As you all know, I got married! On May 4th, I was lucky enough to get married to my high school sweetheart on the water in Hawaii surrounded by so many friends and family members. I just returned from my honeymoon and wanted to share the wedding details and my experience with all of you! You’ve heard me talking about it so much on the site and on our podcast, so it only seems fair to share the details!
Pre-Wedding Festivities
Since we had a destination wedding, we wanted to have several events and activities for our guests. Not only did we want to make sure they had a great time but we also wanted to spend as much time with everyone as possible. I’ve always heard that weddings are a blur for the bride and groom and I didn’t want that to happen to us. So, more activities meant more time!
On Thursday, we had a pool day at the Sheraton Kona. Most people stayed at the hotel that was also our wedding venue. We got a cabana and invited all of our guests to come spend a relaxing day with us. It was so much fun. I was so happy to see how many people actually joined us!
That night, we organized a night snorkeling tour to see the manta rays. We had 43 of our 67 guests join us for that! If you are ever on the Big Island, I recommend you do this tour. You get so close to these majestic creatures without actually disturbing them or removing them from their habitat. I loved the experience and was so happy I could share it with so many of my loved ones.
Finally, on Friday, we held a welcome reception at this awesome venue, Island Lava Java, to officially welcome all of our guests to Hawaii! We had some pupus, drinks, and heartfelt toasts to kick-off wedding weekend.
The Big Day
Saturday was the big day. As any of you married readers know, it flew by! I spent the day with my mom, sister, mother-in-law, sister-in-law, aunt, and cousin with other fabulous friends stopping by throughout the day. It was actually a pretty relaxing day until the nerves hit in about 30 minutes before the ceremony!
The ceremony was beautiful and sweet, right on the water. It was everything I imagined and more. We had our good friend, Jimmy, officiate and we wrote our own vows.
We then spent a good amount of time taking pictures (I can’t wait to see all of them!) before joining the party. I know I’m biased but it was an epic party! We had amazing toasts (including Polish vodka shots). Our dance floor was packed pretty much immediately. Our guests really know how to party! We had the best time and continued the party late into the night at our after party. I still can’t believe how amazing the whole day was!
The morning after the wedding, we did a trash the dress photoshoot! We took photos in the ocean and in the pool. We figured with the amazing setting around us, we should take advantage! After, we hosted a brunch and then spent the day relaxing by the pool with anyone that was still around. The level of exhaustion after all the emotions and an evening of partying was bigger than I anticipated! A chill day after was pretty nice.
Honeymoonin’
Monday morning, Danny and I flew to Kaua’i for our honeymoon! We spent a week exploring the island, relaxing on the beach, and eating lots of fish! Kaua’i is a beautiful island and we had so much fun checking it all out. We would definitely recommend a snorkeling tour of the Na Pali Coast, eating at Merriman’s, and visiting Waimea Canyon.
But, most importantly, we fully disconnected. I didn’t check work emails. I spent my time in the present and focused on what I was doing during the honeymoon (and earlier during wedding week too!) I prepped for the trip so I knew everything was in good hands and I could relax. It was wonderful. I was happy to practice what we preach!
I’d love to hear your wedding and honeymoon tales too! Send us a note with your stories. Were you able to disconnect?
