Love Story: Lacey & Jace

The proposal:

"We both really enjoy Italian food, and we both love Olive Garden. It was December 10, 2009 (my 20th birthday). We had a huge snow storm the day before. In fact, all schools across Wisconsin (college, private, and public schools) had been shut down. Jace suggested we still take the hour and a half trip to Olive Garden, and that we still dress nicely. I didn't let the huge snow storm from the day before stop me either. I stuck it out and wore a dress...and froze! We got there safely, and the hostess took us to a tiny corner in Olive Garden. It was such a perfect setup as well. It was decorated as if it was a gazebo, the lights were dimmed, and it felt so peaceful. People were sporadically around us, but to me, it felt as if Jace and I were alone.

We ate our meal, and when we were done eating, the waitress asked if we wanted any dessert. He told me whatever I wanted to get was fine, it was my birthday. Of course I picked the chocolate cheesecake that just looked so delicious! The waitress left, and Jace excused himself to the bathroom. To me, this was normal. I figured he really did have to go to the bathroom. He came back and shortly after, our waitress had come back with the cheesecake and set it in front of me. She paused there, and I just stared at the beautiful cheesecake. I was so in awe of the drizzled chocolate that was zig zagged between the cheesecake and the plate that I hadn't even noticed the ring in the upper part by the crust. When I finally saw it, is when my memory went blur. I remember seeing Jace get up from his spot, and pull the ring out of the cake. Seeing him in his suit and tie, get down on one knee. I remember hearing a little bit of a shake to his voice, and when he asked me to marry him, I said yes! He put it on my finger, and in the background I hear a bunch of women go "awww..." I didn't even notice that the wall behind us, that had a cut out window in it, were a bunch of women who followed out waitress out to watch the proposal.

I was still in so much shock of what just happened, that I actually kept asking Jace, "Is this for real?! You serious?!" As I stared at my new gorgeous ring on my finger, I embraced him and started crying. All I could think about and say was "I'm engaged!" I called my parents to tell them the news, and my mom's response to me was "Congrats hunny, but we've known about this for awhile now. He asked your dad over Thanksgiving if he could marry you."

As deployment grew closer, and we now were a newly engaged couple, we began realizing more and more fears we had. But I felt I needed to tell him, and just as I told him before he left for basic training over 4 years ago, I needed to reassure him again. "I will wait for you, and I will be faithful to you, I love you."

Brad Paisley sings the words so perfectly, and although it's a song singing from the man to his woman, I feel like it takes the words right out my mouth. It reminds me of how much love I have had for Jace. When Jace left for basic training how I thought I loved him then, when he came back how much more I had loved him, on our 2 year anniversary...to even now our 4 year anniversary as we are apart."

'Now you're my whole life, now you're my whole world.

I just can't believe the way I feel about you,

We'll look back someday, at this moment that we're in

And I'll look at you and say

And I thought I loved you then.'

Marry You Me Inspiration Blog

Back in August the Marry You Me inspiration blog for "all things wedding, love, and sweetness" wrote about Stargazer Weddings and our contribution to the Click Chicks' 1st Annual Summer Lovin' Workshop! A lot of time went into putting together this workshop, and a lot of collaboration from numerous vendors made it successful! A few quotes from the review from Marry You Me about the two "themes" we did:

"This sweet little photo shoot has such a fresh palette of aqua blue, lemon yellow, and white. There are some great and inexpensive steal worthy tablescape ideas from this workshop...Loving this color combo so much!"

"I am loving the farm-meets-Victorian feel!"

Thank you Marry You Me for sharing our work for inspiration for future brides! If you're a bride looking for another website to check out tips, inspirations, and literally all things "wedding, love, and sweetness," check out Marry You Me!

Love Story: Sarah & Tyler

Our Story

"The first time I met Tyler was during my freshman year at Molalla High School. After Tyler graduated, we went our separate ways. Fate was on our side when we both ended up at Oregon State University a few years later. Tyler emailed me unexpectedly and mentioned that we should hang out sometime. As soon as we started hanging out, I knew that Tyler was going to be one of my best friends at OSU. The more time we spent together, I realized that our friendship was turning in to something more. It wasn't until we talked about our feelings for each other that we knew that there was no going back to just being friends. Our friendship that started our relationship became the foundation for the love that we share today. Every day that passes, I fall more in love with my best friend. We are so excited for our wedding and look forward to spending the rest of our lives together as husband and wife!

Photography by Laurin Thienes Photography

Click Chicks 1st Annual Summer Lovin' Workshop

On July 1st a group of amazing photographers got together for the 1st annual Summer Lovin' Workshop! I worked with Melanie Whitaker of Melanie Jade Photography to help put on this workshop/photoshoot for the Click Chicks. The Click Chicks are a group of all female photographers that get together monthly to go over lighting, techniques, tips and tricks, industry standards, pricing, upcoming trends, you name it! Members of the Click Chicks have price packages for any budget, so check out their site and I'm sure you'll find a photographer that fits your style!

I can't begin to tell you how much fun I had with helping coordinate and design this photo shoot! There were two different wedding themes, and LOTS of details for the photographers to capture (plus two great lookin' couples)! The pictures shown are only a small portion of the pictures that were taken...I think that there were at least 20 photographers! This photo shoot would not have been possible without the contributions of the following vendors:

Dresses - Angie of The Bridal Gallery

Hair & Makeup - Jennifer of Face Body Beauty

Tuxedos - Jim from the Salem Mr. Formal

Flowers - Denice of Distinctive Designs

Cake - Kalie of The Cake Shoppe

Linens & chairs - Shirley of Crossroads Fine Linens & Party Rentals

Hosting Photographer & Inspiration - Melanie of Melanie Jade Photography

I'd also like to thank the following photographers for giving me some of their photos to use! You rock! And of course, a big thank you to all of the Click Chicks for giving me the opportunity to work with you! I had SO much fun!

Melanie of Melanie Jade Photography

Brittany of 5th and 59th Photography

Ashley of Ashley Sturm Photography

Tara of Tara Francis Photography

Anne of Anne Adams Photography

The Thread - Oregon Wedding Professionals

I wanted to share a little bit about an amazing group called The Thread! Back in January of 2009 a group of wedding professionals decided to form The Thread, and I was honored to be asked to join in 2010! Every vendor in this group has a passion for weddings and are dedicated to providing the best possible service for their customers. We are currently working on offering a more comprehensive website that not only provides links to all of the vendors, but an active blog with all of the vendors contributing - offering you invaluable advice, tips, and knowledge of weddings! We recently had a 4 week seminar to help answer your questions. These sessions included topics such as planning and budgeting, choosing your venue, bridal shops, choosing your videographer, choosing your photographer, hair and makeup, and more! They were recorded and are available on the website! Whether you're looking for only one vendor or still needing them all, I would highly recommend the members of The Thread!

Photo by Encore! Photography

Steven & Jenn's Review ~ 5.15.2010

"Ashley did such a wonderful job and we were thrilled to have her at every turn. Thanks for all of your hard work and attention to detail. She made me feel so comfortable on the big day! I was stressed waking up early to all the things that had to happen, but when she showed up 5 minutes early and knew exactly what to do and how to do it, well I visibly relaxed and was able to start to really enjoy. I told my mom 'I am so happy that Ashley is in charge now!' In the beginning my family was not sure why I was hiring a coordinator, saying 'everything is already done,' but at the end of the wedding all said we could not have done it without her and her services were worth every penny and more!" ~ Jenn

Photo by Fritz Photo

5.15.2010 Wedding - Surprises, Starbucks, & Smiles

I don't even know where to begin with Jenn and Steven and their wedding...It's couples like them that truly make me love what I do! Let's start off with a little bit of the couple's history. They knew each other back in high school, went their separate ways for numerous years (+/-20 years actually), and then found each other and fell in love instantly! I'm amazed at their story and how true love knows no amount of time and confirms my belief in everyone finding their soul mate! Jenn was such a pleasure to work with through every step of the way, and being apart of her joy and excitement during the planning process was an honor! She was very organized and chose AMAZING vendors, none of which I had had the pleasure of working with before their wedding!

When it was time for Jenn and Steven to see each other for the first time, he had a little white box with a red bow. He had it hidden behind his back until she was by his side, and then he had her open it. He surprised her with a BEAUTIFUL pair of diamond earrings! She was just glowing with smiles!

They got married at the very charming Bethany Bible Church in Portland with the reception being held at the Claremont Golf Course just a few miles down the road. They are huge Starbucks fans, so they had to stop by and grab their favorite drinks (yes, in the suit and wedding dress) before arriving at the reception. The food and bartending services were provided by Claeys Catering, and the food was superb! They were so easy to work with, were always prepared for the next "event" of the wedding, and all of the guests were raving about how wonderful the food, presentation, and drinks were! I would highly recommend them if you're still looking for a caterer! The beautiful flowers were provided by Diana of Flowers by Diana, bride's hair and make-up was by Austie Eckley, and the cake was by Wrightberry's Custom Wedding Cake Designs.

Last (and definitely not least) is the photographer, Fritz Photo. I can't say enough amazing things about them! They had an eye for detail, truly captured all of the special moments, and were great to work with! We were always on the same page, they were always prepared for the next "event" at the wedding, and were just a joy to work with! When I originally contacted them about getting some pictures for the website and blog...I think there was about 60+ (and that was even narrowing it down)! It was hard, but I got it down to about 25, but please check out their website for more of the amazing pictures from Jenn and Steven's wedding and all their other clients!

The reception was a total blast...people were up dancing and they even did the locomotion song with a people train! Jenn and Steven's families were honestly one of the best sets of families I've ever had the privilege of working with. I was actually sad when the wedding was over because I thought about probably not seeing them again! They were so warm and loving and shared in all of the happiness with Jenn and Steven that day.

There were lots of small details that Jenn had for the reception, from little bags of pink M&M's (using their family crystal dishes), custom napkins, fun custom "perfect match" matches, personalized votive candles through the whole reception, and it all came together so beautifully!

To Jenn and Steven - thank you so much for allowing me to share this experience with you! I am blessed to have you as clients and I wish you a lifetime of endless love and laughs! I'd also like to thank my new and amazing co-coordinator, Trish. You were a huge asset to have and I look forward to working on many more weddings together in the future!

Photos by Fritz Photo

3.20.2010 Wedding - Made for Each Other

Ashly and Jake got married a few months ago at Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City. The casino offers great packages that include decor, cake, catering, you name it! The bride looked stunning, and it was amazing to watch Jake's face as he saw her for the first time as she walked down the aisle. Ashly and Jake had framed pictures of both sets of their parents by their guest book, which was a very sentimental touch that the parents and guests loved! They also hand-signed each individual program that was carefully set on each chair for the ceremony. They even had a special chair painted, decorated, and set aside for a family member that was only able to attend in spirit. The bride's bouquet was preserved with real flowers (so it will look the same as it did on the wedding day for years and years to come), and the flowers were a perfect match to the wedding colors!

Ashly's maid of honor made cards that matched the theme and color of the wedding for guests to write words of wisdom and nice thoughts for the bride and groom. It was such a thoughtful idea, and the guests had a great time filling them out for the new Mr. and Mrs.! There was a plated dinner (made by the talented in-house caterer) which was followed by a tasty cake by Cherished Moments, Inc. which also provides flowers, invitations, help with formal wear, and numerous other things! The cake had numerous flavored layers, and had amazing detail! Another part of the package at Chinook Winds Casino includes a glass-blown ball specially made for the couple to remember their wedding by. It was beautiful!

I think one of my favorite parts of the wedding was the very heartfelt speeches made by both fathers. They both talked about how Ashly and Jake were made for each other and how blessed they felt to have each of them join their families. I loved working with Ashly and Jake and sharing in all of their joy. Congrats you two!

Photos by Sally of Pink Caterpillar Photography

Love Story: Loni & Marcus

The Ring

"Marcus had come over to my apartment for dinner. Sometime during dinner he realized he was carrying the ring with him. He had just come from his grandmother's house and she had just given it to him. He wasn't ready to propose yet, so he quickly looked for a place to hide the ring. I had just moved into my apartment, so he found one of my moving boxes and put the ring in there.

Now, flash-forward a few weeks...I was looking for a cord I needed for my printer when I opened a box in my living room and found a little gray box. I picked it up and went to ask Marcus if he knew what it was. One look at his face and I knew exactly what it was, and that I wasn't supposed to see it yet. I threw the box at him and ran into the bathroom, refusing to come out until he had put the ring somewhere where I wouldn't see it. I had to wait about a month after that because he wanted to ask my Dad. I felt bad for ruining his surprise, but I was also really excited and it all eventually all worked out!"

Love Story: Kristen & Brandon

How They Met

"We met at a professional conference in California - not somewhere you would consider being a 'romantic' location - about 3 years ago. I was in my last year of graduate school with a job in Nebraska on the Horizon. Brandon was in the middle of graduate school in Seattle. We were introduced by a mutual friend early during the conference, but didn't really talk at length until the last night of the meeting. Late that night, Brandon asked me for my e-mail address. He contacted me shortly after the conference, and we have been together, flying across the the country to see each other, since then!"




Photos by I and M Photo

Love Story: Ashly & Jake

The First Time He Said "I Love You"

"Jake and I had only been dating for a few weeks but I already knew I was head over heels in love with him. Despite how badly I wanted to express my feelings, I kept telling myself that it was way too soon to tell Jake. I convinced myself to say nothing and wait. About two and a half months into the relationship, Jake and I went to Florence for the weekend. That Saturday, as we walked around Florence antique shopping, we were teasing each other about something...and I remember saying, "that's why you like me." Much to my surprise Jake responded, "no, that's why I love you." The funny part was I responded, "good" and forgot the whole I love you part...If such a thing as time standing still really exists, it did for me that moment. From there our relationship took off I never looked back."

Photo by Sally of Pink Caterpillar Photography

Welcome to the Jungle Baby Shower

Jon and Julie are expecting a little girl, named June, and their families and friends gathered last month to shower the little princess that is going to arrive any day! One of the grandmothers-to-be picked a jungle theme for the shower to coordinate with the theme of June's nursery. The giraffe was just adorable! The invitations, thank you cards, and coordinating tableware came from Big Dot of Happiness. Kalie of Kalie's Piece of Cake, made the very tasty two tiered cake! She makes a wonderful butter cream frosting that's not too sweet and she adds amazing fondant details! The diaper cake was made by Nicole of Stacks of Love, which I love for any occasion! She is out of California, but can ship anywhere you need it! She has recently started also offering pampered stacks (spa products) for birthdays or that special lady needing to be pampered! For favors for the guests we had little giraffe soaps with custom tags, which really tied the whole giraffe theme together! The custom tags and soaps also came from Big Dot of Happiness, and the guests loved them! Thanks for asking me to help, it was a pleasure!

Bride's Choice Awards 2010 Winner

WeddingWire, the nation's leading wedding technology company, has recently announced the winners of its prestigious annual award, the 2010 Bride's Choice Awards ^TM and Stargazer Weddings has been selected to receive the 2010 award for Wedding Planning! This year's recipients represent the top five percent of all vendors in the WeddingWire community, which includes over 100,000 wedding professionals across the US and Canada.

The annual Bride's Choice Awards ^TM recognizes and celebrates excellence in quality and service within the wedding industry, as determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 500,000 newlyweds. Awards are distributed to winners across 19 different service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers, and are based on the overall achievements over the past year.

"We are excited to honor the success of the top wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Community," said Timothy Chi, WeddingWire's Chief Executive Officer. "The annual Bride's Choice Awards ^TM program has given us the unique opportunity to recognize the best wedding professionals across the country and help engaged couples plan their weddings. WeddingWire would like to commend this year's recipients for their hard work and dedication to the wedding industry."

Featured Vendor of January - NW Mobile DJ Service

If there was a DJ that I recommend to every bride, it would be NW Mobile DJ Service. Why? Because they are simply the best. Kevin, the "head honcho," is personal, hilarious, and professional. He has personally trained the rest of his staff to be just as great! A DJ truly helps to set the "tone" of a wedding. They know the timing of the ceremony so music starts at the correct time (and flows perfectly), set the perfect transitions between events at the reception (without being cheesy), can get a feel for the crowd and know the perfect song to play to keep up with the mood, and so much more! I know I use the word perfect a lot to describe Kevin and his crew, but I can't think of a better word! Here is a little bit more about them, straight from their website!

"NW Mobile DJ Service is completely dedicated to creating events as unique and individual as you. Our experienced mobile DJ's and MC's pride themselves on providing high end, state-of-the-art sound quality, a diverse music collection, and affordable prices to suit your budget. All this wrapped in a positive and personal touch guaranteed to make your wedding ceremony, wedding reception, corporate event, reunion, etc. an event to remember.

NW Mobile DJ Service serves the Pacific Northwest (Oregon & Washington) with experienced professionals who are always courteous, friendly, energetic, and determined to make a difference. The DJ/MC will gladly handle any announcements and activities during your event. Our level of interaction can be anywhere from conservative to out-going. At any level, our style never steals the spotlight - we strive to be part of the event and not the focus. We provide a professional, understated presence while engaging your group with music for all to enjoy."

Photos by Eric John

NW Wedding Scoop

Stargazer Weddings is happy to be a part of the 2010 NW Wedding Scoop! This event is a wedding workshop to help brides have the wedding of their dreams, all on their budget. This is not like a bridal show and there will not be sale pitches! There are going to be professionals from all areas of the wedding industry to help you and to answer any questions you might have.

There will be two events: Salem Show on February 20th and the Portland Show on February 27th. Feel free to come to one or both, and for one session or both sessions! Check out the website to learn more about the vendors that are going to be there, check out the schedule, and more!

Tickets are $10 each or 2 for $15 if you pre-register online or $15 each and 2 for $20 at the door and there are only 200 spots available. Included in this price is a goody bag for every bride, opportunity to win door prizes, tips and tricks from local industry experts, come talk to wedding professionals without the sales pitch, and come enjoy the relaxed environment to come see the latest trends! I hope to see you there!

Let's Go Bananas Baby Shower

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of helping with Becky's Baby Shower. Ever since she was little she has LOVED monkeys! Her and her husband are expecting a little boy, Peter, so we went with a blue and green monkey theme! We ordered all of the supplies and one of the party favors through Big Dot of Happiness. I love working with this company because they deliver on time, all of their supplies coordinate perfectly, and their customer service is amazing. They don't just do baby showers either! They have supplies and favors for weddings, birthdays, and more!

One of the cakes was made by Becky's close friend. It was so festive, matched the theme, and tasted great! The other "cake" was made by the amazing and talented Nicole of Stacks of Love. Stacks of Love specializes in diapers cakes and offers two or three tiered cakes, and soon will be offering one tier cakes as well! She also provides "cakes" for house-warmings, weddings, you name it! She takes such care and pride in her work, and it shows by looking at her pictures and having the "cake" arrive perfectly packaged and ready to go! She can custom make a Stack of Love for you for any event you can think of!


For party favors we chose custom wrapped Hershey's chocolate bars. These wrappers were adorable! They had such cute sayings on the back about the Calories (Who's Counting?), Serving Size (Eating for Two), and Ingredients (A Little of Mom, and a Little of Dad, Make the Sweetest Baby, the World's Ever Had)! Becky's husband is in construction, so we wanted another unique party favor to share with the guests. I found small measuring tape key chains from Beau Coup! Her husband loved this idea (we made sure he got one too). We ordered stickers from Big Dot of Happiness to put on the key chains so they matched the theme. The kids enjoyed helping Becky open her gifts, there were lots of fun games, and everyone had a great time!

Willamette Valley Wedding Professionals

Stargazer Weddings is a proud member of the Willamette Valley Wedding Professionals! This is a group of hand selected Venues and Professionals who are dedicated to making your dream wedding a reality. Each of the businesses in this group have proven themselves time and again to go above and beyond the call of duty. We work with you and each other to make sure that the event runs smoothly and that everyone has a wonderful time. I have had such a great time getting to know the other professionals in this group, you should check them out! We meet monthly to exchange ideas and tips, share our experiences, discuss wedding trends, and (most importantly) how to best serve our clients! Check out the group's website to check out some of the amazing venues and vendors!