Mark and Alyssa’s Scenic Homestead Wedding

The Homestead in Oak Glen, and its scenic mountain backdrop, was the perfect location for Mark and Alyssa’s beautiful wedding.

The Bride and Groom share some words about their wedding day….

How did you find your wedding venue and why did choose it?: I found the wedding venue with my moms and sister and knew right away that this was my dream venue. The Homestead was the first location we found and everyone wanted to keep looking so we did. After seeing 3 other venues everyone was on board with me and agreed that The Homestead was the perfect location.

What did you enjoy most about your wedding day?: Absolutely everything. I still can't believe thats its over. I look at pictures and videos my family members have sent me and I can not believe how fast the day went and how there was not enough time to soak every moment in.

Say Yes to the Dress! : I tried on easily over 30 dresses before I finally agreed to my dress. I say agreed because I did not try it on immediately and know that it was the dress. I just knew that I liked 90% of the dress and that it would be the one to beat. After going back and forth my sister and I went back to try what would be my wedding dress on, and I felt comfortable and happy that this would be my dress. Once I had the dress altered to fit me and added a couple more details I wanted I knew that I made the best decision. I loved that I felt beautifully romantic in my dress.

Tell us 3 things you love most about your spouse: I love how much he supports me. I love how much he loves my family and blended right in with everyone. I love that he takes to heart what I tell him about how we both can do better to grow together as a couple.

What did you enjoy most about your wedding day?: What I enjoyed most about my wedding day was being able to show my family how much love Mark and I have for each other.

Tell us a fun or interesting fact about you as a couple: 

Alyssa: We are the worst at planning. Everyone kept asking a million questions regarding the wedding and we both were so relaxed and kept pushing things off until the last minute. We are called the procrastinators of our family. Everything worked in our favor as we expected but we both are terrible at planning.

Mark: We love to binge watch The Office. We have watched it 5 times in this past year alone.

Tell us 3 things you love most about your spouse: I love her eyes, her laugh and her smile.

What were your wedding colors?: Our wedding colors were blush and navy.

Describe your wedding with 3 words: Romantic, scenic and energetic

What advice would you give future brides and grooms when it comes to wedding planning?: To relax! Everything will work itself out. Don't get caught up in the minor details because on the day nobody will notice if not everything is perfect.

Why did you choose Carrie Vines Photography?: My husband was in charge of the photographer and he felt confident that her and her husband would deliver on what we wanted. After speaking to her over the phone I knew he was spot on with Carrie and I loved everything about her and her husband. They made us beyond comfortable and I can't wait to see our album.

Your wedding cake flavor(s): My sister is a baker and made my husband's favorite cake, a reese's peanut butter cake.

What was the name of the song for your first dance and why did you choose it?: Our first dance was to I can't help falling in love (cover) by Kina Grannis. I use to listen to this song constantly covered by another artist and I knew since high school that it would be the song I would dance to at my wedding. On the day of the wedding our DJ sent me her cover on youtube and I liked it so we went for the cover by Kina and I am happy with that decision.

Any other vendors you might want to give a shout out to?: If there are brides in Southern California looking for an outside venue The Homestead is the perfect location. Paula and her staff did a absolutely stunning job on everything and gave me the confidence to know that I had nothing to worry about. They completely took care of us and the vendors they work with were phenomenal.

Was there anything you would have changed about your wedding day? : The one minor detail I would change would be how long it was. From the start of the ceremony to the end of the reception lasted about 6 hours and that was not enough! If I could we would have been there until I was ready to let the day go. But no! I wouldn't change anything about our day. It was truly perfect.

Any final thoughts you'd like to share?: As a bride who wasn't sure of having a wedding I am beyond grateful to my family for pushing me to do so. I have many memories with Mark and our families that I will cherish forever thanks to our wedding day. The best first big decision we made as a couple was to express our love and to celebrate the union of two families. Everyone should do so no matter how big or small the wedding is. It was worth it.

Vendor Shout Out

Venue and Flowers - The Homestead, Oak Glen

Dress -David’s Bridal

Bridesmaids’ Dresses - Azazie

Groom’s Suit - Friar Tux

DJ - DJ Fernando

Photography - Carrie Vines Photography

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