{Unfake Wedding Feature} Mira & Jeremy in an Oregon Hayfield

Mira and Jeremy have know each other since middle school and though just friends for the majority of their lives (even attending each other's previous weddings), they some how came together. They brought with them a combined five (!) children to form an amazing family full of love. The wedding took place at Mira's family home in Corvallis, Oregon. They were on a budget; they created the center pieces and all the flowers except the bridal bouquet. They even did all the cooking! Mira’s family home backs up to a beautiful hayfield, freshly-cut for their wedding. The area also had great old trees that were used as a back drop for their first look and family photos.

I just love how cozy this wedding is!

Welcome to the Unfake Wedding of Mira & Jeremy!

The most important question: wedding night…did you or didn’t you?

T30SB Commentary: No answer from the bride. Sheesh. Is it that weird of a question? I mean, it’s really the ONE time it is WAY fess up !

Please take the time to tell me all the vendors you used.

Photographer  Swoon Imagery

Flowers  Stargazer Premier Florist

Dress  David’s Bridal

Hair & Makeup  The Retreat Day Spa & Salon

Tuxedos  Men’s Wearhouse

Cake  Market of Choice

 

Who was your favorite vendor and why?

My favorite vendor was my photographers!!! Swoon Imagery was AMAZING!! They met with us in a little coffee shop so we could get to know them and see their portfolio. It was so comfortable and relaxed. They really wanted to get to know us and capture what we wanted out of our wedding day. They gave us an opportunity to meet with them for engagement shots however, since this is our second marriage and we have five kids, they had no problem turning it into a “family” session instead. They were wonderful with our children and we got the best of both worlds. We got pictures to showcase our new family…but we also got some romantic shots of just me and my fiancé. Then when it came time for our wedding they were fabulous. They were organized and completely prepared. They worked with our rather LARGE family like it was nothing. Everyone complemented them on their professionalism and their fantastic personalities. During the wedding ceremony and reception we didn’t even notice they were there, yet they captured everything and more than we expected. It was a wonderful, perfect evening, but yet it went so fast. Both my husband and I were thrilled at the story that was told by looking at our pictures. A treasure we will cherish forever!

Was there a “method to your madness” in choosing your vendors?

There was no real method to my madness in choosing vendors. My husband and I knew we wanted to do a lot ourselves, but to spend money where it counted. We were paying for the wedding ourselves. Our attitude was that we wanted this to be a celebration of our love, but we also viewed it as a party for our friends and family and we were the hosts! I think that a key in our method was  to pay CASH, to have it represent who we are and to celebrate with friends and family.

 

How long did you take to plan your wedding?

We were engaged on February 5, 2011, at Estes Park, Colorado. It took us a full 6 months to plan and prepare for the wedding. I believe we could have put it together in half the time, but we knew financially we needed those extra months.

How many guests did you invite versus how many came?

We wanted to keep the guest list down around 100 people, but didn’t want to sacrifice true friends being invited either. The end count was around 135. That included about 60 kids!

What was your budget ?

Our budget was about $4500. This only included the wedding ceremony and reception. I believe we spent about $7000 when all was said and done!

Did you include rings and/or the honeymoon in your budget?

My husband I have both been married before and our first marriages were paid for by family. We have bought houses, had kids, got in debt, used credit and have gone through hardships and divorces. Our priorities are different now.  We could have financed an expensive diamond ring, but we didn’t. It was tempting, but the reality is, having matching titanium rings with a personal inscription on them is FAR BETTER! We paid cash for them, they are the strongest metal around, they match completely, and we personalized them with a saying we had fun picking out together: “Amor Noster Permanebit”….in Latin it means “Our love will last an eternity”.

We went on a road trip for the week after the wedding. Our “official honeymoon” was a 7 night stay in Mexico, which we just got back from last week. We waited for 3 months after the wedding to take the trip, not only to save up for it, but also to let the hurricane season in Mexico pass. It ended up being a great way to eliminate wedding planning stress too. We could focus on the wedding and know that we would tackle the honeymoon budget and plans after the wedding took place.

T30SB Commentary: Not a bad idea, folks. Planning a wedding and a honeymoon at the same time can be a little cray-cray.

How large was your bridal party?

I loved what we did for our bridal party. My bridesmaids were my daughters Maggie (9) and Montana (4), and my stepdaughter Kawaiala (9). My husband’s groomsmen were my son Nolan (12) and my stepson Holoakea (15). We had bridesmaids dresses and tuxes for all the kids. We had a great time shopping and involving them that way.

Did you have favors for your guests? If so, what were they? How much did you spend?

We did not do favors.

Did you include any special family traditions?

A special family tradition was the fact that the reception was at my parent’s house. Both my older brother and sister had their receptions their too!

What was your biggest day-of crisis and how did you handle it (or rather, not handle?)?

The only real crisis we had was right before the ceremony began we realized the rings were missing! We had lots of little kids running around. The rings had been placed on a small table next to where we were reciting our vows. I have pictures of all the brothers looking in the grass around the table. I was told what was happing as I was sitting in the house waiting for the ceremony to begin. I took a deep breath and just relaxed. I knew they’d turn up. I just don’t let  those things don’t get to me. Sure enough…a few minutes later! Rings found!

 

Who was the biggest pain in the ass on your wedding day?

You know, no one was really a pain in the ass! I had such an amazing amount of friends and family pulling this DO IT YOURSELFER wedding together…I couldn’t have asked for a better wedding, a better day, or a better group of people.

What was the biggest waste of money that you loved?

I’m not sure I’d say it was a waste of money, but I bought the “Brides Package” at the local salon. It included a month of services leading up to the wedding day. It was a massage, a facial, a practice hair and makeup. I also added waxing, tanning and a hair cut and color. I didn’t need to go to those expenses, but it was just a little treat for me during the month that made me take time out, pamper myself  a bit, and detox a little before the wedding.

 

 

What was the biggest waste of money that you wish you’d passed on?

I don’t think I wasted any money on our wedding. I think we made ever dollar count!

What did you love that was also the cheapest?

I loved my flowers from the Saturday market. They were AMAZING! My husband and I went down the Saturday before the wedding and had one of the flower booths there make us up 18 random bouquets for each table at the reception. We gave her free reign. No particular color, no type, just whatever she felt like and nothing the same. They turned out to be absolutely gorgeous! We only paid $10 a bouquet! In a florist shop, we’d probably pay $100 per bouquet!

T30SB Commentary: $100 for a bouquet yes, but probably not quite that much for table arrangements.

What was the most unexpected thing that happened (not necessarily a bad thing, just a surprise)?

I think the most unexpected thing that happened was just the amount of friends and family that pulled together at the last minute to make it all work and look amazing. We had an idea of what we were looking for and up until the last 24 hours before the ceremony, we weren’t sure how it was all going to come together. All of us we worked side by side and I couldn’t have dreamed it would be so perfect!

 

What was the most ooey-gooey, tear-jerking moment?

My ooey-gooey tear jerking moment was the family and personal vows. We had a white rose on each one of our children’s chairs. Before we exchanged spousal vows we had a vow for each child. The oldest one stood up, with rose in hand. Our officiant asked if he would support the marriage and to do his part in creating this family. My step son said yes, then he went up to our vase on the table, put the rose in it, kissed me, hugged his dad, then all three of us joined hands. One at a time from oldest to youngest this happened. At the end all seven of us were in a circle joining hands and a prayer was said. Then the kids sat back down and Jeremy and I exchanged our own vows. It was truly the most amazing part of the ceremony.

Did you DIY? What parts?

Besides the clothes and the wedding party bouquets, everything else was a DIY. The flowers, the décor, the invitations, the food. It was all done and put together by us, friends and family.

If you could do it all over again, what would you change, if anything?

I would get married to Jeremy over and over again and do nothing different. It truly was the most amazing wedding and the most perfect ceremony. It was my dream come true, from wedding ceremony, to reception, to guests, and of course…MY HUSBAND! Perfect and exactly what I had dreamed of!

Congratulations to Mira & Jeremy!

Comments

[Christy W]

Holy crap. I don't know if I'm PMSing or what, but I'm all teary after reading this! What a beautiful, homespun wedding! The part where they formed a circle with all of the children?! Gah! So moving!

All right. I think I have it under control now. I'm totally in agreement with planning the honeymoon AFTER the wedding. My husband and I took our honeymoon six months after our wedding because we refused to use credit. Also, planning a honeymoon AND a wedding was too much for me to comprehend.

Congrats to the happy couple! May you always be as happy as you were that day. :)

[Mom]

Ah, I'm all teary too from reading the part about how they included the children. I just know this family will be happy together! My congratulations to them.

[Tina @ Wedding Favors]

I just love the look of the shoes.