Jessica & Jay - Berkeley Botanical Gardens

This wedding was in the coolest place! The wedding was at Berkeley Botanical Gardens in the hills above the campus of UC Berkeley. The ceremony was in this redwood grove which was a much needed escape from the intense heat that day. As you walked into this grove surrounded by these giant beautiful trees the temperature dropped about 15 degrees.
Other than the cool venue what I really liked about Jessica and Jay's wedding was how intimate it was. They obviously cared greatly about the people they invited to share their special day with. I was surprised to see they had a receiving line right after the ceremony. These days guests show up, say hi to the bride and groom for a few minutes, eat and then leave without really spending any time with them. But this couple greeted and thanked each and every guest with such genuine warmth and appreciation. Later during the reception they went around to each table and again spoke to each guest. On top of that, right after cutting the cake they spent another 15 minutes thanking everyone involved with the wedding from the ring bearers to the person who helped make the table runners. THEN, that day was a guests birthday and they had a cake for this person and had everyone sing Happy Birthday! How many brides would let another person's b-day be apart of their special day? I just thought that was so cool and classy. I really felt the love not only between the bride and groom but also between them and their guests. This was a nice reminder of what really should be the main focus of a wedding, a celebration of love with family and friends.