All day the clouds had been curling up and ready to threaten the wedding with rain. And it made for lovely couple shots in the middle of all those fields. One minute the clouds would be super dark and the next they would be totally gone they were moving so fast. There was just so many places at Hubbel Homestead to play with. So we had a great time romping all over the property.

But I’ll tell you a little secret. Jen and Yarrow were super nervous before the ceremony. The officiant didn’t show till 5 minutes before the ceremony and the clouds started to look bad. So Vicki (the owner of Hubbel Homestead) and I made Jen and Yarrow go into the house to sit and wait for the ceremony to start. I wanted them to have some time to be with each other and relax. And I have to say the 2 minutes before the ceremony were so sweet- yes, they were nervous, but Jen brushed a hair out of Yarrow’s face…and just that little gesture was so damn loving. I seriously love that picture. It’s exactly the combination of emotions most people face literally seconds before their ceremony:  omg I’m about to be in front of all these people; crap, I hope I don’t trip and fall on my face; whhhhattt I’m getting married!!; I love my partner so much; omg omg omg we are about to do this thing!

And then they walked out to the ceremony….ceremony/reception pics tomorrow!

Everyone started arriving for the ceremony and the porch was perfect for people to relax on.

So being in our first house for over a year and purchasing a table big enough to seat 8 (though we found out it can sit 10!) I really wanted to host Thanksgiving. So Natalie’s family drove up from New York City, my mom and grandma drove up from DC and my uncle came from NC. So it was a full house for two days and I can honestly say it was the best Thanksgiving I can remember. I’m learning I love to entertain and host people. But don’t get me wrong- it’s stressful as hell to cook, clean and get ready for 10 guests when you have been in bed for 6 days prior and have 24 hours to throw it all together. But Natalie and I did. It felt so warm and perfect to have so many loved ones with us. It’s the first time we have really had so many of both our family members together since our wedding and I just soaked it all up. And they seemed to really enjoy it which makes all the difference. We mostly sat around and talked, ate, talked- which was perfect. I even had an idea at the last minute to have everyone write what they were thankful for on a chalkboard which I now love because it’s so funny to see everyone’s handwriting. Even the cats joined in on what they were thankful for.

Thank you to everyone who has sent me an email, tweet, facebook message, or commented on here about my being sick. Today is the first day I’m out of bed really working- so that’s 6 days of sitting in bed. But all your nice words made my day!

So this wedding I have been waiting forever and a half to blog because one of the brides is actually a blogger for So You’re EnGAYged and I had to wait for her recaps to be done before I could blog it over here. As you could see from last weeks post of their wedding invitations, Yarrow and Jen’s wedding was carnival themed. It was incredible.

Natalie and I drove up to Vermont on that Friday to get settled in and shoot the rehearsal dinner. When we arrived at Hubbell Homestead, their wedding venue, I was like ‘OHH no way!!’. The gorgeous open fields all around the property gave it a totally secluded feeling, while at the same time you had access to a pool, a fire pit, and the amazing venue coordinator Vicki. Vicki was like the best planner I have ever seen and that wasn’t even her job! She helped out with so much of the dozens of DIY projects, getting set up, making sure everyone was happy. And then we got in our room- hello huge hot tub!

So Saturday morning came and everything started to come together. Yarrow was getting her hair done by a friend and Jen was busy chatting with friends. The tent, where all of Yarrow’s amazing crafty projects were setup, was being given final touches. It was an easy getting ready morning as everything was in one place so there was no rushing around which is a rarity. Eventually, some of Yarrow’s family came to set up the ceremony canopy, a Chuppah canopy Yarrow’s grandmother had made. It was so gorgeous and just showed everyone where Yarrow’s amazing DIY skill set came from. The ribbon wands for the ceremony came out. And then it was time to put on the wedding dresses. I loved Yarrow’s swiss dot dress that was sold as a bridesmaid dress but was so perfect as a wedding dress. And Jen’s short little Melissa Sweet dress was totally fitting.

Don’t you love the feather wedding rings?