Darling Notes: Wedding Day Memories

My hubby and I were married last September in a beautiful seaside town in New Jersey called Cape May. We chose this shore retreat for our wedding venue mainly because, A) we love the shore, B) we fell in love at the shore, and C) Cape May has so much to offer that it doubled as a vacation weekend for many of our guests. I simply adore the Victorian styling of the small town - from the nostalgic beach shops and restaurants to the old-fashioned bed & breakfast establishments.

Three out of my four bridesmaids are friends from Michigan, and had never been to the Jersey Shore. They arrived at our home in Delaware with their husbands/fiance on a Wednesday night. We all headed for the shore on Thursday morning, where we met up with my family to stay in an old bed & breakfast that we rented for the wedding weekend.

The weather on the day of the wedding was absolutely perfect. There were plenty of vacationers out and about, wishing us well as we had our photos taken by our amazing photographer, Misty of Misty Dawn Photography.

The church that we were married in, The First Presbyterian Church of Cape May, was built in 1898. The ceremony was personal and the church was packed with family and close friends. Many items for the ceremony were DIY - the programs, shells hanging from ribbon at the end of each pew, tiny tissue packets for "tears of joy" to name a few.

After the ceremony, the bridal party went to the Cape May Pointe Lighthouse and beach for photos. This wasn't in our original photography plan, but we are so, so thankful that we decided to go!

After our photo session, it was time to party! The reception was held at The Hotel Alcott. It is named for one of its most famous guests - Louisa May Alcott - who used to stay in the hotel when it was named The Arlington House. The food was incredible, the DJ was fantastic, the decor was just as I had hoped it would be (complete with little DIY touches) and all of our guests had an amazing time!