Stephanie, Director of Marketing & Aaron, Lawyer, Department of Labor
SUM-UP OF THE WEDDING VIBE: A glittery Camp Wedding Weekend in Yosemite National Park
SOUNDTRACK FOR READING:“Sideways” by Citizen Cope ft. Carlos Santana
FAVORITE THING ABOUT THE WEDDING
When I burst into laughter as Aaron’s Uncle Ian, our Internet ordained minister, surprised us by segueing into the vows section of the ceremony by quoting Bruno Mars’ “Marry You”—a recommendation from our niece and flower girl, Peyton.
OTHER COOL STUFF WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
1. I lived by Meg’s sage advice: “You won’t remember how your wedding looks, you’ll remember how your wedding feels” (paraphrased sorry, Meg!). And it’s true, I do! I do! When I think back on it, the whole day I felt wrapped in the warmth of the sun and the overflowing love of our family and friends. And I remember how the smile felt on my face from hours and hours of nonstop smiling and laughing.
2. My now husband grew up going to Camp Mather, a family camp owned by the City of San Francisco, just down the road from Evergreen Lodge. Each summer our extended family moves into a rustic cabin for a week full of camp activities such as tie-dye, archery, horse back riding, cafeteria eating, and swimming in the Birch Lake. We chose to have our ceremony alongside this lake, as it had special meaning to us and we incorporated the “Camp Mackler” theme throughout our welcome bags, reception decor and event hashtag.
3. We really wanted to spend quality time with our family and friends during our wedding weekend and Evergreen Lodge was the perfect location, as it is tucked away near the quieter western entrance to Yosemite National Park and there is no wi-fi, cell service, or televisions in the cabins. Woohoo! A real getaway. The cabins are charming! And we basically had the run of the whole place.
4. I wore my mom’s wedding dress to our rehearsal dinner. I had it hemmed into a mini dress and added a flower crown. It was a great way to incorporate our family history into the weekend and it was so special to wear my mom’s dress exactly forty years later.
5. My mom and I scored my dress on major sale at a little vintage boutique in San Anselmo that was closing and had my veil custom made by our dear family tailor, Nancy. Then I splurged on fabulous shoes that I can wear again and again, since the hem of my dress showed them off splendidly. Bonus points, the tea length dress didn’t catch any dirt or sticks or leaves from the forest ceremony and was SO fun to dance in!
6. We surprised my parents, who the week before had celebrated their fortieth wedding anniversary, by sleuthing out their first dance song—John Denver’s “Annie’s Song”—and had the DJ play it right after our first dance.
