For their wedding, Maxima and Jason wanted it to be a family affair—starting with the night of the proposal, when Jason read a permission letter he’d written to Maxima’s mother and brothers and translated to Spanish—and culminating eight months later at Jason’s aunt’s home for their wedding. “It was more of a celebration of bringing everybody together…for a special occasion,” Jason explains. “It was almost a large family reunion with a wedding thrown in.”
“It was more of a celebration of bringing everybody together…for a special occasion,” Jason says. ” It was almost a large family reunion with a wedding thrown in.”
Jason says they both decided that they didn’t want a church wedding, so they held both the ceremony and reception in his aunt’s back yard, which runs along the South Upper Truckee River. “It turned out to be the perfect day,” he recollects. “We couldn’t have asked for anything more regarding weather, everyone who showed up, the food, the DJ, the flowers and the cake—everything was just perfect.”
For their traditional ceremony, Jason says that both he and Maxima had a number of their family members involved. Three of Jason’s nephews accompanied him down the aisle—with one as the ring bearer—while Maxima’s niece was her flower girl. And it was Jason’s aunt who conducted the ceremony. Jason says that one of the most special moments for Maxima was having her two older brothers walk her down the aisle. She had gotten the idea from an older family photo that showed one of her aunts being walked down the aisle by her two brothers. “As soon as she saw that picture, she wanted the same thing,” Jason says. The couple even took the family celebration a step further by announcing that Maxima’s aunt and uncle from Utah would be celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2014 and surprised them with a special dance.
And the kids certainly weren’t left out. The couple had about 20 children attend the wedding, and kept them (along with a lot of the adults!) occupied with Hula-hoops, a photo booth with lots of dress-up accessories, and a giant stuffed teddy bear for them to climb on. Jason says that attendees of all ages enjoyed walking along the riverbank and indulging in red velvet, funfetti, cookies ‘n cream and strawberries and champagne cupcakes. “It was fun just watching everybody enjoy themselves,” Jason says.
For those planning their own wedding, Jason advises getting lots of sleep, having good communication and staying on budget. “And then when it comes down to it, just have fun on the day of the wedding—enjoy the moment because it definitely [goes] by quickly.”
—Corrie Pelc
