Your Wedding Can Benefit Others (Including Four-Legged Friends)

Many couples use their wedding as an opportunity to benefit others. The newly married Meredith and Michael are no exception. At their wedding last night, they included a Dollar Dance, where guests gave cash to dance with the bride. The money they collected (check out that pitcher of cash!) will be donated to New Leash on Life, a Chicago dog rescue.

Do I have the best couples, or what? 

Graduation Day!

It's Graduation Day here at the Vaughan house - my son is graduating form 8th grade today.!

And that is an event that needs to be celebrated with CAKE. This beauty is from the wonderful folks at Sweety Pies in Skokie. 

While I'm looking forward to the graduation ceremony, I really CANNOT WAIT to cut into this cake. When Dana at the bakery began telling me about the best way to save "the leftovers," I just chuckled. Like there will be any leftovers. Ha!

Thanks for the amazing cake, Sweety Pies! 

Happy Anniversary!!

Happy Anniversary to the Under a New Moon couples! Congratulations to Ron & Jason, Kimm & Jo, Sam & Chris, Amanda & Katrina, Steve & Felix, and Esther & Kati! 

So thrilled that today, on their third anniversary, they are celebrating their MARRIAGES!!

Photo by Jeremy Lawson Photgraphy

Modern Family Wedding Photo Shoot!

So excited to see our Modern Family wedding photo shoot featured on the Sassy Chicago Weddings blog! Be sure to CLICK HERE to see all the shots of this incredibly happy and colorful event.

Below are photos, courtesy of Ocken Photography, of rituals that were included in the ceremony part of the stylized shoot. 

First, the couple participated in an adaptation of a food sharing ritual known as the Tasting of the Elements. In this ritual, various foods represent the "for better or for worse" of married life. In our version, the couple shared a variety of candies - including Hot Tamales to represent the heat of an argument 

As you can guess, the candy was a big hit with the kids!

We ended with a family sand ceremony. The dads and each of the kids picked a color to be layered in a tall vase. Not only was this fun for all the participants, the results yielded a bright and beautiful keepsake.

It was so much fun working with this couple and their adorable kids. And it didn't hurt that I had the opportunity to be back at Catalyst Ranch.

Thank you to Kerrie of Citygirl Weddings and Lauren from the Ranch for including me in this wonderful celebration of marriage equality! 

And a huge thank you to Ocken Photography for the wonderful photos!

Gorgeous Interfaith Wedding

This spectacular wedding was featured on the BRIDES website. The couple combined elements from their Jewish and Hindu backgrounds in the ceremony, which was officiated by a rabbi and a Hindu priest. A lovely example of how different cultures can be combined to create a beautiful and meaningful ceremony.

The gorgeous photos are by one of my favorite photographers, the awesomely talented Oriana Koren of Okrfoto. Click HERE to see more.

Photo by Okrfoto

What I Do When I'm Not at a Wedding....

As you probably know, I'm a big geek at heart. And so, today, I joined my friends from Aw Yeah Ladies' Night at C2E2! It was so much FUN!

Some of the ladies from Ladies' Night 

Death & Dream from Sandman

The Cyberman offering me an upgrade

My Walking Dead friends

Shannon & Steve's Geeky, Sweet, Whale of a Wedding!

When I met Shannon & Steve for our initial consultation, we hit it off immediately. By the end of our conversation, I knew I just had to be their Celebrant! We talked about their wedding - and just about everything else, ranging from comic books, Harry Potter, to pet cats. 

Their ceremony included many personal elements, including a handfasting. I also shares they story of Steve's proposal. He surprised Shannon with a Beluga Encounter at the Shedd Aquarium, which was something she had always wanted. What she didn't expect was that one of the belugas would play an important role in presenting the ring. 

All along the wedding planning process, I knew Steve wanted to add a secret element to the ceremony. This wound up being a helium shark (as a whale stand-in) to deliver the rings. And naturally, the shark's entrance was accompanied by the Jaws theme song, thanks to the always fantastic DJ Harsh.

In a addition to this fun surprise, the ceremony also included quotes from The Princess Bride, Harry Potter, and author Neil Gaiman. Can you tell why they became one of my favorite couples?!

Their gorgeous wedding, which took place at the lovely Hotel Arista in Naperville, is featured on the Angel Eyes Photography blog. Click HERE to check out the amazing pictures!