Real Weddings Wednesday | Vacaville Wedding | Lixxim Photography | Second Summer Bride | Sacramento Wedding

The Couple: Ellen & Casey

Wedding Date: November 10, 2018

Photography by Lixxim Photography

Tell us a little about you and your beloved: Ellen and Casey met at Justin-Siena during their junior year of high school. Ellen’s first memory of Casey is when she saw him from a distance and noticed his stunningly bright blue eyes and his thick long brown curls. He joined the group Ellen ate lunch with and he rarely brought a lunch and so Ellen would say, “Do you want my tomatoes?” and they would both laugh, he never did take up the offer! A few months later, the Tournabout dance (where the girls ask the guys) was approaching and so Ellen decided she would ask Casey to the dance. She made cupcakes that spelled out “Tournabout, Casey?” and he promptly replied, “Sure!” And so it began on February 4, 2011. It wasn’t until the night of the dance that they became “Facebook official” on February 26, 2011, at a Buckhorn Grill in Napa. Oh, and they may have gotten a detention at the dance, but they ended up being paired together to pick up trash around campus anyway.

Fast forward seven years and some days and the date is March 9, 2018. Casey planned a trip for Ellen’s birthday down to Monterey Bay for the weekend. They arrived at the Merritt House Inn for check in and drop off their suitcases and decide to walk to Fisherman’s Warf for dinner. They chose Scales Seafood and Steak on the warf. They were sat at a table overlooking the marina and thus the sunset. The service was amazing and even gave Ellen a rose at the end of the meal. Afterward, the two decided to take a stroll to the beach and hopefully see the stars. They sat on the beach for some time not saying a word but enjoying each other’s presence. They strolled a little bit further and Casey turned towards Ellen and said, “I wasn’t able to give you the stars for our first kiss, and not even this time, but the clouds will have to do.” Casey got down on one knee and asked, “Ellen, will you marry me?” Ellen couldn’t control her emotions, and through tears of joy said, “Yes!”

What was the most amazing part of your day? Besides the fact that I was marrying my best friend, was how all of the decorations and “scene changes” turned out. We booked a VRBO that had a barn on the property and we went at it with decorations. The Barn had to go through a few scene changes in order to accomodate everything. It started out with the ceremony with all the chairs lined up, then some chairs were taken out and rearranged to fit the tables for brunch, and then those tables and chairs were removed for dancing. We had amazing support from friends and family to help the big day go smoothly.

What else would you like to share about your big day? The food was amazing! Our caterer, Jenn Cepeda, owner of Events by Jenn, did a phenomenal job at staging the food and making it all delicious! Our wedding was in the morning so we had brunch food: french toast brioche, ham and cheese sliders, bagels, parfait, Breakfast Burrito Bar, and a Mimosa/Bloody Mary Bar.

Ceremony and Reception Site: Fox Hill Farm

DJ: Cope Entertainment

Officiant: Casey’s Aunt, Allycen

Photographer: Lixxim Photography

Caterer: Events by Jenn

Cake/Desserts: Ellen’s Best Friend/Maid-of-Honor, Chelsea (homemade mini cake and cupcakes with frosting like flowers)

Flowers: Sola Wood Flowers, Arranged by Bridal Party

Favors: Wine Cork Magnets

Bridal Attire: Second Summer Bride Sacramento

Hair and Make-up: Aliyah

Invitations: Vistaprint

Decor and Select Rentals: Events by Jenn

Select Furniture and Linen Rentals: Platinum Party Rentals

Honeymoon Location: Sandals Jamaica

First Dance Song: “Faithfully” Journey

Any advice you’d give to our readers who are planning their weddings right now? Start early, make it personal, don’t sweat the small stuff, use your resources/connections, get creative!

Anything that you would have done differently if you were given the chance? Nope!

Photography by Lixxim Photography.

Blog post by Real Weddings Magazine’s Social Media Maven, Aimee Carroll.