It’s definitely an exciting day when your big sister is getting married! And let me tell you, it was such a perfect day in the Sierra Nevadas for a mountain ranch wedding.
You know two people are a good match when the equestrian bride says “You know I will always have horses, right?” and the farmer groom simply replies, “That’s fine. You know I will always have tractors, right?” And so begins happily ever after for this country couple.
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Highlights: Mountain Ranch Wedding & Pavilion Reception
Mountain Ranch Wedding Ceremony
The ceremony begins on a beautiful grassy expanse next to a creek that flows through the middle of the ranch. As the bridal party walks across the lawn, there’s a small bridge crossing to traverse before arriving at the flower adorned arbor. The groom’s uncle awaited each member of the bridal party as the officiant.
The groom and groomsmen wore gray suits with accents of burgundy to match the bridesmaids miss-matched burgundy dresses. The bride wore a white lace gown by Maggie Sottero, and everybody including the bride was in cowboy boots.
Carriage House Cocktail Hour
After the ceremony, a handful of strapping young men helped move the chairs from the ceremony location, through the carriage house breeze way, and under the pavilion for the reception tables. To one side of the breeze way is the catering kitchen and bar, and the other side has restrooms.
Guests enjoyed a graze table filled with delights during cocktail hour, while the bride and groom stole a few moments to themselves with their photographer. There were “His” and “Hers” cocktails offered at the bar. “His” was a ____, and “Hers” was a _____.
Pavilion Dinner Reception
Happy by Pharrell Williams starts playing through the pavilion speakers after guests are seated to welcome the bridal party in a grand entrance.
The reception dancing included the traditional first dance, father of the bride dance and mother of the groom dance. DJ Eli FreshMode made sure to include the guest’s suggestions in his playlist which resulted in a full dance floor most of the night.
The bride and groom’s farewell had them driving off in a limousine to their honeymoon suite. Guests were permitted to stay for an after party at the ranch house on-site.
Fun Surprises
The best man and maid of honor both gave nice speeches, but they were not the only bridal party members to have something to say. One of the groomsmen, who knew both the groom and bride very well, surprised them with an entertaining speech filled with inside jokes. And the fun did not stop there! One of the bridesmaids, having known the bride since childhood, put together one of the most creative speeches in the form of a rap song, which she performed for everyone.
Dessert was of course wedding cake, but here again there was a surprise – this time for the father of the bride as the wedding was taking place on his birthday. The bride has procured a cupcake of German chocolate to celebrate his birthday in conjunction with the young couples wedding day.
If you haven’t been to a wedding where the groom was part of a fraternity, you may not have witnessed this next tradition. The bride was serenaded by the groom and his fraternity brothers with “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling”, which you might recall from the movie Top Gun.
Logistics + Planning
Venue Ease of Access
It was incredibly important for this venue to be easily accessible everywhere (ADA compliant) as there were a handful of guests in wheelchairs or in need of walking assistance. The Davies Family Inn at ShadowRidge Ranch was one of the easiest venues for everyone to get around.
Transportation to the Mountain Ranch Wedding
The bride, her family and bridesmaids all got ready in the bride’s childhood home. The groom and groomsmen stayed at the ranch cabins on site and were able to get ready at the venue the morning of the wedding.
Since the bride’s crew was not on site, they had booked a limousine to take them from the house to the venue. Unfortunately, since the bridal party was running behind schedule, the bride’s father dismissed the limousine so the car might make it to their next gig on time. Luckily, the hairdresser had a large suburban to take half the crew to the venue while the other half piled in to the bride’s parent’s SUV.
DIY Wedding Catering
Dinner was catered by Hog Wild Bar-B-Que, which was very fitting for this country couple. However, the appetizers were done by the mother-of-the-bride (MOB). While this was delicious, MOB did comment “It was a lot to take on and someone should approach the idea of doing it themselves with caution.” MOB’s two good friends helped with setting up the appetizers while she was busy with family photos.
HONEST Q+A WITH THE NEWLYWEDS
Q: What was the most exciting extra part of your wedding day beyond saying “I Do”?
A: [Lauren] Exciting? The entire day was exciting. I don’t know if I can narrow anything down to a “most exciting part”. I suppose a special moment was reading a letter to each other before the ceremony. Jace had decided that he did not want to do a first look beforehand, and wanted my walk down the aisle to be the first time he saw me that day. So instead of doing a first look, we read a letter to each other on opposite sides of a corner wall. I wouldn’t say that was exciting per se, but it did feel like a very special moment.
Q: What was the biggest surprise / unexpected event that happened the day of your wedding?
A: [Lauren] Well…I suppose I knew it was coming because I had been to weddings of our friends before. But the AGR “You’ve lost the loving feeling” serenade was a fun giggle. I also loved how many people danced on the dance floor. I love dancing, so it was great that people took my request to dance literally.
Q: Was there anything that you thought would be a big deal that turned out to be minimal?
A: [Lauren] Moving chairs from the ceremony to the reception. I was worried that it was going to be an issue to get all of the chairs moved over, but I didn’t even notice it happening! Amazing what a great bridal party and helpful friends & family can get done quickly. Set up
Q: What was the most troublesome part of planning your wedding day?
A: [Lauren] The guest list. We wanted to invite more people, but our venue had a cut off number that we had to obey. Cutting people off the list was painful.
Q: What advice would you give a new couple approaching their own wedding day?
A: [Lauren] Take a deep breath and remember that all that matters is you and your spouse to be. Even if it rains on everything, all of the food gets burnt, and the drinks go bad…as long as you get to marry the person you love…that’s all that really matters. Anything above and beyond that, is simply fun extras.
QUICK FACTS
- planning & design | diy
- venue | the davies family inn at shadowridge ranch
- photo | lauren haley photography
- florals | susan & janice lohse
- catering | hog wild bar-b-que
- cake | ____
- dj | eli freshmode
- dress | ____ by maggie sotero
- boots | ferrini diva turquoise
- beauty | tiffney simson (hair) & friend-of-a-friend (makeup)
- suit | men’s wearhouse
- rentals | the davies family inn at shadowridge ranch
- paperie | basic invite
- time of year | summer
- budget range | $$
- colors | teal, wine, grey/silver
- style | country formal, rustic chic
I am looking for couples ready to share their wedding day story. Please nominate someone in the comment section below, or email me at jenni@anexcitingday.com, to be featured in my next REAL WEDDING post!
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Awesome pictures and a great post. I enjoyed hanging out here for a bit!
Thank you! My sisters wedding (this post’s feature) was such a fun one and truly an exciting day.