Photo: Brian Dorsey / Brian Dorsey Studios
Katie Couric’s daughterEllie Monahansaid “I do” with a bang!
Ellie, 29, tied the knot with Mark Dobrosky on July 4 at Cedar Lakes Estate in Port Jervis, New York.
Looking back ather wedding, she exclusively tells PEOPLE that between the delicious food, unforgettable music and heartfelt speeches from family members, there are “too many” special moments to count.
Thewedding weekendkicked off with what Ellie calls a “Field Day,” where guests separated into teams of eight and to take part in classic outdoor games.
“It was just good, dorky, clean fun and a great icebreaker for the weekend since we really mixed up the teams across friend groups and age ranges,” says Ellie, who describes the friendly competition as an “absolute blast.”
Brian Dorsey / Brian Dorsey Studios
Guests spent their Saturday tossing water balloons and playing capture the flag before trading their gear for neon as part of the night’s 80’s-themed festivities.
“Everyone brought their A-Game costume-wise and really committed to the theme,” Ellie recalls. “We had multiple Billy Idols, Richard Simmons, Run-DMC members, Cyndi Laupers. It was another great way to kick off the weekend since everyone looked so silly and the costumes were great conversation starters.”
After dinner, guests showed off their dance moves with music accompaniment courtesy of ’80s tribute band Rubix Kube. With songs like “Come On Eileen” and “Video Killed the Radio Star” blasting all night, “Everyone was singing at the top of their lungs and dancing like crazy,” Ellie says.
The moment, Ellie says, was “so significant to our family because my late father Jay Monahan was a huge fan of their music when it was featured in Ken Burns' PBS documentary series on the Civil War.”
“I walked down the aisle to ‘Ashokan Farewell,’ which was incredibly emotional for me,” she says.
At the cocktail hour, guests enjoyed farm-to-table bites like mini lobster rolls, zucchini fritters and ricotta toasts and grazed from a charcuterie board and sushi bar.
“The cake and food were the easiest parts of my planning process because my venue, Cedar Lakes Estate, makes some of the best food I’ve ever had,” says Ellie of her menu choice, which she chose to highlight the seasonal availability of local ingredients. “The hardest part was making our selections because everything is delicious.”
For dinner at the reception, guests were served roast chicken, halibut, broccolini, mashed potatoes and salad, family-style. The meal ended with salted brownie bites, mini chocolate chip cookies and the wedding cake, which was vanilla flavored with vanilla buttercream and a raspberry, strawberry, and blueberry filling.
True to nature, the wedding also had hiccups, according to Ellie, though her now-husband was on hand to save the day. “At our reception, we had our first dance to Frankie Valli’s ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You’ — and someone had dropped their margarita in the middle of the dance floor — and Mark expertly maneuvered me around the broken glass,” she recalls.
Ellie adds, “It’s the imperfections, I’ve learned, that make weddings uniquely your own!”
After “incredible toasts” from family members, including mom Couric, the party was moved to the lawn for Fourth of July fireworks.
“We were so lucky to have our musically inclined family and guests perform,” adds Ellie, who admits that “neither Mark nor I can carry a tune!”
source: people.com
