From their home outside the nation's capital, Waltham native Kaitlyn Amedio 25, and David DeStefano, 26, from Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, planned a heartfelt wedding weekend in the heart of Beantown. The two first met at a Boston College party, but reunited years later at the Catholic University of America. David, a software developer, popped the question on a ski weekend, but the celebration didn't end there. "He then surprised me with a trip home to Boston to tell my family and friends the following weekend," says Kaitlyn, a student supervisor at CUA.

Plans were soon underway for an early summer wedding, and while finding the perfect reception site was in the balance, Kaityln had no doubt as to where she and her betrothed would receive the sacrament of marriage. "We chose St. Patrick's because of the large family history behind it," she explains. "My grandparents, parents and numerous aunts and uncles were all married there, and myself and four siblings were all baptized there as well."

Without the luxury of planning from home, Kaitlyn and David booked Anthony's Pier 4 in Boston, the waterfront landmark with age-old hospitality and iconic views sight unseen. "We wanted something on the water, with the skyline in it-and something that wouldn't put us into debt," says Kaitlyn. " We couldn't have made a better choice! We had 90% of our guests from out of town and they LOVED it." Even better for their photographers, Hitched Studios, Anthony's neighbors the ICA which made for engaging images with a modern twist.

From the outset, beginning with a World Series ticket-inspired save-the-date ("between the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies- both of where we are from!" says the bride)friends and family expected whimsy elements from the couple, who did not disappoint. "We decided we wanted to bring that into our wedding but in small ways and did so by creating "tickets" as place cards, miniature players shirts from each team were created by my mother and were used as the table numbers and our "guest book" were two customized jersey's: one Red Sox and one Philles, that we had out for our guests to sign. It was a huge hit!" Finally, the new Mrs. DeStefano wowed everyone, including her newly-minted husband, when she took the dance floor and dazzle friends and family with a performance of Irish step dancing. Sounds like the newlyweds have started married life off on the right foot.