{The happy newlyweds}

Tony’s stepsister Steph got married to her sweet love Steve this past weekend, and Tony and I had the best time of all time. The ceremony was at a ranch in Swan Valley, Idaho they happened upon through Priceline (Steph gave a hilarious shout-out in her Wedding Welcome Itinerary to William Shatner for dealing them such a sweet hand of fate), and it became such a special place to them, Steve proposed there. The ceremony and reception were at the ranch, and the after-party was at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar in nearby Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It was perfect.

{Pre-ceremony posing}

I’d been lucky enough to get to perform in the BAD COMPANY show at The Groundlings the night before we left and, true to form, waited to pack (and finish work) until after we got home from that around midnight, so I was running on 2 hours of sleep and roughly 9 coffees by the time we rolled into Idaho Falls Friday afternoon. Tony anticipated this, and prepared a playlist of “happy music” to get us to Swan Valley, which primarily consisted of Taylor Swift and Christmas music. This was our rental car:

It was one of the most fun, beautiful drives of my life.

{The Barn accommodations at the ranch}

We descended up the Hansen Guest Ranch, which had been joyfully taken over by Steph and Steve’s families. This place is incredible. This was the view from our porch (porch!!!):

These were my best friends for the weekend, Annabelle and Callie, who live on the ranch full-time:

{I don’t think she’s enjoying this as much as I am.}

I was challenged to be a real outdoorswoman, “roughing it” by sharing a bathroom and going without television. There weren’t even keys to lock our doors, this place was so remote! There were also bikes available to ride around the property, but I never got that adventurous because I haven’t ridden a bike since I was 10 (unless Soul Cycle counts). And I got super nervous when I saw this sign posted at the entrance to the hike:

And I got even more nervous when we heard gunshots while hiking and crazy nervous when we encountered two hunters on the trail, shooting their rifles from the trail like it was no big deal. (#merica.) And I made Tony give me a piggyback ride through the water part of the hike. So I guess, in retrospect, I wasn’t as outdoorsy as I thought. It was still awesome.

And I would show you a picture of the cheesy grits I shoveled into my face every morning, but I always forgot to take a picture because I was too busy eating. The owners of the ranch made the best breakfasts I’ve ever had – I got up at 8am every day to eat, which is saying a lot (I’m a monster before 11am and at least two coffees). I even got out the door without smearing my face in make-up, for fear of the grits running out before I got there! I’m also pretty sure they make their french toast out of cinnamon rolls; in any case, we drizzled frosting over it. But I digress.

{Tony, Steve the Groom & Tony’s brother Nick}

Friday evening was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, Saturday was the wedding and Sunday was a rafting trip in Jackson Hole. Steph and Steve wanted a small, immediate-family only wedding, and so we were among the lucky 14 (including kiddos) guests who got to be a part of their intimate weekend. This made the wedding so incredibly special, because it was focused solely on what a wedding should really be about: the love between the couple and the two families coming together to celebrate this new family they’re creating.

{Family rafting trip}

{Tony giving the Tetons a run for their money}

{More rafting}

{Seriously. How magnificent is this rafting trip?!}

The wedding wasn’t about using the most sought-after wedding photographer, or splurging on a couture gown, or inviting everyone you’ve ever met to witness your lavish party. In short, it was about the marriage and the love, not the industry that weddings have become. Everyone there had a special role in making the wedding happen: Steph’s mom made her gorgeous, one-of-a-kind dress. Tony’s dad officiated the ceremony. Steph and Steve wrote their own vows (which made Tony weep like a baby. I’m talking full sobs and body shakes from my manly man). Steph’s sister-in-law Nikki gave her a mani-pedi while I did her hair for the wedding. Instead of shelling out thousands on a photographer, they bought a really nice camera they’ll be able to use on their honeymoon and hired an incredibly talented local action-sports photographer off Craigslist, and Tony and I put together a shot list for the wedding photos. Steph’s brother-in-law videotaped the ceremony. And Steph and Steve, both hugely talented musicians, designed their own playlists for the ceremony and reception. The only non-family elements were the caterer and florist.

{Me & Tony’s nephew Beckett, becoming good friends after I let him eat my wedding cake}

{Tony & Beckett, playing in the sunset}

This made the wedding even more beautiful and special, because we all got to be a part of their day; I was overwhelmed by how happy and honored I felt, that Steph wanted me to do her hair, which will be in her wedding photos for the rest of her life. She never uttered the words “It has to be perfect,” and nothing was chosen in hopes of landing on Style Me Pretty or to be Pinterest-worthy; she chose the things she liked and moved on to the next thing on the list (I think it’s safe to say Steph never had nightmares about the wrong color flatware being delivered). She was utterly unflappable; when her niece decided she didn’t want to be a flower girl, Steph laughed it off and her nephew threw the rose petals instead. Every decision she made as a bride was based on what would make her, Steve and their families happiest, and because of that, it was one of the most unique, perfect, Style Me Pretty and Pinterest-worthy weddings I have ever been lucky enough to attend.

{The after-party in Jackson Hole}

{Dancing to a real-live country band}

{Celebratory cigars}

And because this was the tone Steph and Steve set, the weekend was a non-stop blast. We all piled into the van for the best fried chicken I’ve ever had at the rehearsal dinner, got muddy on hikes and became avid (amateur) wildlife paparazzi:

{Buffalo}

{Tony testing my new iPhone lens while photographing buffalo}

{ One of about 6 bald eagles we saw while rafting the Snake River}

{A baby snake crawled under our car while we were taking pictures of the buffalo}

{Moose on our hike!}

And the food was insane. We snuck away for the world-famous Rainey Creek square ice cream a few hours before the ceremony. We tried homemade huckleberry donut holes from the bakery down the road (which was run out of the owner’s home). And Tony had the best barbecue he’s ever tasted at Big Hole BBQ:

{Tony, after eating a full rack of ribs, an order of pulled pork AND a side of mac & cheese. He passed out as soon as we got home.}

And, perhaps most importantly, Steph and Steve got to actually enjoy their own wedding. They didn’t spend the night allotting 87 seconds per guest to be able to greet and thank each person for coming; they sat down with their family for dinner, danced and played with their nephews and niece. They didn’t have a wedding planner barking at them that they were behind schedule; they had me barking at them to climb up on a fence post and kiss for a photo op. They got to go dancing at a real-live cowboy bar with a real-live band, and all of their guests fit in one car, so the ride was as fun as the after-party.

{Steph & Steve, following instructions to climb a fence post for a photo op}

Our destination wedding weekend getaway was not only relaxing and rejuvenating; it was also a much-needed reminder of what a wedding is really about. As a bride who has recently been caught googling “cost to ship anemones from South Africa” at 3am, it was a lovely slap across the face to stop obsessing over the things that, at the end of the day, don’t matter. Steph was the most beautiful, happy, in-love bride and her wedding was gorgeous, relaxed, fun, hilarious, happy-tears inducing perfection.