Monica and Adrian at Porta

How did you meet? We actually met when we were younger-I was 13 and he was 12. Adrian was on my brother’s little league team in Hoboken and I have a vague memory of seeing Adrian practicing and showing off in front of me. I can remember thinking “He is definitely flirting with me”. Although we grew up in the same square mile town, our paths never crossed. We both had different social circles but it wasn’t until a New Years Eve party 13 years later where were “reintroduced”. It was discovered that besides the baseball connection, I was also Adrian’s little brother’s current teacher. We didn’t truly reconnect until about 6 months after the party, where we went out on our first date and the rest is history.

How did you get engaged? I was definitely onto Adrian and knew an engagement was in the works. It was the day of the annual “Field Day” at my school and the day of the senior prom. On Fridays, I usually get home around 5’oclock and Adrian runs his “man errands”. On this day, I wanted to go see the students go off to prom but then I received a frantic phone call from Adrian to come home because our dog was yelping in pain and something wasn’t right. I immediately sprinted home to find that our dog was perfectly fine and Adrian was down on one knee. It was such a beautiful surprise!

Details of your day! Our theme was “seaside rustic” and we didn’t have a concrete color palette. We really liked dark blues, burgundy, peach, and other colors that represent the fall.
My bouquet was made up of peachy pink dahlias, flat seeded eucalyptus, berries, ivory spray roses, and antique green hydrangea. My bridesmaid bouquets had burgundy dahlias, flat seeded eucalyptus, coral roses, and antique green hydrangea.
For favors we decided to donate money to Autism Speaks in honor of Adrian’s five year old cousin.

Why did you choose your venue? We chose Porta because we loved the eccentric vibe of Asbury Park (not to mention, we LOVE pizza!). The venue seemed more laid back and different- Edison lights hanging from the ceiling, huge portrait paintings of animals, and close to the beach. It just fit us and our personalities!

What was your wedding menu? We had a few hors d’oeuvres followed by Caesar Salad and Pasta Pomodoro. The main menu included five different types of pizza:
1- Arugula- San Marzano tomatoes, house-made mozzarella, garlic, arugula, truffle oil
2- Autumn Betty- wild mushrooms, garlic, goat cheese, truffle pecorino, thyme, walnut oil
14 1/2-San Marzano tomatoes,house-made mozzarella, house-made ricotta, hot soppressata, Calabrian chiles, oregano, extra virgin olive oil
3- Margarita- San Marzano tomatoes, house-made mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano, basil, extra virgin olive oil
4- Super Mario- San Marzano tomatoes, house-made mozzarella, prosciutto cotto, cremini mushroom, oregano

What was your wedding cake? Our cake was a marble cake with Cannoli filling, in homage to our Yorkie named Cannoli. The cake was a rustic “naked cake” which had the toppers “I love you” “I know” from one of our favorite movies, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

All about your gown! My gown was made by Olvis which is a designer in the Netherlands. I did not pick this dress as an option-it was actually my wedding dress consultant who recommended it and said the designer is very popular for beach weddings. I tried it on and immediately fell in love. I loved the way it hugged my body and it had everything on my imaginary checklist: fit and flare, lace, and an illusion back. the dress was made with elastic french lace so it was very comfortable and I could move around and dance!

What was your favorite moment? My favorite moment was seeing Adrian for our reveal. I was so anxious all day but when I saw him standing there, it all went away!

One detail you couldn’t live without? It sounds silly, but I couldn’t live without (and splurged on) our escort cards. They were beach badges made by an Etsy shop BoardwalkBridal and was such a unique element which featured the infamous Asbury Park “Tillie”

Did anything go wrong? No! It truly was THE “perfect” day!

First dance song? “Thank You” by Led Zeppelin

Advice for other brides? Don’t sweat the small stuff and enjoy the day-soak it all up! Also, take some time to be alone with your husband sometime during the day for at least five minutes. Adrian and I were lucky enough to take a walk down the boardwalk to our reception. It was nice to have that alone time with him and talk about our mornings.