Hopefully, by the time your rehearsal dinner arrives, all of the wedding details have been finalized and you can start enjoying the magical moments leading up to your wedding! I was so excited to plan this dinner party because I knew the exact location where we wanted to have it. We have a gorgeous restaurant near us where we would often go on dates (I loved having most of the choices we made involving our wedding be very personal to us) that has a beautiful outdoor garden area with twinkle lights and just a magical ambiance. It set the tone for the Midsummer Night’s Dream vibes in store for our wedding the next day, so for us, choosing a venue was easy. I would suggest choosing something that is meaningful to you as a couple or a place that is special to your family because it really does just make everything feel more intimate.

We invited our immediate family and the entire wedding party as well as anyone else involved in the wedding; readers, ushers, etc... First, we of course had the rehearsal at the church, which was so much fun. We were married by our Deacon and had grown close to him from our many meetings in the months leading up to our wedding. I really enjoyed being married in the church and all of the extra guidance they offered. Rehearsing for the actual wedding made me SO excited for the next day, so I was thrilled to have a fun party to go to right after to keep the magic flowing.

Having our event at a restaurant obviously took the stress out of planning because they had an amazing menu and provided all of the table settings and even a lot of the decor (tablecloths, candles, personalized menus, etc…). We chose for our 3-course plated menu a mixed greens salad followed by a choice of either chicken parmesan (with spaghetti, a special request of the bride, AKA “Spaghetti Jenny”) and zucchini or short ribs with mashed potatoes and green beans. Rolls with butter were also served. For dessert, there was a choice of a chocolate lava cake or creme brulee. The food was amazing and it felt so magical to be under the twinkle lights with beautiful weather (there was a threat of rain earlier in the day, so we got very lucky!)

Something that was important to me when planning our rehearsal dinner was adding personal touches to let everyone involved in our wedding know how special they are to us. For my bridesmaids, I gave them each a framed photo of the two of us from fun times we had shared along with their jewelry for the wedding. I also wrote them each a card about how special their friendship is to me and placed these items at their place setting. I gave my sister, my maid of honor, a different frame, and fancier jewelry so she would stand out. My brother was not a groomsman because he had the special job of walking my mom down the aisle, so I gave him a special framed photo as well. For the groomsmen, my husband chose customized cigar boxes with some cigars and a mini bottle of their favorite liquor along with a card.

We also wrote our parents cards thanking them for all of their help with the wedding and letting them know how much we love them. I gave my parents a framed photo of them from their wedding day that was engraved with “Thank you for showing us what true love looks like.” My mom was so surprised and cried happy tears, it was such a special moment. I also gave my (future) mother-in-law a framed photo of the two of us that said “Thank you for raising the man of my dreams” along with a card. It was important for us to make sure everyone knew how much we appreciated all of the love they were surrounding us with and send it right back to them. It made the night extra special for everyone.

It’s surreal during these monumental moments of life because you’re just living another day, but you know in your heart that you are making memories that you will cherish forever. I’m so thankful for the photos that were taken of these events so we can show them to our kids and help us remember the magic. I loved adding the special touches at each place setting for our family and wedding party so that they had a special takeaway from our special day as well.

I think it’s always worth the extra effort to make people feel special and loved. We had an amazing night and knew the magic was just getting started. I wish we could do it all over again! If you are planning your own rehearsal dinner, my best advice is to make it as personal as possible, celebrate your love, and stay present to really soak in these special moments... And don’t stay up too late, you need your beauty rest :)