Meghan and Anthony at Perona Farms

Posted on November 15, 2017 by Allison Dupree

How did you meet? We met at a party in Staten Island when we were about 16, I was wearing a necklace made out of noodles (such an eclectic teen, I know) that my sister made me. Anthony said “I need that necklace!” so he tricked me with a kiss and stole it! Little did I know, almost 10 years later we would run into each other at a Cinco de Mayo party in a neighborhood bar. He pointed me out and said “noodle necklace” Unfortunately for him, I was moving away to Australia (I planned on permanently) in 3 months! So we hung out here and there, and in September I moved across the world! A few months into my stay Anthony asked me if we could be pen pals. So I wrote him a letter…and he never wrote back. So it went forgotten, and I enjoyed the rest of my adventure in Australia. I stayed for about a year, until distance became a bit of a problem (missed my family!), but I will never forget the friends made and adventures I experienced! It is truly a beautiful place. When I returned home, we kind of picked up where we left off and the rest is history. Anthony asked me out by saying “I found the letter that I wrote to you, I just never sent it…so here it is”. It was a cheesy letter but at the end it said “Check yes or No” How did you get engaged? I always said to Anthony that if we ever did get engaged, I wouldn’t want a public display. I really wanted something intimate with family around. So, Anthony told me to invite our families over for a Father’s Day BBQ. Me being as oblivious as I am thought it was my idea, planned the whole thing and had everyone come over. When they got there, they devised a plan for me to go pick up his brother from the train station so that they could get the house ready. Anthony and I have this ongoing joke, that the dog has my last name, because once Anthony took Remington to the vet and asked to change his last name to Trimarco but they wouldn’t let him. So, when I walked into the backyard, Anthony was saying the dog made a mess, he got into the garbage (there were papers all over the floor). Me still oblivious was like “what are these?” They were actually papers to get the dogs named changed, just like mine would be changing as well…get it? And then he was on one knee! It was so personal and cute. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way! Details of your day: Our wedding was far from a perfect wedding day, but it was ours and we loved it. It poured on our day, so we moved it inside. The first look was supposed to be in a beautiful open field but we ended up in the cute little greenhouse on the Perona Farms property. Which is ironic because I do not have a green thumb. The power went out in our hotel room, and the fire alarm went off as well (bridesmaids and steamers)! But nothing was going to stop me from marrying Anthony. The inspiration behind the day was rustic romantic. I didn’t want to be over the top with the rustic touches but Anthony is a hunter, so I really wanted to incorporate antlers, and deer into the day. So I went with beautiful white, and beige floral centerpieces with lots of greenery to balance out some of the dark woods I used for signage. I made and designed everything on my own, from the 8ft seating chart that I built and assembled in 100 degree weather, to the signage, to the invitations! Why did you choose your venue? We had actually been to Perona Farms for a wedding about 2 years ago and we loved everything about it. The barn is beautiful and different. What was your cake flavor? Our cake was a naked cake with cannoli filling. We have so many Italians in our family that we knew we couldn’t go wrong. Why was your gown “the one?” I chose my dress on the first day of looking for my dress. We went to 2 stores, and nothing felt “right” Until, I put this dress on and felt beautiful. My words were something like “I know Anthony will love this!” Favorite moment of the day? My favorite moment was our portraits together. It was so nice to be able to spend a few hours with just him and I laughing and joking around. It helped me stop and take in the day a bit more and appreciate the real reason we were both there. One detail your couldn’t live without? Music! I was looking forward to dancing the night away with my family and friends for the months leading up to my wedding. It was such a blast. Did anything go wrong? HA! It was one thing after the other! No-ones fault of course, just the nature of the day. Our power went out in our hotel room as we were all getting hair and makeup done. Then the smoke alarm went off because of the steamers, and it was going off for about 20 minutes! Talk about a headache. Then, once we got to the venue, our parents got left without a trolly to transport them in the pouring rain! So photos were delayed. Honestly, I wasn’t even really upset. Anything can happen on a crazy day like this and I think all of it happened because someone knew we would be able to handle it! First dance song? Anthony loves Johnny Cash. I knew our first song would be one of his, but it had to be the right song. So we chose “Rose of My Heart”. Probably the perfect song to explain our love for each other. Sweet and Simple. Advice for other brides? Don’t stress the things you can’t control! WEATHER…fire alarms! lol Everything works out just fine in the end and it makes the day more memorable! Where did you go on your honeymoon? We rented a villa on the side of a mountain in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. It was beautiful. Everyday we woke up and would make some coffee and sit out on our porch swing…the view was gorgeous. We would island hop, and we rented a jeep and would drive around the island to different beaches, and bars, we had the time of our lives.