Megan + Ali are two wonderful human beings who knew having a large stressful wedding was not their fantasy. They decided to have an intimate wedding in the Hudson Valley on a MONDAY (hellllllll yeah!) at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa in Milton, NY. Their guest list included their immediate families and a handful of their closest friends.

Megan was effortlessly beautiful in her floral wedding gown from Lambs Hill in Beacon, NY. Her natural beauty was on display (and her fabulous red hair) thanks to the talents of Desiree Leigh. Ali repurposed a suit he already owned (a blue suit he looked phenomenal in), and wore a tie that was a gift from Megan. Since it was December and chilly, Megan completed her look with some borrowed fur coats which added so much sass to her wedding day look.

It was raining non-stop on their December wedding day and they made the best of it like total champions! We explored the grounds of Buttermilk Falls, all while taking shelter under a clear umbrella. After their portraits we made our way to the barn where their intimate indoor ceremony was going to be held.

Their ceremony was heartfelt and beautiful. Ali’s nieces and nephews acted as the flower girls and ring bearers (using Poke-balls to hold their wedding rings), while Megan’s grandfather handed them their rings during their ceremony. (Megan mentioned that her grandfather thought the poke-balls were grenades. hahaha)

Megan is super close with her grandfather and it was so beautiful to witness their relationship, and his infectious humor. (Read details about their wedding day from Megan’s perspective to hear the hilarious story of their proposal.)

Read on for Megan + Ali’s perspective on why they chose to have an intimate wedding day, their priorities, and their favorite memories. Scroll down to see their wedding day vendors.

- How you decided on your wedding size, why smaller was right for you, etc.

“Once we began wedding planning, we realized our families had never met each other and that, because we grew up with different traditions, there were varying ideas about what a wedding should be. Many of our siblings and parents live all over the country, making the time we spend together rare but precious. We knew that if we had chosen a larger celebration, it would most likely be high-stress and nearly impossible to have meaningful moments with and between our families. So, we decided to keep it simple and celebrate our marriage with immediate family only over a nice (and Grandpa-approved) dinner.

However, as the wedding day came closer, we did feel odd not having any other important people in our lives present to witness our marriage. We were also convinced that some of our local friends would ‘coincidentally’ have dinner at Buttermilk that night, mainly because they told us so. The amazing and gracious team at Buttermilk worked with us to have a larger ceremony in the barn with some refreshments before having dinner with our family. It was perfect—still intimate and comfortable, but incredibly special to have the support of our dear friends.

*We also ended up having a mehndi celebration and nikkah ceremony the night before the wedding, so we were able to invite more friends and family to participate. Our parents made most of the food—my dad made pasta and meatballs, and Ali’s mom made biryani and rasmalai—so it was another way to mesh our families together, with delicious food!”

- How you decided to get married at Buttermilk

“Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa is a magical treasure in the Hudson Valley. I’ve been to the spa and restaurant many times over the years and have loved the grounds and gardens during each season. Plus, they have an animal sanctuary and a party of peacocks.

Ali loved Buttermilk too, but what ultimately led us to make our decision was that the private dining room at Henry’s (the restaurant onsite) was the perfect size for our immediate family, coupled with Buttermilk’s ability to host us on a Monday. Both of our schedules were a bit demanding at the time, and we knew a Monday would work best for us. It worked for Buttermilk, too, so it was a perfect fit!”

Couple have intimate moment with heads together on their rainy winter intimate wedding day at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

Bride getting ready in Pony’s Pad for her winter rainy micro wedding at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

ponys pad room at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

spiral staircase, wedding dress, and bride’s shoes at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride putting on her earrings for her winter micro wedding at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride and groom getting ready in Pony’s Pad for their intimate winter wedding at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride walking down spiral staircase in Pony’s Pad on her intimate winter wedding day at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

- How you met

“I was walking home on a Friday evening when I heard my name being called from a passing car. My friends Vanessa and Alyssa were heading out to listen to some music and asked me to come along. Vanessa’s new-ish boyfriend at the time, now husband, joined and invited his friend, Ali. Ali bought me a beer, we listened to a great jazz band, and years later, Vanessa officiated our wedding!”

- How you got engaged

“We had decided together that we wanted to be married, and I wasn’t particularly interested in a formal engagement, but Ali officially proposed when my parents were in town for my grandfather’s 95th birthday. My grandpa is my absolute favorite person—we’ve created a special bond, mainly over 30+ years of the multi-course dinners he’s treated me to (his mantra is that there is always room for dessert!). While we were at Grandpa’s birthday dinner, Ali asked me to marry him, and my parents, aunt, uncle, and, of course, my grandfather, for their blessing. It was such a simple, sweet, and thoughtful gesture.

My mom jokingly told my grandfather he had to pay for the wedding, so naturally, he responded by dramatically faking a heart attack, causing one of the restaurant staff to run over in a panic. Grandpa half-heartedly apologized, stating that he was 95 and deserved to have a little fun. No one could argue against him.”

wedding couple on spiral staircase at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

wedding and couple looking up at camera while standing on spiral staircase in Ponys Pad at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

wedding day first look at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

portraits of couple on their rainy winter micro wedding day at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

portrait of bride in the rain at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

timeless photographs of bride and groom on their rainy intimate wedding at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

groom’s arm with blue suit and watch at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride’s hand holding bouquet with henna on her hands, and wedding couple walking through the rain with a clear umbrella at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride and groom walking through the rain with a clear umbrella over the bridge at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa on their winter intimate wedding day

bride and groom walking in the rain at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa on their intimate winter wedding day

bride and groom walking in the rain with clear umbrella at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa on their winter intimate wedding day

ducks in the pond and wedding couple at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

wedding couple standing on the bridge in the rain at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

ducks in the pond on a rainy day at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride and groom standing on stone bridge in the rain at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

portraits of bride and groom in the rain at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa on their intimate winter wedding day

bride and groom standing in the rain in sculpture garden on their winter wedding day at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

- Any wedding planning/vendor decisions you hope to share

“Our wedding planning style was pretty chill—we wanted to keep things simple, family-oriented, and feel like ourselves. We tried to keep in mind that being married was our ultimate goal and made an effort to have fun with things along the way. We also didn’t want a long engagement, so I think giving ourselves a short amount of time to plan helped us focus on what we felt was most important.

We mainly chose vendors whom we either knew or friends had previously worked with—all of whom were great people, extremely talented, and we completely trusted to keep our day as calm and memorable as possible.”

groom walking down aisle for winter wedding ceremony in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

flower girls walking down the aisle for indoor winter wedding ceremony in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride walking down the aisle with her dad for her indoor winter wedding ceremony in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

intimate wedding ceremony in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride and groom first kiss during winter wedding ceremony in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

intimate winter wedding ceremony in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride and groom just married in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride and groom just married walking down the aisle with flower petal toss during intimate winter wedding ceremony at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

- How you chose your dress, suit, shoes, hair/make up, anything you want to share about your wedding looks and inspiration!

“We tried to keep our wedding looks and inspiration simple and true to ourselves as well. Ali decided to wear a suit he bought for a friend’s wedding and a tie I had previously bought him because he really liked them. I LOVE flowers, so my dress felt like it was made for me, and it was so comfortable too. My shoes were picked for the pop of color and ‘something blue.’ A friend of mine thought I needed a bit of winter glam (she was right) and lent me the coat. I essentially kept adding things until I felt like I was the ultimate bridal version of myself.”

bride with her grandfather in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride getting her dress bustled in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

wedding ceremony flowers and favors in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

champagne for toasts at intimate wedding at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride cries while sister gives speech in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

groom’s brother gives speech in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

guests enjoy champagne and hang out during cocktail hour for intimate winter wedding in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

guests enjoy cocktail hour during intimate winter wedding in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

flower girl shows bride flower petals in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride spinning in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

bride posing with bouquet in the barn at Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa

- Your favorite memories from the day, and anything else you wish to include.

“Our favorite memories from our wedding all include our family coming together. Ali’s brothers and nephews are all (perhaps embarrassingly) into Pokémon, so we had his nephews carry our rings in Poke Balls, which they handed to my grandfather, who had no idea what they were—thought they were grenades, actually. Our nieces were so excited to help me walk down the aisle as flower girls. Our absolute favorite memory was after the ceremony, when things were calming down, our one-and-a-half-year-old niece kept picking the flower petals up off the floor and bringing them to my grandfather. It was just the absolute sweetest thing to witness the youngest member of Ali’s family and the oldest of mine have such a special moment together. It was a wonderful reminder and affirmation of why we made the decision to have a small wedding, and it truly made us feel that we were exactly where we were supposed to be.”