Courtesy of Joel Jordan
Mia and Jeff wanted to be unique, so they decided to skip having the wedding march played during their ceremony. Mia walked down the aisle to Eric Clapton's “Change the World,” and the couple walked out of the ceremony to Frank Sinatra's “Come Fly With Me.” |
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THE BRIDE: Mia Moran, 34, is a housewife.
THE GROOM: Jeff Hall, 39, is a plant controller for Otis Spunkmeyer.
Mia and Jeff, who live in Tracy, were married at a friend's house in Jamul on April 1. The couple used to live in San Diego County and wanted to have their wedding here not only because their friend's home had the perfect scenery for their wedding – vast land, oak trees and a duck pond – but also because this is where they met and most of their friends live.
HI THERE, I'M DOLLY PARTON: Mia and Jeff met on Halloween in 2003 at Kashi, a company they both used to work for in La Jolla. “I heard this laughter coming from another part of the office,” Jeff said. “It turned out she was wearing a Dolly Parton outfit.” People found her Halloween costume amusing, Mia said. That day, Mia and Jeff began talking to each other and ended up going out to dinner. The rest, as they say, is history. Until ...
A SECOND CHANCE: Last year Jeff quit his job at Kashi and moved to Tracy to be closer to his two children. Even though Mia loved him, she didn't want to have a long-distance relationship. The couple broke up. “I spent the summer alone,” Mia said. “I wasn't going to take him back.”
Jeff felt the opposite. He missed Mia and wanted her back. “He kept calling. I almost got a restraining order,” Mia quipped. Instead, she was persuaded to go up to Tracy to see Jeff for Thanksgiving. She wasn't going there with the intention of getting back together with him. She just missed him and wanted to see him.
After Thanksgiving dinner, Mia, Jeff and his kids watched a movie. “All of a sudden, Jeff got this look on his face, and he said he couldn't wait,” Mia said. “He pulled me into the bedroom and got down on one knee.”
Later Jeff put Mia's fears to rest, and the couple not only reunited but also got engaged. Mia moved to Tracy this year.
NO JOKE: Mia and Jeff tied the knot on April Fools' Day, but they swear they didn't play any jokes on their guests. Jeff said a lot of people questioned why they'd pick that day for their wedding. “We picked April 1 to be unique,” Jeff said. “We figured not a lot of people had the guts to get married on April 1.” The couple said people were expecting them to play some kind of prank. “At the rehearsal dinner, someone said, 'OK, this is the part where everyone says April Fools,' ” Mia said. “I wanted to play tricks on everyone, but I didn't.”
TRY TO RUN AWAY: They didn't play any jokes on their guests, but the couple did kid around while they were having their photographs taken. “The photographer came up with this great idea,” Jeff said. “He told me to act like I was running away, and Mia was supposed to act like she was pulling me back.” They said that photo ended up being one of their favorites.
SPILL IT: Before the wedding, the reverend asked Mia and Jeff to answer a series of questions about their relationship, including how they met, what they liked about each other, etc. The reverend incorporated their answers into the ceremony. “Literally, he spilled the guts of us,” Jeff said. Also, during the ceremony, the reverend passed the couple's rings around so each guest could hold them. The idea was that when each guest held the rings, they were supposed to think of a good thought or make a wish for the couple. The act is supposed to bring good fortune and happiness to the couple, they said.
RAPPER'S DELIGHT: Mia and Jeff said the matron of honor's speech was one of their favorite parts of the day. “She had everyone laughing and then crying and then she broke out into a rap at the end,” Jeff said. The couple can't remember exactly what she said, but they remember that at the moment she started rapping, the band chimed in with background music.
UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN ... KIND OF: While they were dating, Jeff took Mia to see the movie “Under the Tuscan Sun.” After seeing the film, the couple fell in love with Italy. When it came time to choose a honeymoon spot, they said Italy was the obvious choice. The couple set out on their two-week Italian vacation with Florence, Venice, Rome and, of course, Tuscany on the itinerary. But to Mia's dismay, she got sick, and they weren't able to make it to Tuscany.
Mia went to a doctor in Italy and got some medicine, so by the time they arrived in Venice, she was feeling better. “I liked Venice because I could breathe,” Mia joked. Despite not being able to see Tuscany, the couple said they had a wonderful honeymoon and loved the Italian cities they were able to visit.
If you would like to talk about the planning and outcome of your wedding, please contact Nicole Reino at
nicole.reino@uniontrib.com.
