Six months prior, Miro, knowing Sheila’s wish to one day be married there and realizing that reserving a date at the chapel is almost as difficult as getting into Princeton itself, booked a wedding date. The only catch was that he hadn’t yet proposed. Fortunately for Miro, this story has a happy ending.

Sheila and Miro’s wedding celebration not only highlighted the couple’s connection to Princeton and the beauty of the fall season, but also their high regard for their families. From Sheila’s touching poem to her late father, Bruce, to her elderly great uncle escorting her those last few steps down the aisle, and from Miro’s tribute to his uncles who were lost in the Bosnian conflict to the couple’s donation (in lieu of favors) to a Bosnian charity—this day was not just about them, but about honoring their heritage.

The reception was held a short walk from the chapel at Sheila’s former eating club, known as “Cottage,” a stately brick Georgian-revival building. “We wanted to have the reception somewhere that held memories of our time at Princeton,” says Sheila. Guests enjoyed cocktails, sushi, and hors d’oeuvres in the oak-paneled rooms and on the terrace overlooking the huge backyard. A dinner of almond-crusted sea bass and filet mignon was then served under a gigantic tent on the lawn of Cottage, followed by carrot cake adorned with a chocolate filigree pattern and topped with a trailing chocolate bow.

The band they chose, the Touch, was the standout of the evening, playing everything from an Irish jig (a nod to Sheila’s roots) to Eighties dance music to heavy metal (Miro’s pick). “My husband and I love to dance,” says Sheila. “It was like a big, rocking party. The dance floor was packed.”

Sheila and Miro carried the splendor of the autumn season throughout their fête by illuminating the inside of the tent with amber lights, and setting tables with champagne-hued linens, china accented with gold, and centerpieces of fiery copper pots filled with fall leaves, burgundy-tipped hydrangea, and other blooms in shades of gold, orange, pink, and crimson.

To further complement the fall theme, the bridesmaids were dressed in gowns of lustrous champagne-colored silk-wool, all in slightly different styles, and carried bouquets in rich fall tones encircled with wide gold ribbons. Each bridesmaid’s dress had a thin, ribbonlike sash with a flat bow, which echoed the trim on Sheila’s “perfect dress”: a simple, yet elegant, white, strapless satin gown designed by Bob Evans. “I had been looking for weeks and as soon as I zipped this one up I just knew,” explains Sheila.

When the formal reception was over, the party migrated next door to Miro’s former eating club, Cap and Gown. The couple and their guests continued to eat, drink, and be merry—this time to tunes spun by a deejay while enjoying cold beer, wine, and pizza. “I remember feeling so good because everyone around us was having fun,” recalls Sheila. As they partied into the wee hours, Sheila and Miro discovered that you can indeed go back again. Sealing the deal with a fabulous honeymoon, the couple spent eighteen days in South Africa and Seychelles, and they currently call Manhattan home.