liked the most and we worked to make them fit together, even though they weren’t the exact same. I didn’t want cheesy red roses or anything that might feel like a Valentine’s theme, so we went with lots of neutrals and just a few pops of deeper reds.

The best memories of the day were definitely just all of the dancing and party at the reception! Craig, our DJ, knew we wanted everyone dancing the whole night and he made sure that happened! Another funny memory was a pair of white heart sunglasses that kept getting passed around. Long story short – I wore those at my bachelorette party and a friend asked if he could wear them for the wedding, so I had one of our planners put them on his place setting. By the end of the night (as you can see in most of Adam’s photos) nearly everyone had worn them. They are some of my favorite candids of the whole wedding album!

Another really special part was when my dad surprised me by wearing a white tux jacket for our father daughter dance. He had joked the whole year of planning that I wouldn’t be the only one wearing white, but I didn’t take him seriously. I found out afterward that my grandfather had done the same thing at his and my mom’s wedding, and I loved having a small bit of tradition involved in that moment. Lastly, one of our favorite memories was our last dance, which we had while the planners and Adam were getting everyone set up for a sparkler exit. It was just us and the second photographer in the room dancing to one of the most special songs for us that we didn’t use for our first dance. I still get teary eyed thinking about it!!