A Vineyard Wedding is Born

I felt like the Goldilocks of wedding venues. We visited eight, three in Southern California and four in Northern California. This one didn’t have enough room, this one didn’t have a coordinator, we didn’t like the coordinator at this one, there wasn’t an easy way to park at that one, the bathrooms had a leak at this one, there were too many ducks and too much duck poo, etc. etc. etc.

We had specific criteria in mind.

– needed to accomodate up to 200 guests (we have big families!)

– outside ceremony area preferred

– lots of outdoor spots for photography

– easy parking for guests

– private venue (we didn’t want another wedding going on at the same time)

– a coordinator or point person that we got along with (after meeting some coordinators we did not like, this became even more important!)

One night, after returning from the Wild Animal Park, we stopped by a vineyard that had a rocking party going on. There were twinkle lights and tons of people and everyone looked so happy. Unfortunately, it was a private party so we couldn’t do any wine tasting, but the boy remembered it and immediately suggested the vineyard when we first started looking for venues.

It fit all of the criteria, and the added bonus was that their coordinator was so nice and accommodating. We felt immediately at ease with her, and it made the decision that much easier for us. I was also swayed because the boy loved it so much, and if you keep reading my posts, you’ll soon realize that this show is mainly being run by me. It’s very rare that he has an opinion!

So after 8 venue visits asking about chairs and kitchen space and parking attendants and changing rooms and set-up times…we made the big decision and put down a deposit for…

**Trumpets**

July 3, 2010, at Orfila Vineyards!

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[All images from Orfila Vineyards]

**Happy dance**

Are there any other vineyard brides out there? :)