What does it take to throw a backyard wedding? First and foremost is a big backyard, which we have. Check that one-off of the list. Then the bride and groom have to be willing to pitch in and get the backyard ready for a wedding. Check, we have that. Then we limit the guests to no more than 70 people. How do we know this is a good number you ask? We’ve had lots of parties and lots of people in our backyard, and this is the number that works and is controllable.
The remaining major supplies to get our backyard ready for a wedding went like this- Over 20 strings of white lights, 350 ft. of speaker wire for the PA system and the music, around 20 poles for the lights to be strung up on (this was for the Mama Mia effect!), an amazing misting system (put together by our favorite uncle), a newly painted deck for dancing the night away on, rented tables, chairs, and table clothes, lovely centerpieces crafted by the bride, lots of big bags of ice, and lots of helpers to get it all set up on time. Plus we were really hopeful the weather would cooperate, which it did.
Our youngest son got married in our backyard towards the end of August, and due to the nature of our “stressful” summer there were a lot of plans that just ended up being put together at the last-minute. This was a 5pm wedding, and my son’s vision was to have the backyard lit up with white lights for a truly memorable evening, once the sun went down, and I think we pulled it off. We had around 65 guests (that’s my closest guesstimate), in our backyard. A party this size has not happened since the ladies of ZTA (Kappa Theta chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha) graced our backyard, as we were the host of their annual Bid Day (there were around 70 giggly, gaggling girls in attendance that day!).
The weather was not too hot, which we were all thankful for. The temps stayed somewhere in the 90’s, and cooled off quickly after the sun went down. The California summer heat swooped in the weekend after the wedding. I think it was around 105, the Saturday after!
The wedding ceremony was performed flawlessly, everyone looked so wonderful, and then it was time to party. We had an amazing caterer who brought in Mexican food, some of which was cooked on the grill right before our very eyes. This was a great set-up and the food was spectacular. Drinks were kept simple; just soda, beer and wine. A cake was brought in by a friend of the bride (it was delicious!).
And then it was time for the dancing. My most memorable moments from the dancing were watching my baby boy (he won’t like that I called him that) dance with his Grandma, and seeing the daughters dancing with their dads. Of course, the first dance by the bride and groom was memorable too. Such a cute couple. My favorite dance of the night was our deck filled with party-goers dancing to “The Macarena”!! That was fun!
This was definitely a ceremony/party to remember. One for the ages so to speak. I loved the toasts that were given from the heart. I loved the fact that almost all of our family got to be here with us to celebrate this special occasion. I loved the fact that all of my kids were so helpful on “The Day”, and made everything fall into place for their baby brother. And our backyard wedding would not have been complete without this amazing ring-bearer. He carried the rings in his pants pocket, and was so grown-up and handsome when it came time to pass the rings to the groom. He made his Grandma’s proud.
Congratulations to Brookelynne and Zachary. May all of your dreams come true.
Picture credits for this post go to: Erica B., Elaine Z., Naomi D., Hilary J., and Mary W. – Thanks Ladies!!
