If you’ve been absent for a while, here’s what you missed:
On Friday, we got married. It was 95+ degrees out. There was so much love, and so much sweat. I made the wedding cakes, and the entire wedding was based on the idea that life, and love, don’t need to be complicated. It was perfect, really. 
Our ceremony was at 1:00 at Quonquont Farm in Whately. We got married next to the walnut tree, with about 40 people total, including us. We didn’t have an aisle to walk down, by choice, so we made our grand entrance to Justin Timberlake’s Can’t Stop the Feeling. We walked in together, holding hands. My friend Vanessa was the officiant, and she said such perfectly sweet things about us as people and love in general. Kevin and I wrote our own vows, which we wrote on these silly scrolls. Kevin cried in the middle of his. I cried off and on throughout the whole ceremony, and had to take a quick break to run over and hug my grand parents, who have been married for 70 years (!!). Word on the street is my grandpa, dad, uncle Chris, and just about everyone else shed a few tears too. Love will do that to you. 
After the ceremony we walked out into the blueberry field to pick blueberries. It filled my heart with such joy to see all my family and friends deep in the blueberry bushes, searching out the biggest, juiciest berries. When I look back on the day, this was one of the best parts. There’s just something so special about celebrating love in a place where life grows. Getting to eat the perfectly ripe summer berries isn’t too bad, either. My grandpa told me to start saving up for my own farm; he left his family farm over 70 years ago and has been looking for a way back to the land ever since.
When everyone had filled their quarts with berries,we all headed to Mount Sugarloaf for the post-ceremony celebration. Earlier that morning we had loaded the car and driven up the mountain to set up. We decorated the picnic tables with flowers from a farm stand down the street and hung a few banners. There were big handmade chalkboard signs, and a gorgeous wooden board made by my sister Sarah that served as an alternative to a guest book. When guests arrived there were platters of food to snack on and games like ladder ball, corn hole, and giant jenga out on the grass.
Kevin and I stopped home so he could change and I could decorate the cakes before heading up the mountain. We arrived a few minutes later than everyone, each holding a cake. One was chocolate cake filled with ganache and peanut butter frosting. The other cake was vanilla, ginger, and brown sugar filled with blueberries and Swiss meringue buttercream. Both were frosted on the outside with Swiss meringue buttercream, but the chocolate cake had chocolate buttercream. I decorated them with fresh berries and small, white/pale green roses. Most people ended up having a slice of each cake, and yet there’s still leftovers in the fridge. 
Although it was the hottest day of the year (I still have a sunburn on my scalp!!), it was such a gorgeous day for our wedding. We were so happy to share the special places where our love has grown over the past 6 1/2 years with our family and friends. There was so little stress, nothing uncomfortable other than the excessive amounts of sweat, and so much joy. Some people might dream of ball gowns and princesses when they think of their wedding, but this was truly my dream day. There were no big emergencies, nothing to get angry or upset over, and we were surrounded by our favorite people in the world. Plus, the cake was amazing. And I’m not just saying that because I made it. Also- my sister Debra did my hair. Isn’t it gorgeous?! 
Just about everyone came back to our house around 6:00 to have a few drinks, eat pizza, and be together. We mostly just sat out in the backyard talking, and it was exactly what I needed after a long, hot day. I made a huge s’mores platter (complete with homemade graham crackers and so many different chocolate bars), but it ended up raining around 8:45. We all rushed into the house, and eventually packed onto the porch. My sister Heather, cousin Alex, and 17-month old niece Mary ran out to play in the puddles, while the rest of us stayed on the porch to chat.
Eventually, everyone started heading out; we took a few minutes to put away food and clean a couple things, quickly took a cold shower, and then looked through the pictures from the day and opened all our cards. We fell asleep in our own bed, talking about how great the day was.
Today we’re up in Vermont hiking, eating, swimming, and lounging in the hot tub. Tomorrow we’re doing an aerial adventure course, eating waffles, and rock climbing. Who knows what Tuesday will bring.
If you’re just here for the recipes (I feel you!!), I have so many delicious things coming your way soon. I’m talking brownies, mango-lime energy balls, and grilled pizza.
I hope your weekend was filled with lots of love and homemade cake. Mine sure was. ❤️