written by Dolly Marshall
From the photographer, Morina Photography: “Our awesome Chicago couple that tied the knot at Normandy Farms in Blue Bell, PA on what seemed to be the coldest day in November. Their wedding was full of amazing music and dancing celebrating Melissa’s Syrian heritage. I mean who doesn’t love an entrance full of flying money and money sashes? Melissa and Tim planned their perfect intimate wedding with family and friends from all parts of the world. They shared jokes during their ceremony, danced the night away, and had an amazing time laughing with their best friends. We captured their day in photo and film and we couldn’t be happier to offer wedding videography in an exciting way to our couples because this wedding deserved an exciting way to relive the pure joy between Melissa and Tim.”
How They Met
Tim who lives in Chicago was on a business trip in the Philly area and turned on his OK Cupid app. He and I matched on the App and started talking for several months. Eventually I made the decision to meet together for a long weekend. Then we became inseparable. After one year of long distance dating, I packed up my life and 2 dogs and moved to the windy City!”
The Proposal
“Tim proposed in Costa Rica while on vacation.”
Wedding Planning
“Wedding planning was a lot more work than anticipated. I think it depends on who you are marrying but when you marry a very organized detailed person like Tim; you are in for a lot of discussion. It also made it a bit more challenging being in Chicago planning a wedding in Pennslyvania. Overall, it was a lot of fun and we were blessed to have the support of our friends and family”
Normandy Farm
“We chose Normandy Farm because it checked all the boxes for us and was overwhelming the best value. The location was perfect so that Tim’s family flying in could easily get there from the airport and Melissa’s family only had about a one hour drive. The grounds are beautiful and the ability to have the ceremony and reception in one place was awesome. Most importantly, Normandy Farms had the best food of all 6 venues we tried.”
Wedding Inspiration
“I didn’t really have a solid plan for what I wanted but just went off of intuition and things that I knew would be important to me. I would envision the day and see if what I was making a current decision on is something that felt like would represent our story or little pieces of us.”
Best Moment
“The best memory we had was a close tie between seeing each other for our first look or Melissa walking down the aisle. In both of these situations our emotions overcame us. We were so happy for that day and the symbol of spending the rest of our lives together.”
Wedding Planning Advice
“Communicate and create a plan. We found that using a wedding checklist helped keep you on track. Delegate to your friends and family. Not only actual tasks but seek their input and recommendations.”
Vendors
“For the most part, we were thrilled with all of our vendors. We put a lot of research into our vendors and it paid off. We cannot say enough good things about Morina Photography and Normandy Farms. Our wedding day was perfect and we owe a lot of that to them.”
Vendors | Ceremony Venue: Normandy Farm | Reception Venue: Normandy Farm | Floral/Decor: Willow and Thistle | Photographer: Morina Photography | Videographer: Morina Photography