Real Weddings
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Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens

Posted on December 03, 2020 by Ariana Baio


After a long day as a special education teacher, I went to visit my friend Renee who was bartending at Stingers in Wallington. It was a Wednesday and the evening bartender was known as the singing bartender, who happen to be Anthony. Anthony immediately caught my eye just as I caught his. His voice was incredible, his eyes shone, and his smile made me melt. We made polite conversation, at the end of his shift, Anthony told Renee to give me his number. I struggled to wait at least an hour until I called him, and we stayed on the phone all night. The rest is history!Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


Brigantine New Jersey is one of my favorite places to vacation. I have spent many summers there with my family, and Anthony knows how important the beach and time with my family is to me. After spending a perfect day on the beach, we enjoyed dinner with close friends and family. Anthony was so nervous all night. After dinner, we slipped away to the balcony to enjoy the sounds of the ocean when he got down on one knee, I immediately said “yes,” and we celebrated with our family and friends. Shortly after, we took a long walk on the beach and saw three shooting stars, and we knew it was approval from our loved ones who have passed on.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


We had the most perfect wedding day. My bouquet was filled with white flowers and a lot of greenery. The bridesmaids had similar flowers with a hint of blue to match their dusty blue bridesmaid dresses from Azazie. The groom and groomsmen wore navy tuxedos from Men’s Warehouse. Our theme was simple, yet elegant. My something new was my wedding dress, something borrowed were earrings from mom, something blue was my toenail polish and something old was my grandmother’s rosary beads. Unfortunately, we were a Covid couple, but we refused to let that steal our happiness and rescheduled our date from June. Our goal was to have a beautiful and safe wedding and it exceeded our expectations. Anthony has been a wedding singer for over twenty years. He has blessed hundreds of couples by making their evenings so special and perfect. Music has always been a huge part of both of our lives, and we knew music would be extremely important for our big day. We had his own band, Sal Travis entertainment, which is also the house band at the Estate at Florentine Gardens, at our wedding and it made all our dreams come true.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


The stations at the cocktail hour were endless; we had a pizza station, a mac-and-cheese station, grilled cheese station, Sunday Italian station, wine, cheese, raw bar, leg of lamb and skirt steak. The food is so beautifully prepared, displayed and delicious. There was a martini bar and signature drinks named after our dogs. Our dinner menu included a poached pear salad with goat cheese and baby greens, stuffed chicken with spinach and fontina cheese, and teriyaki salmon.

My gown was Emma by Maggie Sottero. I purchased it from Bijou Bridal in Paramus. This dress had all of my “must haves” for my dream wedding gown. It had a slim A-line, sweetheart neckline, delicate beading and gorgeous lace. It was classy, yet sexy. This dress is timeless and romantic.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


Our ceremony was perfect. We were surrounded by all our family and friends. We had our nephews as our ring security and they lived up to the part. Our dogs are so important to us, and they got to walk down the aisle and were a big hit. One of our best friends married us and our ceremony was so perfect and was a glimpse into our relationship. We laughed, we cried, and we enjoyed every second of it. Our mothers did readings that we selected and then we did a sand ceremony to unite our families. While pouring the sand, Anthony’s daughter sang and it was such a special moment for everyone. We wrote our own vows and declared them in front of our families and friends. We chose ceremony music that was special to us too. Our entire ceremony was crafted by us and with so much love.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


Anthony singing. It has to be every little girls dream to find a man with a true gift. He surprised me with three songs, just for me. His first song was the first song he ever ‘dedicated’ to me in our relationship, six years ago when we met at the bar, Anthony sang “All Of Me” by John Legend. At that moment I knew, one day, I would marry him. It was so sweet, and so romantic, he sang it again on our wedding day. He then sang, “A Song For You” by Donny Hathaway, which was some of the most romantic lyrics I’ve ever heard. He finished it off by singing “Speechless” by Dan and Shay. It was so romantic, so sweet, so thoughtful and I truly felt like the luckiest girl in the world.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


We were a Covid couple and our orginal June wedding had to be postponed. We got married on a Monday evening, during a pandemic, on the most perfect October day, and I wouldn’t change a thing.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


“Millionaire” by Chris Stapleton.Kelly and Anthony at Estate at Florentine Gardens


Don’t sweat the small stuff! At the end of the day you are marrying your best friend, so enjoy it. At some point during the reception, look out at all your guests enjoying your wedding. How often are you able to have everyone you love together in the same room? Enjoy planning.

Punta Cana- Circle at Paradisus Palma Real.

the details

Hometowns

Lodi

Reception Location

Estate at Florentine Gardens

Photographer

Stark Studio

Officiant

Jessica Maldonado- Bridesmaid/Friend

Bride’s Gown

Maggie Sottero

+ more