Ceremony: Vassar College Chapel (mother and brother graduated from there)
Reception: The Grandview Poughkeepsie, NY
Dress: Paloma Blanca
Dress Shop: The Town Shop (a local dress shop in Poughkeepsie, NY. I actually got both my prom dresses there too, which was sweet because I went to both proms with Jon-Paul too!)
Shoes: Cole Haan (with Nike Air technology so they were extra comfy!)
Flowers: Marianne’s Floral Garden Poughkeepsie, NY
Band: Jonny Rosch and Friends
Jewelry: My mother had a special ring made for my wedding day (something new) with a pearl (something old) that belonged to my beloved Aunt Fran who passed when I was younger, set between two sapphires which is my birthstone (and something blue!).  For my something borrowed, my father gave me one of his handkerchiefs, which you captured in a great shot in our album!

A perfect day in every way, from the weather, to the ceremony in the grand and exquisite chapel on the campus of Vassar College, to the adorable couple Lauren and Jon-Paul. How better to describe this beautiful ten year long courtship than in Lauren’s own words.

“Jon-Paul and I met at my first job working at a bakery in New Paltz (near where we went for some of the engagement pics).  It was the summer before my junior year and his senior year of high school (we attended neighboring high schools).  We never thought our summer fling would lead to us marrying 10 years later!  We both attended Binghamton University and then had a long distance relationship while I was in graduate school for counseling and Jon-Paul began his career in finance in Westchester.  After I received my masters degree in school counseling, I got a job as a junior high school counselor in Westchester.  We got engaged in November of 2009 after dating for 9 years.  He planned the perfect proposal at a lookout point on the Shawangunk Mountains that overlooks all of New Paltz and Highland (our hometowns) and the beautiful fall foliage.  I was never the type of girl that had fantasized about exactly what I wanted my wedding to be, so it was fun to begin the planning.  Both my mother and one of my brothers graduated from Vassar College and I had always loved the chapel and beautiful grounds.  I took Jon-Paul to go see the chapel and he too loved it.  We booked it for our ceremony and found a wonderful officiant, Reverend Paul Mayer.  For the reception, we both loved The Grandview located overlooking the Hudson River in Poughkeepsie, NY, where we had previously attended Jon-Paul’s best man’s wedding.  When thinking about a bridal party, we decided to have just our two closest friends as our Maid of Honor and Best Man.  Jon-Paul and I have two cousins each that are the same ages, so we asked all 4 to be flower girls and my cousin to be the ring bearer.  We are very close to our families and love our cousins, so we wanted children to be involved in the whole day. After all the planning the day had arrived and we couldn’t have asked for better weather- low 70′s and sunny. Everything came together from the flowers to the band.  The day went off without a hitch and we enjoyed every minute!”