Cody Calafiorehad a hometown wedding!
“We had an incredible time. It was the best day of our lives,” Calafiore tells PEOPLE, saying their vision for their big day came together just as they hoped.
“What was most important to us was celebrating with all our friends and family,” he continues. “We wanted a beautiful, heartfelt ceremony that captures the story of how we fell in love, and then high vibes all night and dancing the night away with everyone we love.”
TOUT.Heather Pauline Photography
Heather Pauline Photography
Among the guests were several of Calafiore’s fellowBig Brothercontestants — brother Paulie Calafiore, Derrick Levasseur, Tiffany Mitchell and Enzo Palumbo — as well as Cara Maria Sorbello ofThe Challenge.
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta with members of their wedding party.Heather Pauline Photography
“Her beautiful writing not only highlighted the serendipity of how we met, but also how we fell in love during the most challenging time of my life, during my diagnosis of lymphoma [in 2016] at 23 years old,” Laratta explains. “Our story will always be special to us because of how we thrived during such a difficult moment in my life, and found joy and love during the darkest times.”
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta during their wedding ceremony.Heather Pauline Photography
“We knew after becoming so strong through our first year together, that we could take on anything in life together — cheesy, but true,” she adds.
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Laratta walked down the aisle in aMartina Lianagown — which she had customized — and paired it with Vince Camuto platform heels. “The style was the vibe I always pictured for my wedding dress,” she tells PEOPLE.
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta at their wedding venue on their wedding day.Heather Pauline Photography
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta share a kiss on their wedding day.Heather Pauline Photography
Laratta, who says she was “super into the music selections” for the wedding, incorporated lots of her favorite songs into her special day, including plenty ofTaylor Swifttracks. She and her bridesmaids walked out to a violin cover of Swift’s “Lover.” Calafiore and his groomsmen, meanwhile, made their way down the aisle to a violin cover of James Arthur’s “Say You Won’t Let Go.”
“These are two songs that we have loved over the years, and ‘Say You Won’t Let Go’ was the first song in 2016 that we called ‘our song,’ " Laratta notes.
In lieu of handwritten vows, the pair had Norment write their words to each other for them. “That felt perfect for us,” Calafiore recalls. “They included a bunch of sweet modern vows including a promise ‘to fill our life with adventure and our home with laughter.’ "
Laratta and Calafiore are both “huge foodies” so they treated their guests to a sprawling feast. The reception kicked off with a “knockout” cocktail hour with a sushi display. “This was huge for Cristie as a sushi addict and connoisseur,” Calafiore says.
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta pose on their wedding day.Heather Pauline Photography
The cocktail hour also featured a homemade pizza station, lobster ravioli, a frozen vodka ice luge and caviar station, lobster rolls served with mini beer bottles, a New York steak station with slab bacon and bacon mac and cheese, a wok station — “and the list goes on and on,” Calafiore jokes.
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta cut their four-tiered wedding cake.Heather Pauline Photography
Dessert included slices of the couple’s chocolate and vanilla wedding cake filled with cannoli cream, along with cheesecake, lobster tail pastries and chocolate cannoli bombs. At the end of the night, guests were invited to grab a few more treats from the gelato cart including six different flavors of the Italian ice cream, homemade doughnuts and cappuccinos.
The pair first met in a crowded bar on the Fourth of July in 2015, and got engaged seven years later in October 2022. Calafiore popped the question to Laratta in a surprise proposal at Riverside Gardens Park in Red Bank, New Jersey, just as the sun was setting.
Cody Calafiore and Cristie Laratta at their wedding reception. Laratta changed into a sleek silk dress for the later part of the celebrations.Heather Pauline Photography
Calafiore says he appreciates Laratta’s kind heart and sense of humor. “I love how silly she is, and when we are just silly and dance around in our apartment together for no reason at all. I love how she loves celebrating little moments and all the special things in life,” he shares.
Laratta says Calafiore “always keeps us smiling and laughing” and “brings so much joy” to their lives — “even on the most mundane days or the doing the simplest things like relaxing at home.”
“I can’t wait to continue our adventure and all that is to come from traveling, buying a home together and starting a family,” Laratta tells PEOPLE.
“Hopefully babies!” adds Calafiore.
source: people.com
