Lauren Herman, daughter of Tom and Kellie Herman of Hydesville, and Wesley Stroud, son of Vicki and Doyle Stroud of Red Bluff, were wed on Oct. 6, 2007, outside of Red Bluff, Calif. The couple live in a small town in the San Joaquin Valley where Lauren is a high school agriculture teacher and Wes is an environmental planner for Caltrans. After their wedding, they flew to Maui, Hawaii, for six days where they enjoyed the outdoors and each other.

The Setting:
The wedding was outdoors on a beautiful manicured lawn on property that overlooked rolling hills of oak trees. The colors were deep shades of purple, burgundy, orange, green and yellow, with tons of glittered pumpkins that sparkled in the sunlight. The aisle was lined with white pumpkins and the wedding site was lined with poles wrapped in satin ribbon that blew in the wind.

The flowers:
The flowers were done by the bride’s best friend, Sarah Herdell. The flowers used in the arrangements were alstroemeria, mini calla lily, lady’s mantle, scented geranium, tulip, dahlia, hanging amaranthus, hydrangea, hypericum berries, leucadendron, olive branches, pittosporum (variegated and California), salal (lemon-leaf), seeded eucalyptus. There were four, two-foot wreaths made from solid baby’s breath hanging on pillars at the aisle entrance and street signs leading to the wedding site. The bridesmaids carried single cinnamon calla lilies down the aisle, which were collected and returned to the bride for her to carry down the aisle.

The food:
The bride and groom wanted normal, family cooked comfort food at their wedding, so for dinner, family and friends barbecued tri-tip and chicken and, of course, the bride’s favorite family recipe of barbecue sauce. The main dish was accompanied by catered salad, beans, potatoes and bread. The catering service also made the couple’s favorite desserts in place of a wedding cake, which were brownies, chocolate chip cookies and rice crispy treats.

The photographer:
Joel Flory Photography, out of San Francisco, went above and beyond the couple’s expectations of shooting the perfect pictures of their wedding day. Joel and his wife, Cara, worked wonderfully together to capture every special moment of the day. They set up a slide show the night of the reception for guests and the couple to look at pictures that had been taken throughout the day. The day after the wedding, a Web page was set up for the couple to give out to friends and family for immediate viewing of the wedding.

Something else:
Being music lovers, the wedding had a particular and unique soundtrack. The wedding party walked down the aisle to music by Izzy, Seal and Norah Jones, and the bride walked down the aisle to an Amy Winehouse rendition of “Will you Still Love me Tomorrow.” One of the couple’s dear friends, Berel Alexander, sang an acoustic song during the ceremony and the wedding party danced back down the aisle to “The Way I Are” by Timberland. The couple’s first dance was to Ottis Redding’s, “That’s How Strong My Love Is.” Odyssey Entertainment Productions, out of Redding, DJed the reception with multiple reggae songs sung by the couple’s great friend, Berel Alexander.