Welcome! We are looking forward to celebrating with you.

We met through Tinder, an online social dating site. Both of us had been on the site for a few months, had met some interesting dates, but nothing that really stood out. Our first date was on August 14, 2016 at Buffalo Bill's Brewery in Hayward, California. (I'm guessing none of you are shocked it took place at a brewery, right?) We connected right away - had great conversations and definitely clicked. The rest is history....

Picture this. It is a warm August evening after work. We are enjoying a malted beverage of some sort outside on the deck. Randall seemed slightly off, like he had something on his mind. He tells me that today is his maternal grandmother's birthday. He starts to tell me this story of when she was alive, she asked him often if he was happy with his life and current relationship. On this particular occasion, he said he responded yes, but immediately felt guilty for not being completely honest with her. He just wanted her to not worry about him. Randall then says if she was alive today, he would tell her the absolute truth, that he met a woman that makes him so happy, that he is happy with his life. And that's when he asked me to marry him.

So Why a Goat Farm in Pescadero? Last year, I found myself with four months off from work, due to my position being eliminated as part of a company acquisition. I told myself this was my time to do something different with my new-found free time. So, I signed up for an intensive four day cheese monger class with the San Francisco Cheese School. The class was incredible; we tasted 45 different cheeses, learned different styles and regions for cheese and went on a field trip to see cheesemaking at the source. So what does all of this have to do with the wedding venue? The fieldtrip mentioned was to Harley Farms in Pescadero. We spent time with the over 100 inquisitive members of the goat herd, admired the guard llamas from afar, and cuddled with the baby goats. I fell in love with the English garden setting, the natural beauty of the area. From there we went on to the cheesemaking area, and learned the basics of what it takes to make chevre (goat cheese.) We sampled fresh goat cheese, still warm from the process. I was utterly (pun intended) enthralled with this magical place that was so different from my own experience working for a start up tech company. We learned about the farm to table dinners they offer to the community every summer. When I returned that day, I told Randall we definitely needed to visit Harley Farms again - and so we did. We toured the 110 year old barn where wedding receptions are usually held. We saw the Secret Garden where many ceremonies are held each year. We both loved it. I think you'll enjoy your time at Harley Farms - this is far from a traditional wedding. Within a few miles from the Pacific Ocean, Pescadero is a very small town, almost a step back in time.

For our ceremony, we decided to incorporate various parts of our individual lives and backgrounds. Randall is from the Jueneno tribe of American Indians in Southern California, as well as Mexican heritage. I am Scottish, Irish, Finnish and German. We wanted to combine some of our traditions in the ceremony. Our shaman spiritual leader, Consuelo Inez, will start the ceremony with some native American drumming. In addition, we'll have several musicians (including Ryan Jung on cello) as part of the ceremony music. The handfasting will include members of our family, as a recognition of one united family. What is a Handfasting? Dating back to ancient Celtic times, hand-fasting was the official wedding of the ancient Celts. Dating back far beyond 7000 B.C., two people who chose to be married were brought together, often on a feast day such as Beltane. With arms extended, they clasped hands and a braided chord was wrapped and tied around their hands, the Druid priest proclaiming the two persons are now engaged. This period of engagement would typically run the length of a year, during which the couple were encouraged to cohabitate together. After the period of a year was over, the engaged couple would return to the priest and declare their intent to be married. If they decided they were not a good match, the couple were allowed to dissolve their hand-fast and be free to choose another suitor and bride. Hand-fasting became a staple of culture where all Celtic people resided, up through the introduction of Christianity. More often than not, the hand-fasting was incorporated into the Christian marriage ceremony itself, and remained as such for many years. (Credit: www.waterlilyweddings.com)