James and Nicole 's Wedding in Frederick, Maryland

James and I got married at Green Meadows Petting Farm in Ijamsville MD on an overcast moist day in May. It was a long year and a half of planning, with us even pushing the date back once to allow the most flexibility for our guests. I am not a girl who always had a dream or a vision of what her wedding would be like, so it was really hard for me to narrow down a direction to start in. We wanted to have our wedding reflect us as a couple, so we weren't interested in a golf club or any other typical reception halls, and for me in particular, animals have always had a huge part of my life, having pratically grown up in a barn riding horses. Once we discovered Green Meadows and spoke with Ken, I was done. No one else could offer the flexibility and uniqueness that he was able to.

Our ceremony was in their hay barn, which was beautiful when it was cleaned out with the light coming through the wood beams. We had a short ceremony that James and I both wrote together, and James' uncle officiated it for us. Our reception was in one of their barns, and we had an absolute blast decorating the space and seeing it all come together. The best part was being able to hand pick every single vendor we wanted, from the food, to the DJ, and the cake, every single aspect of our wedding was completely reflective of what we wanted and who we were as a couple. Many of our guests loved the small intimate vibe and relaxed atmosphere, we still hear about how much fun they had! I'm really grateful to have such great family and friends that supported our marriage and supported our vision for our petting farm wedding, we had a blast with all the animals, including my horse Amber, who was my maid of honor!

The highlights of wedding planning for me was picking my flowers, and picking my dress. I had initially tried to grow my own flowers for my bouquet, but with the wet spring we had they just couldn't come in. I'm so happy that Blossom and Basket was able to create the bouquet I envisioned with beautiful wildflowers. When it came to my dress, I must've tried on hundreds of dresses (I wish I was exaggerating) and was finally ready to throw in the towel when I went to Tamzen's Bridal in Carlisle, PA. Tamzen did not give up on me, and she did not let me pick a dress I wasn't completely in love with. My appointment even ran over, but she didn't rush me and let me try on every dress I asked for. In the end I picked my Sophia Tolli dress and I was so happy in it all night.

There's not a single aspect we would change about our wedding, except maybe the weather, but after a whole week of rain and historic flooding in the area, we were both prepared for the worst. Our family and friends had a great time, with plenty of delicious food to eat and good music, and at the end of the day James and I were happy to celebrate our love with so many people who love us.