The Search

So, as we spent Saturday evening with our friends Wade and Elizabeth, Elizabeth showed me her blog and easily convinced me to start my own. Having a few friends with them, it is always fun to read what your loved ones are up to. I also thought this would be a great way to share my love of cooking, eating, new adventures in mine and David's life and the planning of our wedding.

So here it is, the search for a perfect wedding venue. This wedding is much anticipated as David and I have been dating close to six years! I have always looked for wedding venues and was excited to actually look at them in person, and with a ring on my finger. We started Saturday morning with a trip up to Cubanisamo Vineyards and it was a "no". It was much too small and didn't offer tables or chairs. Next we went to Deepwood Estates in Salem. I fell in love with this beautiful historic house and surrounding gardens. We walked around for a long time and decided it was a contender. Next we drove out to Canby to look at Postlewait's Country Wedding- basically it is a farm. It was very pretty but expensive; more than Deepwood and I couldn't help but compare. Next we drove out to Hillsboro to look at the McMenamin's Cornelius Pass Roadhouse. They have a beautiful wedding grove and old octagonal barn for the reception, but again it is kinda spendy. Well, if that wasn't enough, we continued our driving and search on Sunday after taking David's mom out for breakfast. We went to the Settlemier House in Woodburn which was a close second to Deepwood, due to the cheap price and pretty grounds. Then we drove out to the Wooden Shoe Farm (where the tulip festival is held). The garden here was gorgeous but expensive- and again wasn't quite as high as Deepwood. We were exhausted after the adventurous weekend. Our decision will be posted soon, if it all works out. Here are some pictures that we took from the big search.

Here is Deepwood Estate in Salem:

This is the garden area where we would hold the ceremony, that's me standing where we would actually be standing

This is the tennis court that will be covered with a huge white tent for the reception.

Here are some other pictures from the Settlemier house in Woodburn and the Wooden Shoe Farm. We were lucky to find a few tulips in bloom: