Surprise Intimate Wedding at Home | Reston, VA | Julia and Steve

After 16 years together, Julia and Steve decided to get married. But rather than going the traditional route, they wanted to surprise their kids with a small wedding at home! The surprise plans started a few weeks before the wedding when we went to the State Arboretum of Virginia to take engagement photos. They wanted some nice pictures to include on a Christmas card that would be used to announce their marriage!

On the wedding day, Julia and Steve’s kids though that they were coming over for a family Christmas celebration. They expected to exchange gifts and then head out to dinner and a show at the Kennedy Center. So when the doorbell rang, and I walked in with Reverend Mary Stone (who had officiated one of the kid’s weddings earlier in the year), there was some definite confusion.

Julia had mysteriously disappeared, and Steve was left in the kitchen with the kids. Steve started some hilarious commentary:

“Hmm, I wonder why Mary’s here?”

“Is someone getting married? Are you getting married?”

“Who could possibly be getting married today?”

And then Julia walked back into the kitchen wearing a white dress! Everyone quickly connected the dots and finally understood what was going on! Steve also reassured everyone that they were still getting dinner and a show haha, it was just going to happen after the wedding.

The ceremony took place in their living room in front of the Christmas tree. The couch was perfectly sized to fit all of the kids, and Bailey the granddog happily watched the wedding too. The ceremony was so sweet, highlighting some favorite memories from their relationship - motorcycle rides on Skyline Drive, celebrating every monthly anniversary when they first started dating, and their first trips taken together. Julia and Steve also took a moment during their ceremony to say a few words directly to their kids, which definitely brought on some tears!

After the ceremony came the champagne!

Steve and Julia also had a few wedding-related gifts for everyone, including a framed engagement picture and the Christmas card they had just mailed out to family and friends announcing their marriage.

And they also let everyone know that a limo would actually be picking them up to bring them to dinner and the Kennedy Center! One of their kids joked: “Oh my gosh, are you going to stop lying to us now?!” Haha! But it was easy to see that everyone was so excited for their parents to make it official, and finally be able to call each other husband and wife.