February 10, 2024
It's no secret that horses have been a significant part of my life for a very long time. In fact, if you can believe it, horses have been a part of my life for longer than Drew and I have been together - so it was only fitting that horses were somehow involved in one of the best days of my life.
All it took to have my horse at my wedding was a venue that accepted horses, two incredible friends, and a cooperative horse. Lucky for me, I had all of those things!
Sophie is pretty great at trailering solo, and she's used to going to new places for all sorts of activities, so this was just another day in her week. As long as cookies are involved somewhere, she's down for most things.
The venue we had picked out was the Farmington Polo Club, which already had horses on site for polo matches, plus a riding program, so I figured it wouldn't be too many additional phone calls to get approval to have a horse on site. While Drew and I were touring the facility before we had officially signed any paperwork, I had mentioned that I was an equestrian, and the facilities manager suggested that I could have some photos in and around the barn - and it didn't take me more than a minute to start scheming on making wedding photos with my horse a reality. The barn manager was wonderfully accommodating, and Sophie had access to a stall to hang out in after pictures and while my friends were enjoying the party.
I also am very blessed to have two incredible friends who not only trailered Sophie to the venue, but also bathed and braided her to look her absolute best for photos. They were the ones who had to figure out where to go with the trailer, find the stall, and get her organized all without my direction as it was my wedding day and I was not readily available at all. They did all of that, made it to the ceremony, and put finishing touches on the spotted unicorn while in their dresses and heels. Bella & Darby if you're reading this, you already know, but ily <3
Sophie was absolutely stunning, and it is so special to me to have these memories captured. It sounds wicked cheesy, but it really was magical to have her present on that day. I've been telling everyone that I very astutely planned to have my horse present at my wedding, but couldn't possibly get organized enough to have my dog there - sorry to Wally and all of his fans, that one is on me LOL.
Aside from having the physical horse present, there were other nods to horses present at the reception. They were of course mentioned in speeches and seen in photos, but I also was fortunate to have grabbed a bunch of used horseshoes from my farrier at the time to use as a part of the centerpiece decor. My amazing mom cleaned and spray painted the shoes gold and silver, and helped in the design of the table decorations. They came out perfectly!
I am so very grateful to all who made it possible for this to happen. I love Sophie so much, and having her there on that day is something I will hold close to my heart forever <3 All photos were taken by the incredible Villetto Photography.
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