Natalia and Joe

I wrote in a previous blog how much I love helping old friends plan their weddings...and this is definitely the case with my College Pal Natalia!

Natalia and I met through my best friend Melanie while attending Christopher Newport University. We both were Communication Studies majors and enjoyed taking courses together. I think my first real memory with Natalia was on 9.11...Natalia's father is a doctor in the DC area (where her family lives) and was unreachable at the time...Natalia came to our dorm room and together with my roommates we spent an unforgettable day together hoping for the best.

Fast forward 6 years and Natalia gets engaged on my birthday to a Norfolk Firefighter, Joe. He actually stopped the Norfolk Grand Illumination Parade (in his firetruck) to propose. I received a very common phone call the next day...a "HELP" call. Natalia recognized that with her and Joe's busy work schedule some wedding planning help was a definite necessity.

I have spent the last few months trying to help them make a decision on where to hold their upcoming wedding festivities. We originially thought that DC was an obvious choice as this is where Natalia's family is...but after much consideration a Hampton Roads Wedding is a must.

We have visited quite a few venues and have starting narrowing down the decision as where we are going to hold this reception. We spent the day visiting a few venues in Norfolk, Virginia Beach and Williamsburg...Natalia and I discussed wedding plans, while Joe and my husband James discussed wines, fires and Norfolk General (Joe and James both work together as well).

I really look forward to spending the next 15 months together planning this event which is sure to be a blast...check back often as I keep you updated on the planning process...