Love at The Ranch: Portraits

In an effort to drag my wedding out by (at least) one. more. post. I thought I'd show you saw of the amazing portraits our photographer, Tec, captured throughout the day. There weren't many of them, but the ones that were sprinkled in with our wedding pictures were strong and beautiful. They make me want to print them out for our guests and give them as gifts.

For a different kind of portrait, press "play" below. One of our friends joined the band on-a-whim and played a harmonica solo. We had no idea he even played harmonica, but he rocked it. This is the perfect way to portray him. (Sorry the visual is no good).

Grandpa Cowboy Boot

This one's by Amanda Wilson

The Harvest Moon finally decided to peek out

Up next, I'll tell you what went right, what went wrong, and treat you to a gorgeous a cappella solo by one of the musicians.

How did we get here?

• Mr. CB and I road-tripped it
• A peaceful morning
• A rowdy bachelorette party
• Two days before, we fought
• We made up.
• Mr. CB recuperated while I hiked with friends
• Our rehearsal dinner
• The girls got ready
• The guys got ready
• Our First Look
• Budget breakdown: bouquets and bouts
• Portraits of the bride and groom
• Our wedding party
• We all lined up
• The wedding party walked
• Papa CB walked me down the aisle
• Our ceremony begins: a song from Grandma Cowboy Boot
• And ended with a kiss
• Some family portraits
• The details
• Our centerpiece budget
• Our photo booth!
• After toasts, we fed each other pie
• Our pie bar and reception signage
• The First Dance and Father-Daughter Dance

**All images above by the ridiculously talented and awesome Tec Petaja, unless otherwise noted. Head tohis blog for some serious eye candy.**

Love at The Ranch: The First Look

Running about 15 minutes behind schedule, it was time for our first look. We hadn't made a plan for where this was going to take place so we ended up right out in front of the two cabins the girls and guys were getting ready in, respectively. This was fine, although it felt a little less private than I'd hoped because both cabins were full of bridesmaids and groomsmen peering out at us.

That all fell away, though, very quickly. I came out first and waited for him.

I gave myself one more glance, reminded that I was finally a bride and made sure everything looked as I'd planned. When you're getting ready, you only have so much time in front of the mirror to really enjoy the look you've been planning for a long time.


Then Mr. CB made his way towards me from his cabin. Some of the groomsmen watched from the patio.

I got incredibly giggly and embarrassed when I saw him coming. I embodied "the blushing bride."

We walked towards each other because I couldn't stand just waiting for him.

We embraced.

He gave me a once-over and loved it. I think he was being shy knowing there were people watching us.

Then we made our way towards the road so we could start taking portraits. The next hour and a half was slotted for shots of us, our bridal party, and family. What's shocking is that, even with that much time, we didn't get close to shooting any family. You seriously have to plan for two-and-a-half to three hours of shooting to get all of those pictures taken.

Why a first look? Mr. CB and I came up with several reasons we decided to break tradition.

• We wanted to take pictures before my make-up resembled KISS from crying at the ceremony and while we still looked fresh from getting ready.

• We didn't want to miss our cocktail hour--we wanted to enjoy the beverages and appetizers and company for the duration of the wedding.

• We aren't superstitious and I still felt like I got to see his "face" of seeing his bride for the first time.
  

• The first look was planned well before the day but as it turned out, raindrops started immediately after our ceremony and would have overshadowed any chance of taking outdoor pictures afterward.

Will you be having a First Look?

How did we get here?

First, Mr. CB and I road-tripped it to Boulder, CO.

Then, I spent a peaceful morning with my bridesmaids and maids-of-honor.
Followed by a rowdy bachelorette party that night.
The next morning, two days before the wedding, we fought.
Then, we made up.

On Saturday, Mr. CB recuperated from his bachelor party while I hiked with friends.

Until evening, when we celebrated our rehearsal dinner.

Sunday Morning: The girls got ready.
And the guys got ready too.

**All images above by the ridiculously talented and awesome Tec Petaja, unless otherwise noted. Head to his blog for some serious eye candy.**

Love at The Ranch: The Day Before

I can't recommend this enough: in the days leading up to your wedding, do yoga. Whether it's by yourself or at a class, it will allow you to give yourself to the moment which is all you can ask for at wedding time, to be present.

Devil's Thumb Ranch
Photo by our friend, Amanda Wilson

This is exactly what I did on Saturday morning, the day before the wedding. Lucky for us, Devil's Thumb Ranch has complimentary yoga classes in a window-filled room that overlooks the mountains. Bridesmaid AC and I indulged in this luxury and it was the best way to sink into the weekend with a calm, relaxed mindset.

The view with Winter Park Ski Resort in the background

After our 9 am yoga class ended, it was time to meet friends and family for a group hike around the Ranch's 5,000 acre-property. I had listed this event on our notes in our out-of-town bags as open to everyone but found that it appealed to our younger guests.

Friends from Jackson, Wyoming, with their dog Santos

From top left, clockwise: Three half-brothers-in-law, Brother CB, Brother CB's fiance, me, Bridesmaid AC's sister, Bridesmaid AC, friends from Wyoming

The day was beautiful. It was so beautiful, I wanted to take off my jacket but I was nervous about v-neck tan lines. As we hiked, we came across other wedding friends out for a horseback ride.

From left: Mama CB, SIL CB, and Papa CB

My dad was put on a mule! Ha.

Junior Bridesmaid Yahna

Brother and Sister CB

The day was so gorgeous, we had lunch out on the patio of Heck's Tavern at Devil's Thumb Ranch after the hike.

Heck's Tavern patio

As we ate, our flower girl collected rocks in her dress.

Flower Girl Alma

After lunch, I thought I'd have a little time to relax. Mr CB was recovering from his bachelor party in our cabin. But, I had to be at the cabin next door for the only rehearsal we'd have all weekend: a quick music rehearsal with my aunt and grandmother and to practice a few things with our officiant, my uncle, before the ceremony.

I rushed a pulled pork sandwich to Mr. CB (get that boy some grease!) and went to the music rehearsal. I think I cried more during the rehearsal than at the actual ceremony--it was just so sweet to hear my grandmother and aunt practice what they were going to sing for us at our ceremony. My aunt gave a quick "Yes!!!" for making me cry before handing me a tissue.

About an hour after the music rehearsal, my dad and grandfather stopped by our cabin where Mr. CB and I were relaxing. My dad wanted to go over a few dance moves with me for our father-daughter dance. We sat on a bench overlooking the ranch, watching another wedding ceremony take place at their outdoor site.

My dad started to cry. It was maybe my favorite moment from the whole weekend.

How did we get here?

First, Mr. CB and I road-tripped it to Boulder, CO.

Then, I spent a peaceful morning with my bridesmaids and maids-of-honor.
Followed by a rowdy bachelorette party that night.
The next morning, two days before the wedding, we fought.
Then, we made up.

Did you kick off your wedding weekend with any fun events?

The Upgrades

Our "acceptance" percentage? The final tally falls into the 45% range. That means we have a total of around 65 guests attending our 'lil shindig. You'd think I'd be disappointed but, to be honest, I'm excited for the intimate experience it will now be. I've talked a little bit about our food-and-beverage minimum and that, with our lower-than-expected head count, we have to fill out our order to match the price minimum. Otherwise, we'll end up paying a lot for very little, when we could be getting more.

So what are we considering adding? Quite a bit.

1) Our BBQ menu now includes another dish:

Cole Slaw (source)

And, since we last spoke about our menu, it's also been updated with Black Bean Burgers with Chipotle Aioli instead of BBQ chicken legs and a tomato, mozzarella, basil salad as our veggie.

2) On top of the above changes, we'll be upgrading with a fairly plain "Field Green Salad," which includes pickled leeks and Vermont cheddar, to either one of these:

-Bartlett Pear Salad with Bleu Cheese, Candied Pecans, and Banyuls Vinaigrette

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-Heart of Romaine Salad with Blue Cheese Cream and Tomatoes and Lardons

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3) We've added a light beer to our alcohol selection: Amstel Light, so our guests will have the choice of two keg beers (wheat beer and nut brown ale) and a bottled option.

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4) We're not only throwing in a signature cocktail, we're upping the regular house tequila, Cuervo Gold, to Patron Silver. Yippeeeee for margaritas!

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4) Our wines have gone from their cheapest level to their second best! Our choices?

Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region in New Zealand

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McManis Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon from Sonoma, California

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5) We'll now be having a champagne toast (originally going to be a toast with whatever our guests had in hand).

We'll be serving Gloria Ferrer N/V

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6) Late-nite snacks. We're thinking sliders (mini-burgers) and onion rings. Since we're eating dinner at 5:30 pm, I figure we might be hungry right around 10 pm.

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Of the above, what is your favorite upgrade? What is your least favorite item? We may have to cut one thing and I'd love to know what's least popular. Is the champagne toast unnecessary? Do we hang onto our original salad to save $5 per person on a more elaborate salad?