The summer was the most amazing one I’ve seen over the last 25 years and all I can say is “Where in the world did it go, and how did it get so grey and cold?” With each passing year I keep thinking that it couldn’t have been a better wedding season only to realize that Stepping Stones Garden venue has been so blessed year in and out with our remarkable couples making them all the BEST year…just like this last summer was the best. The Pacific Northwest, specifically the Skagit Valley, most certainly showed why it is the perfect place to have a garden wedding. Perhaps there was a little extra work to keep the lawns their gorgeous green, but with watering and the sun the flowers, trees and gardens grew like our wildflowers making a perfect wedding venue. Yet, looking out the window today and it seems hard to believe it was that way.

As the garden weddings were starting to wind down our operations department went into full swing staring with attending the national wedding conference in Las Vegas, called the Wedding MBA, where we were immersed in all of the “new” and “up and coming” trends for the 2016 season and partied with The Knot and the Wedding Wire staff. We can’t wait to share the new ideas with our couples as they start to build their dream wedding. The grounds/beds are literally all being put to bed for winter. Bulbs are still being put in (in hopes of getting some later flowering) and finally others are now totally pulled out for winter.

New gardens are being created with some of my most favorite trees getting planted to add additional color and texture to the venue. And what good is an operations team that doesn’t add some creativity to the operation? Keegan and I had a shopping blast at antique/chic junk show in northern Idaho just as the fall colors were in full glory. We had to rent a U-Haul to get everything back to Stepping Stones Garden and can’t wait to start adding our finds around the wedding venue. The house on the estate, which is French County style and adds to the romantic setting, is also going through some operational uplifts as well as getting ready to open as a bed and breakfast. We will share more about that later.

So like the passing of fall into this winter season, we are feeling the many changes around the venue as we’re leaving the 2015 season and are preparing for 2016. Add an extra layer for warmth and enjoy …

Cheers,

Kendra and Keegan