Vanessa and Marcus met through work, although they did not exactly get along in the beginning. They never imagined that their opposite personalities would eventually be what drew them together. After some time dating, a trip to Santa Cruz is when their love really blossomed; it became “their place.” While Vanessa was pregnant with their first child, Marcus planned a getaway to Santa Cruz with some friends. The last morning there, Vanessa and Marcus stayed back at the hotel while all their friends went to the beach. Vanessa had no idea that their trip to the beach was part of a surprise proposal. After their friends returned, they all packed up to head home. Shortly after loading into the car, Marcus suggested they all stop by the beach one last time. Marcus parked strategically so that Vanessa would not see the giant letters written in the sand that spelled out, “Will You Marry Me?” They started to walk down to the beach when suddenly Vanessa noticed the writing. Still unconvinced that this was for her, Vanessa turned to find Marcus who was on one knee asking for her hand in marriage. She was in such shock, it took her a few moments to finally realize that her dreams were really coming true.
Getting married before the arrival of their daughter was important to Vanessa and Marcus, however, Vanessa did not like the idea of walking down the aisle with a pregnant belly. The couple decided to elope first, just the two of them, and wait to have the big wedding until after their daughter arrived. Shortly after the arrival of their daughter, they began planning their big day. Just six months later, however, they learned they were expecting again! Wedding plans were put on hold for a second time. After their baby boy was born, Vanessa began to lose interest in having a large wedding. Marcus, however, knew that it was important to her and convinced her to keep planning. She was grateful that he did, and all the details began to fall into place.
Vanessa had always known that her ceremony would take place at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. She loved that the Cathedral’s own historic beauty did not require any decorations at all. For the reception, the couple knew that the Tsakopoulos Library Galleria was the perfect choice the moment they saw it; it had the “wow” factor they were looking for. They also used the library as inspiration for a theme and incorporated library and love stories into many of their details. From there, selecting vendors went smoothly, and Vanessa was so glad that they were finally having the wedding of their dreams.
The big day was very emotional for both Vanessa and Marcus. The bride remembers the moment when she began walking down the aisle with her father and saw her own daughter with Marcus staring back at them. It was that moment that reminded Vanessa what the day was all about. They were already living their happily ever after.
— Kelley Saia
First Dance Song
“Latch (acoustic version)” by Sam Smith
Father/Daughter Dance Song
“Isn’t She Lovely” by John Stoddart
Mother/Son Dance Song
“Song for Mama” by Boyz II Men
Money Dance Song
“Stand by Me” by Ben King
Cake Cutting Song
“I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz
Last Dance Song
“Back at One” by Brian McKnight
Details about the cake
We had a 3-tier, square, Champagne cake with strawberry mousse filling and white buttercream frosting. The edges of the cake had a white floral design that was brushed with gold, and the florist placed fresh flowers in the middle tier.
Details about the flowers
Garden roses, spray roses, ranunculus and eucalyptus were used for the bridal party. Same flowers were used in the centerpieces except we added hydrangeas to use as fillers.
Details about the favors
We had key bottle openers that were attached to personalized bookmarks thanking our guests.
Anything else you’d like to share about your wedding?
I recommend doing your research and investing in your vendors. It helped that we postponed our wedding so we had the opportunity to really research vendors and save up some extra money. I truly believe you get what you pay for and even though you may want to take the cheap route, investing in your vendors will pay off immensely. I truly felt that each one of them were awesome and worth every penny. They were able to make our vision come to life.
If you have to budget, figure out what it is that is most important to you and invest your money into that. For us it was our photographer, so we opted to not have a videographer in order to invest in our pictures.
I want to give a special thank you to my photographer Monica, as she has been so patient and understanding with us from the start. I can be a bit of a perfectionist and sometimes indecisive but she was so amazing with me and truly gave me the most beautiful pictures that I will be able to cherish for the rest of my life.
Any tips you’d give brides and grooms planning their wedding today?
Let people help you. I kept telling myself that I did not need the help and I had everything under control. However, towards the end, everything started to get a little overwhelming. So having let my bridesmaids and/or friends help me a little more would have helped ease some of the stress.
What would you have done differently if you had the chance?
I would have invested in a day of coordinator. Having a day of coordinator would have helped with decorating our venue. I was lucky enough to have a couple of my close friends go in early and decorate the reception venue. But having a day of coordinator would have eased some of that stress for me.
Also, having a day of coordinator would have helped us stay on time and help the day go by a little more smoothly. In the beginning it felt a little hectic. I also think we were behind schedule, so some of the dancing time got cut into. The day went by just SO fast I wish we had more time to enjoy it. All in all everything was still amazing but having a coordinator/planner would have been a good investment to look into.
Vendors
Ceremony Site:
Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament Officiant:
Father O'Reilly Ceremony Music:
Opus 3 Strings Photographer:
Monica S Photography Reception Site:
Tsakopoulos Library Galleria Bridal Hair:
Christi Reynolds Beauty Bridal Make-up:
Christi Reynolds Beauty Bridal Attire:
Miosa Bride Bridal Veil:
Miosa Bride Bridesmaids' Attire:
David's Bridal Flowergirl Attire:
DIY Groom’s Attire:
Men's Warehouse Groomsmen's Attire:
Men's Wearhouse Bride's Rings Jeweler:
Ben Bridge Jewelers Groom's Rings Jeweler:
Kay Jewelers Save the Date Cards:
We Due Dates Invitations:
Julie Hanan Design Place Cards:
The Bird and the Beard Menu Cards:
DIY by the Bride & Bridesmaids Thank You Cards:
Minted Calligraphy:
Miranda Ellen Calligraphy Wedding Party Flowers:
Bella Bloom Ceremony Flowers:
Bella Bloom Reception Flowers:
Bella Bloom Caterer:
Griselda's Catering Bar Service:
Griselda's Catering Cake:
Freeport Bakery DJ/Entertainment:
Beat Fleet DJs Lighting:
Brighten Up Event Lighting Transportation/Limo Services:
API Limousine Favors:
Ella Celebration Favors:
Paper Gooodiez Photo Booth:
Encore Photo Booths Decor Rentals:
Bella Bloom Decor Signage:
Simple Country Weddings Additional Resources:
Mario's Woodworking (props)