Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
I know I already said the photos in this post were my absolute favorite from our wedding, but I have to say these pictures are a close second. We chose “The Way I Am” by Ingrid Michelson for our first dance as husband and wife. I have always loved this song because so many of the lyrics make me think of inside jokes between Mr. Castle and me. For example the line, “Sew on patches to all you tear” reminds me of how I used to tease Mr. Castle before we began dating. He had these jeans with huge holes in both knees, like ridiculously huge. I still don’t understand how he could actually wear them—they were that bad. I used to say, “You know I can sew those up for you, or better yet I can put a patch on them. Maybe a big peace sign or a groovy flower?” It was my dorky way of flirting with him…
Anyway, this song is so simple and sweet, and I knew I wanted to somehow use it on our wedding day. I wasn’t sure exactly how we would use it until one day Mr. Castle suggested it as our first-dance song. I loved the idea. We wanted our first-dance song to be something with a happier tone, not too sappy, and “The Way I Am” totally fit the bill. If only I had thought of it first! Since I love this song so much I spent most of our first dance singing along. Afterward I thought, “Oh, that’s probably not going to look very attractive in pictures…oops.” Well, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Once again our amazing photographers captured out first dance beautifully. You can’t even tell I was singing along!
It was definitely a magical moment, not at all awkward like I had feared. Another great thing about our song choice was that it was short! It’s a little over two minutes long, which was the perfect amount of time for us.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
It was time to enter our reception, but before we made it inside our bridal party needed to be introduced. For their entrance we chose a song that we thought couldn’t be more perfect, the theme song from Friends! We didn’t tell any of our bridal party about the song choice, so when the music started they all got really excited!
“I’ll Be There for You” – The Rembrandts {Press play to listen}
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
These are my absolute favorite photos from our wedding day. They capture all the emotions, love, and the essence of the day so perfectly. They bring back all those feelings and memories more than any other photos from our wedding. This was the first time we were somewhat “alone” after becoming man and wife. Pretty quickly our photographers faded into the background as we enjoyed some time together soaking in our newlywed bliss.
I have to warn you this post is photo heavy! I could have broken it into two posts, but I figured I might as well put them all in one! I’m not going to say much more other than our photographers are amazing. They captured us and our love in a way I didn’t know was possible.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
I know family formal posts aren’t always the most exciting…so I included some photos of food at the end. But honestly, although they might not be as exciting as getting ready or detail shots, they are important photos to have. These are the photos that make Mom, Dad, and grandparents so happy. It was also fun to spend some time with our family taking pictures right after the ceremony. We started off the family shots with Mr. Castle’s family.
Mrs. Hermit Crab, New York, NYAge and Occupation: 24, Youth Director soon to be Grad StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Medical Student - soon to be Surgery ResidentEngagement Date: October 11, 2008Wedding Date: June 2010Venue: New York Botanical GardenAbout Me: I love all things food, books, our furbaby, Rashi, and adventures with my amazing fiance (oh, and saving the world!). This summer I will not only be a bride, but a bridesmaid, officiant, and attendee as well---it's all about weddings in my life right now, full of so many exciting moments and projects. We're planning a fab New York City wedding weekend full of family, love and lots of color!
The NYC bees enjoy hanging out so much that we have decided to put a monthly meet up on the calendar for the second Tuesday of every month.
Here are the details for the next meet up:
When: Tuesday, November 13, 6 pm
Where: Cask, 167 East 33rd Street
What: A night out with your bee friends in real life
In light of what is going on right here in New York and the surrounding area, we will be using this opportunity to collect things are are needed by the hundreds of people who are unable to return to their homes in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Please bring one of the following to be donated: flashlights, batteries, radios, blankets, bread, apples, bananas, non-perishable food items (nothing too heavy, as I’ll be carrying it home by myself!). If you have a question about what to bring, feel free to comment here or PM me.
RSVP: PM redheadem to reserve your spot for this upcoming meet up and check this thread for updates.
Mrs. Star, New York CityAge and Occupation: 22, ActressFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Casting AssistantWedding Date: October 2009Venue: Ceremony: The Kraine Theatre, Reception: Midtown Loft & TerraceAbout Me: I’m a professional actress who’s always had New York City in her blood and I'm finally getting the chance to make a home in Manhattan with my fiancé, my dog, and my big dreams! I love polka dots, craft projects, Dunkin’ Donuts’ iced coffee, and anything sparkly. I’m having a blast planning our elegant/dramatic/New York City/acting-themed/largely-DIY wedding and am thrilled to be the youngest current Miss Blogger!
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
We arrived at our venue and were immediately greeted by our photographers, Erin and Louis! They were already busy taking some detail shots. The staff at Padua had already set up everything I had brought to our rehearsal and it looked amazing!
Tammy, our go to person from Padua for the day, had already hung my dress and taken it out of it’s garment bag by the time I made it to the bridal room. She was such a sweetheart and took amazing care of us throughout the whole day! Since she had already handled my dress, I began organizing my things and giving Erin my jewelry and shoes to start photographing.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
After we had eaten and had a dance party, it was time to get pretty! MOH N’s mom, AKA my second mother, had arrived and was ready to get started on our hair. She was doing my mom’s, MOH N’s, and my hair. The other ladies are all very talented at doing their hair and opted to do their own.
The girls hanging out while MOH N’s mom gets started on her hair
Meanwhile our amazing makeup artist Ana had also arrived and got straight to work on my mom’s airbrush makeup!
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
I was so glad to have finally made it to our rehearsal luncheon. It felt like everything was downhill from here. No more planning, no more stress about getting things finished in time. We got to relax and enjoy some quality time with our family and closest friends.
MIL Castle brought some of my favorite orange flowers for the center of each table!
Our rehearsal luncheon was held at the local Buca di Beppo. It was conveniently only about ten minutes away from our venue, and since it was lunch time on a Friday afternoon we had most of the place to ourselves.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
The morning of our rehearsal my mother, bridesmaids, our singer/good friend J, and I, all went to get our nails done!
Our rehearsal was at noon, so we had to get there right when they opened at 9 AM! Bridesmaid J had been in contact with the owner of Lacquered Up in Claremont to make the arrangements. He was so nice and brought in two more ladies to accommodate our large group. We lounged in their very comfortable chairs and drank champagne as we got our nails done.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
The title of this post is for my fellow Harry Potter fans out there.
Instead of starting at the very beginning, I’m going to start at the very end of our reception. Like Mrs. Turkey, Mrs. Coyote, and Mrs. Doe, I wanted to start with a little teaser video. BUT I want to tell the story of how we came to see this video for the first time.
So fast forward. It’s the very end of our reception. Our last song has ended and we’re hugging our closest friends around us. I’m thinking, “I am so ready to change out of my dress…” I was also thinking I was probably going to have to help encourage people that it was time to go home…our friends weren’t budging off that dance floor! During my thoughts and hugs goodbye, I suddenly hear my own voice. I look up and see myself reciting a line of my vows…I had this moment of confusion/terror thinking, “What the heck is happening!?”
Then it hit me. Our videographers surprised us with a freaking same-day-edit highlight video!
It was the absolute perfect way to end our wedding and it’s the perfect “preview” of our wedding day! I do have a longer highlight video that shows more of our day, but I’m going to save that one for later. Our videographers, Brian and Ryan from Blend Media Solutions, were so amazing. If you are a Southern California bride I can not recommend them enough. They were such a pleasure to work with AND they gave us such an amazing surprise at the end of our night!
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
Well, hive, I am happy to say I am officially ready to start wedding recaps. I am so excited to share with you all how our wedding vision became a reality. I was very proud of all the details and work we put into making our day so special. The feelings of that day flood back to me as I write these recaps, and it fills me with so much joy.
Mr. Castle and I got married on our five-year anniversary. It is so awesome and amazing to see how far we’ve come. It all started with a love story—a musical in which we played a young couple embarking on an exciting a new journey in their lives. It’s funny how things come full circle.
Mrs. Castle, NYC/Southern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress/BabysitterFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Actor/Writer/Graphic DesignerEngagement Date: January 1, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: Padua Hills TheaterAbout Me: I am a Southern California girl living in the Big Apple. I moved here to put my degree in Musical Theater to work! My survival job is caregiver to an adorable 2 1/2 year old. When I'm not working, auditioning or rehearsing, I am hanging out at home with my FI and our two beloved cats. I love to read, sing, dance, hang with friends, and spend quality time with Mr. Castle watching our favorite TV shows (LOST, Big Bang Theory, and Mythbusters...to name a few). Mr Castle and I met while performing in college, so it is only fitting that our wedding take place at an old theater. We are planning a vintage, theater-inspired wedding with some DIY projects and plenty of personal touches thrown in. I love living in the city but I am excited to marry my man in the state where we fell in love.
For the most part our wedding went pretty smoothly. There were only two things that were weighing on my mind days and even weeks after the wedding. One of those things I’ll tell you about when the time comes in recaps. The other I’ll be talking about today. I decided I wanted to get this off my chest before I start my official recaps. I swear this is the last post before I start them!
As you can probably tell from my title, I would like to take a moment and talk about kids. There was never a question of whether we would invite kids to our wedding. I come from a large family, there are a lot of kids, and they were all coming. I do not regret this decision at all. I was happy to have a kid-friendly wedding. I made kid bags, which were very highly received, and I came away with amazing photos like these.
My ring bearers were angels. They sat in the bridal room for two hours before the wedding and never made a peep! They were amazing. They walked down the aisle like pros and genuinely were so happy to be included. I couldn’t get over how well behaved they were.
But honestly, although they might not be as exciting as getting ready or detail shots, they are important photos to have. These are the photos that make Mom, Dad, and grandparents so happy. It was also fun to spend some time with our family taking pictures right after the ceremony. We started off the family shots with Mr. Castle’s family.
