The Hunt Continues....

After resting and researching, we headed out to check out some more venues. Truth be told, we probably looked at way more than six. I suppressed the thought of some of them. So these are the three it boiled down to.

Are you my wedding venue? source

#4: Snipes Farm: This place is not super well known in our town, but it IS known among the indie kids. I definitely do not consider myself to be an "indie kid" but I am friends with some of them! They won't let me in their club because I wear too much pink (and other bright colors), have blonde hair, listen to pop music and country, and think those fake mustaches on a stick are absolutely ridiculous.* I know. My one reader probably just left. I've totally lost any audience I ever had.

OK, so Snipes Farm was local, affordable (one of the least expensive sites we found), and "cool." We went to check it out in person, and they had this great tree to have the ceremony under:

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and this cool "barn" to have the reception in:

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But...well, Mr. PB thought it was a bit too country. I wasn't a huge fan of the concrete floors in the barn. While I thought it had potential, Mr. PB was not feeling it - and lord knows I want him comfortable and happy on the wedding day! So, this was also just NOT RIGHT.

Next! #5: The Barn at Valhalla. Yes, Viking Heaven. It's owned by a guy named Duffy, and he has a crazy website here that lists a lot of don'ts, such as:

It is not cool for your guests to be honking the horns of their cars at 11:59PM.

Limit all sexual activities to a room upstairs if you have chosen to rent the upstairs. Please dispose of any “evidence of love making” rather than leaving “it” on the floor.

Obviously, we had to check this place out!

The Barn at Night


And during the day...


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There are beautiful wood walkways, a lake, an gigantic stone outdoor fireplace, and a gazebo.

And it was in our price range! My concerns were that the inside of the actual barn was kind of small, so the reception would be an indoor and outdoor reception. How does this work? How do people know when we are dancing? Am I going to need a bullhorn to alert them that we are cutting the cake? Are all the boys going to be in the gazebo while the girls are tearing it up on the dance floor in the barn? And if so, is that a problem????

I have some anxiety, can you tell?

We had one more place to check out, and I was really excited about it! Why? Because one of the owners of The Inn at Bingham School was French. Ok, he was actually from Texas, but he spoke French. And I love anything French!!!

pretty huh? So, this is a historic site. It was once a Boarding School for young men but now is a beautiful bed and breakfast. The grounds are lovely, the rooms are luxurious and amazing, and it felt perfect for a beautiful, outdoor, under the trees wedding with a tented reception. Ahhhhhh. AND...bonus! There were several friendly cats that hung out on the property! What was the problem then? Well, I had no problem...except for the Confederate memorabilia in the Inn (hey, we live in NC and history is history...but still). And then there was the mention of the slave quarters and the fact that some of the larger stones on the property might have been slaves' gravestones. While this is not uncommon in the South, again...still not giving me good juju. Plus, Mr. PB did NOT like the place, and both our mothers thought it seemed like just a "nice yard." I think they were totally freaked about us not getting married in a church or another physical structure. Also, this place was about twice as much as Snipes Farm and Valhalla. Soooooooo, what'd we pick? Well, if you've been reading along you'll already know, but those of you who are new and were able to keep reading after that indie mustache dig should be rewarded. You will be excited to know that we chose...the... Barn at Valhalla! Awesome huh? We're gonna have lots of fun decorating the many different areas of this venue.

How many venues did you have to look at before finding the one? Did the venue you chose have a list of Dos and Dont's as hilarious as mine?

*If you want mustaches on a stick at your wedding, more power to you, and I'm sure the pics will be awesome!*