A $25K Wedding in Sonoma County
At our son’s wedding, our daughter announced that she and her then boyfriend were getting married. OMG!!! At least I had a year to plan it. When she said to me, “Mom, I’m Cinderella and you’re my fairy god mother,” I thought to myself (How am I going to get those little birds to fly all around her chirping like in the cartoon?) I had been taking a sabbatical, I took a heavy breath of air and went back to work. the next year was filled with plans, invitations, phone calls, cake tasting, visits to the caterers, and scouting out the perfect location for the prestigious event.
After considerable footwork, we found the perfect location The Fountain Bleu in Sebastopol. Our daughter planned the wedding date to coincide with a full moon in July. How gorgeous! The estate itself is luxurious and reasonably priced. The owner (Louie) is very charming and cooperative.
After much consideration we chose a caterer, A La Heart, 
707-527-7555
, and the menu which consisted of a fruit and cheese appetizer to be served with wine and beer while the pictures were being taken, a buffet dinner of Mediterranean chicken with sun dried tomatoes and olives, rice pilaf, and sauteed seasonal vegetables. Salads and rolls with butter were pre-set at each place prior to the buffet. The caterer provided a licensed server for the alcohol and cake service. Auntie B’s is a great place for a cake! . We also really love Village Bakery 707-829-8101. The whole event came off without a hitch. Since the bride and groom are usually too busy and nervous to eat at the dinner, they even provided “To Go” boxes for them to eat later at their hotel room.
I chose Michael Brandeburg to put together a jazz trio and I even got up and sang a few numbers. While some people may want to save a few dollars and have pre-recorded music or a DJ, being a singer myself, I just couldn’t go the cheap route on this one. Musicians do expect to get paid more for wedding gigs and they also expect to eat! If you call me, I can get you a smooth jazz trio with a singer that will make your event even more special.
Flowers were beautifully arranged by Heather Hendrickson. The best thing about Heather is the way she melds together a wild look along with the traditional flower choices. I love the look of a country garden, so we used wheat stems along with some blooming artichokes (!) that looked fantastic!
The photographer was our daughter’s former high school vice principal who moonlights as a photographer. The bride was only an hour late for photographs. Her motto is: She waits for no man, because every man is waiting for her! I love Yo Bliss for make up, hair, and photography! She is also a great hand holder for stressed out MOB’s!.
The rehearsal dinner was given by the groom’s parents at Stella’s at Russian River Vineyards. We had a beautiful garden setting for dinner. Russian River Vineyards also hosts weddings.
My husband never looked more handsome than the day he presented our daughter down the aisle to her waiting groom. She was a glorious bride with a skip in her step as she approached the flowered arch to the strains of “Ribbon in the Sky” by Stevie Wonder. The bride and groom wrote their own vows and when the groom began crying as he looked into my daughter’s eyes, I knew I would always love him as my own son.
My daughter her beautiful friends as her attendants and had two little flower girls who were fighting over the flower petals during the whole ceremony. “No, that one is mine!” “No that’s mine!” They were actually gathering up the petals they had strewn along the pathway! This is the only thing that kept me from crying! Ha!
During the garter toss, one of the female guests who had consumed a little too much cheer fought off the single males to garner the prize for herself! (Another memorable moment).
As they left in their white limo (a present from me- the MOB) on their way to the airport for a Hawaiian honeymoon on the Big Island, I heaved a heavy sigh, “I’ll never have to do that again!” It was a fairy tale wedding and a great party! (Total cost $25,000