Amanda & Kevin's Wedding, May 2, 2015 | Metro DC DJs & Entertainment

June 09, 2015 In Wedding Recap / No Comments

Wedding shows can be a sea of uncertainty with the hope of finding what you’re looking for. And Amanda did just that when she came to Southern Maryland’s Bridal Extravaganza in the fall of 2014 looking for a DJ for her wedding at the gorgeous Weatherly Farm in Newberg, Maryland. While she wasn’t sure at the time, whether or not her and her fiance Kevin would need a DJ, she stopped by our booth to get some information.

There were several guests taking pictures of the sunset, a beautiful sunset it was.

The meeting with Amanda was a typical informational session. She knew she wanted a DJ, but who to choose. With a couple of other DJs at the show, she had a choice to make. She approached our table, filled out an entry form to win a $50 Visa Gift Card, and handed it to DJ Jarrod. Upon looking at the name, came a question that immediately took it from bride looking for a DJ, to bride knowing someone who knows the DJ.

“Are you related to Brandon and Brittany Hoole?” said Jarrod.

As it turns out, Jarrod had announced for one of Amanda’s cousins who played hockey, and knew the other cousin from working with the Washington Capitals Red Rockers. The meeting definitely went from being a meeting, to talking about family.

A few days after the meeting at the Capital Clubhouse in Waldorf, Maryland, Amanda sent an e-mail through the web site, hoping we still had the date held. Honestly, when we saw when her wedding was, we held the date for her.

The happy couple just being introduced. Photo courtesy Amanda & Kevin Pilkerton.

It took about three weeks to work out a time to meet between Kevin’s work schedule and a hectic October & November calendar. Our meeting started out well as we had a chance to meet Kevin for the first time, and find out that they both had large families who were going to be coming together for a large gathering. A family so large, that Christmas celebrations last more than just Christmas Day!

Throughout the planning process, Amanda & Kevin did a great job of keeping all the details in place. Not even a minor issue with a hot water heater could keep them down!

As the big day got closer, Amanda found the design she wanted on her gobo which would be projected onto the tent above their sweetheart table. We also finalized some smaller details as well during a meeting at National Harbor in Maryland. We talked about musical tastes and got an idea of their itinerary for the day which would start at Weatherly Farm, then a limousine ride to the church for the wedding, then everyone coming back en masse to Weatherly for the reception.

The moon bounce, yes a moon bounce, was added for the kids. The kids LOVED it, as did the bride and groom who wound up jumping with the kids later in the day.

Amanda & Kevin’s choices were wonderful. Because of the layout of Weatherly Farm, there is an area between the house and the tent that was used for a bounce house and inflatable slide for the kids, portable restroom trailers, a crab house where food was served, and a large area overlooking the Potomac River.

It truly is an amazing place, very majestic with a lot of great views, we had a hard time choosing the featured photo for this post! We placed a speaker on the patio of the house to project sound over the areas that most of the guests would be so they didn’t miss any of the important events. To prevent a long cord run, we even surprised the owners of Weatherly by connecting via wireless connection. This way, the guests who were enjoying hors d’oeuvres, the slide, or playing cornhole all knew what was happening, while the main sound system was safely tucked away in the large tent near the dance floor.

The sweetheart table.

As guests began to arrive, the newly married Pilkerton’s made their way around the property to take pictures on the small beach, trees, and all other nooks and crannies that made for beautiful pictures. One of the most beautiful would be a sunset picture on the dock, but that took place later in the day as the reception started in the mid afternoon.

The introductions were staged at the house and took place at the side of the tent walking in to the sweetheart table. After the introductions of the grandparents and parents, the bridal party were introduced with the first dance to follow. The song, Kenny Chesney’s “You Had Me From Hello”. After the first dance, it was time for the new Mr. & Mrs. Pilkerton to take a seat and relax for the first time in a while as they heard from Best Man Matt and Maid of Honor Breann.

COOKIES!

Then came the funny part of the reception. Yes, typically you learn something funny from the toasts, however the mother of the groom was asked to give the blessing prior to dinner. As she began the blessing, she started to get choked up. Weddings are a time of love and happiness, and these were tears of joy coming out as you could see she was happy for the newlyweds.

As dinner was served by Rita B. Catering, the guests were able to mingle again, play games and the kids further enjoyed the bounce house. The cookie bar that was set-up was, well, attacked fairly well during cocktail hour that not much remained. But the food served to the guests was wonderful, including a macaroni salad with shrimp that was oh, sooo good.

The joining of two families

After dinner, came the father/daughter and mother/son dances. Amanda danced with her father Thomas to Craig Campbell’s “When She Grows Up” and Kevin with his mother Tammy to “It’s Your Song” by Garth Brooks. After this dance, Amanda wanted to dance with her Grandfather Campbell to “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” by Elton John. After her grandmother stepped in, it was time for Grandpa Cliff to step up to the dance floor and he was all smiles throughout the dance. All couples were then invited to the dance floor which opened to all the guests. Now, the wedding reception turned into a huge family party with dancing in the tent, kids running and playing games, adults playing games and a lot of fun.

Amanda even made it a point to get all the pictures she wanted, and when he got the final picture, she decided that her and Kevin were going to share their first bounce as husband and wife as they jumped into the bounce house to “Jump Around”. They then shared a slide down the inflatable slide and continued to party to a wide range of music from Top 40, to oldies, Motown, Funk, Classic Rock, Southern Rock, Country and pretty much everything in between. A very eclectic playlist.

Mason jars for the guests to drink from. What a beautiful personal touch.

The guests had a very unique and very functional wedding favor, colored Mason jars in green and blue to go along with the aquatic, waterfront motif. These Mason jars allowed the guests to drink their beverage of choice and take home a unique gift from the bride and groom. They also had customized lip balm for all the guests to apply as needed and take home with them because as Amanda says, “you can never have too much lip balm.”

As the day turned to night, boats on the Potomac swung by to check out the fun the guests were having. They didn’t crash the wedding, but there’s always that thought when you’re on the waterfront in Maryland.

Weatherly Farm is a fantastic venue that’s owned by the family that lives on site. They do a wonderful job making everyone feel at home, and how can you beat that view. They have a policy of one event on the weekend so the bride and groom can take their time setting up and breaking down to allow them to get all the details right.

Uplights, in the wedding’s colors, were placed on the deck to enhance the look of the house. This was the first time this had ever been done at this facility.

Denise knows what she’s doing and has everything running smoothly. She was happy to see the addition of uplights to their back deck and along with her husband, are very accommodating to requests from the bride & groom.

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