Rehearsal Dinner

Hive & Honey Rooftop Bar

Welcome Drinks

Gift Sent

Rancho Las Lomas

Wedding Day

Wedding

Reception

HIS&nbsp;VERSIONXXXHER&nbsp;VERSIONXXX

How We Met

Our Story

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Can my children attend the wedding?&nbsp;We have decided that this will be an adults-only celebration. We apologize for the inconvenience.&nbsp;

Q. What should I wear?&nbsp;The dress code is cocktail attire for the wedding. For those attending the rehearsal dinner and the welcome drinks, the attire is also cocktail. This means a suit and tie, cocktail dress, gown or jumpsuit are all appropriate.























Q. I am coming from out of town. Where should I stay?&nbsp;There is a&nbsp;hotel option&nbsp;&nbsp;listed on our accommodations tab. All hotel information can be found on that page, but please feel free to reach out to the bride and groom for further suggestions.&nbsp;























Q. Is the wedding indoors or outdoors?&nbsp;The ceremony and reception&nbsp;will take place outdoors, although there will be heating lamps and&nbsp;an accessible indoor area. The outdoor space is not on grass, so any heel types are suitable.&nbsp;























Q. Should we rent a car?&nbsp;Renting a car will provide the most freedom and convenience, as there is not a huge amount of public transit available. Transportation to the ceremony and reception is taken care of for those staying at our preferred hotel listed. Any car service app (Uber/Lyft) also&nbsp;works well in the area.























Q. Will there be parking at the wedding venue?&nbsp;Yes, there will be valet at the wedding venue so you don't need to worry about parking.























Q. We plan to stay in the area for a few days. Do you have activity/restaurant recommendations?&nbsp;Yes, there are SO many! Refer to the Things to Do page for some hot spots. Please also feel free to reach out to the bride and groom directly for more suggestions.&nbsp;























Q. We plan to arrive early. Can I book at the listed hotel&nbsp;and will you be there if we want to see you (early)?&nbsp;Yes and yes! We plan to arrive in California&nbsp;on Wednesday night, and would love to see everyone at our welcome reception Friday night. Nancy and Mike Butler&nbsp;&nbsp;will likely be in town the entire week leading up to the wedding, and Cathy&nbsp;and Allan Dorman&nbsp;will also be available for those looking to say hello!

Timeline of Events

Friday, November 5, 2021

5:00PM&nbsp;- 7:00PM | Rehearsal Dinner

(Attire: Cocktail)&nbsp;





Wedding party to attend rehearsal dinner - location TBD

Friday, November 5, 2021

7:00PM - 10:00PM&nbsp; | Welcome Drinks

Hive & Honey Rooftop Bar at Marriott Irvine Spectrum







(Attire: Cocktail)











We would love to see all of you staying at the Marriott Irvine Spectrum (or any of you who want to pop by) on Friday night for a quick hug and hello, and light bites and drinks before our big day on Saturday! We will have an area at Hive & Honey Rooftop Bar, at the Marriott Irvine Spectrum,&nbsp;&nbsp;and we&nbsp;welcome any and all to come and see us!&nbsp;

Saturday, November 6, 2021

3:00PM&nbsp;| First wedding shuttle to depart Marriott Irvine Spectrum Hotel

















3:10PM | Second wedding shuttle to depart Marriott Irvine Spectrum Hotel *don't miss this last shuttle

















4:00PM&nbsp;| Wedding Ceremony at Rancho Las Lomas (Unplugged Ceremony)

















4:30PM&nbsp;| Cocktail Hour

















6:00PM&nbsp;| Dinner/Reception Celebration

















10:00PM | Transportation back to Marriott Irvine Spectrum Hotel









(Attire: Cocktail)

Details

Our Wedding

His Version

I felt really good about this Tinder match – she looked beautiful – and not like fake, weird, internet beautiful, like an actual person, and she liked dogs&nbsp;- kind of a necessity given Jerry, my large, curious, and often-hyper pitbull mix.&nbsp;The early stages of “online dating” sometimes produce&nbsp;&nbsp;false optimism, but I don’t know - this felt different and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.&nbsp;&nbsp;I was excited for our first date.

We started talking immediately before I travelled out of town to a wedding, so she endured six-to-seven days of me making excuses to continue talking to her and my attempted jokes before we met in person.&nbsp; I lived in Astoria and she lived on the Upper East Side, so we agreed to meet somewhere in the middle – she picked a bar called Supply House.&nbsp; I took two subway lines and walked 10 minutes to meet Mel&nbsp;at the bar, which I later learned was about one&nbsp;block away from her&nbsp;apartment.&nbsp; It was two days before Halloween, so I offered to wear the Egg costume I had bought for $17 on Amazon. She declined, for reasons I am still unsure of. I got there early – I knew I’d be sweating a little bit from being nervous, so I figured that if I got to the bar early, I would be in good shape by the time she came in. &nbsp;My theory was wrong and&nbsp;I forgot that I sip drinks VERY quickly when I am nervous, so 2.5 beers and maybe twenty minutes later, I see Mel walk in.&nbsp; I genuinely remember thinking, "she looks great but oh my god Dan, you are going to mess this up aren’t you."&nbsp;Everything was going really well until we were approached by an older man who insisted that we take shots with him.&nbsp; Now, you don’t need to pull my leg to take a free shot at a bar.&nbsp; You certainly don’t. In this instance, however, I just really wanted this guy to go away.&nbsp; Not just because he might be creeping Mel out (I actually thought she was kind of enjoying this whole episode, which I later confirmed she was).&nbsp; It was more that, I just really don’t have the capacity to be taking random shots with an older, out-of-sorts gentleman on an otherwise great first date.&nbsp; That said, I didn’t want to come across like a jerk to this guy in front of a really nice girl that I had just met.&nbsp; Well, we took the path of least resistance and obliged, and that was the turning point where I realized that a) this date is going awesome and I really like this girl and b) you are going to be a “slob kabob,” as Mel likes to say, at one point or another.&nbsp; Well, I held it together well enough to get a second date and the rest, as they say, is history.&nbsp;

Her Version

For anyone who doesn't yet know, Dan and I met on
the infamous dating app&nbsp;Tinder -&nbsp;you know the one with
five&nbsp;photos and a tagline and that's it. My friend and bridesmaid
Meredith, convinced me while at our neighborhood bar Supply House, to join
Tinder with her as we both were living the&nbsp;single life in&nbsp;Manhattan.
I was about to undergo a few&nbsp;major surgeries&nbsp;on my pelvis and my
knee, which were going to be done in phases at HSS over the next&nbsp;two and
half years&nbsp;and require tons&nbsp;of physical therapy and lots of baby
steps just to function again.&nbsp;Quite frankly, I was swiping away on Tinder
and going on dates&nbsp;to distract myself from what was about to come - three
miserable months on crutches in Manhattan and lots of pain. I certainly didn't
think that&nbsp;anyone I was going on dates with&nbsp;would stick around for
crutch girl for three&nbsp;months,&nbsp; after meeting just a few&nbsp;weeks prior...
but then there was Dan.&nbsp;

We matched late one weeknight, as I was getting
home from a business trip in Chicago. Dan messaged me immediately after
matching and we hit it off with witty banter back and forth. My app
tagline&nbsp;said "Funny guys are the most attractive," while Dan's
read "Roy from The Office," a reference to his&nbsp;resemblance to
the character. After a few days of texting, we made a date for&nbsp;Saturday,&nbsp;October
29 on the Upper East Side at the same&nbsp;neighborhood bar I joined Tinder on
-&nbsp;Supply House. Dan asked me to pick the place so I picked something very*
convenient.&nbsp;















I walked in and he was sitting to the right of the
bar. He was tall when he stood up to hug me (really good since you can't tell
online). I wasn't too nervous because I really had no expectations given the
surgery situation happening in three weeks. Dan was playing it cool, I honestly
couldn't tell if he liked me or not. It was also the Saturday of Halloween
weekend, and the people watching was at an all-time high.&nbsp;We both got some
drinks flowing and then he was warming up a little more -- but even more so
than the drinks, the thing that really brought out his personality and his
likeness for me was an older gentleman (at least late-sixties) who was trying
to steal me away from my blue-eyed first date. This guy basically became the
third wheel and we talked about a mix of things throughout the night
and&nbsp;Dan had some hard takes but was able to articulate his points in a
respectful intelligent way, even given his drink consumption, which I remember
being impressed by. At one point, the older man leaned over (after eating our
chips and dip) and said, "So what are your intentions with this
fella?" I think I brushed it off and asked him back&nbsp;"Well, what
do you think of him?"&nbsp; but&nbsp;maybe this man saw something in us
that I didn't just yet.&nbsp;















Our date was fun and Dan was making me laugh a lot.
He won out that night (and forever)&nbsp;against the 68-year-old, which both of
us still laugh about. We made the most of the next three weeks before surgery
and&nbsp;Dan visited me in the hospital. He&nbsp;had the biggest chance to love
me when I needed it most and he did it in the best way possible - while
managing to make me laugh - because "Funny guys are the most
attractive" you know. Looking back,&nbsp;the timing was perfect, and now, we
wait excitedly for November 6, 2021!

Our Story 1

Photos

Registry

Wedding Party

Q + A

Host HotelWe are so excited to have all of our family and closest friends in California to celebrate with us! This hotel has been chosen as the host venue for its enviable location in the heart of Orange County and its great amenities.There will be shuttles on Saturday, November 6, at 3:00pm and 3:10pm, to transport guests from the Marriott Irvine Spectrum to the ceremony and reception at Rancho Las Lomas.Please use the link below to book a room under the Dorman - Butler Wedding Block ($139/night for a King Classic or Double Queen Room) or call Reservations at 949.759.0200 to book a room directly. If the room type you prefer (King Classic or Double Queen) is not showing up as available when you go to book, please let us know and we can work with the hotel to fix.Overnight valet parking is available for $39/day if you are driving or renting a car. Please note that reservations for this room block will close on Thursday, October 14, 2021, so book before then.Link to Book Wedding Block Directly:https://www.marriott.com/event-reservations/reservation-link.mi?id=1620924056455&amp;key=GRP&amp;app=resvlink

Marriott Irvine Spectrum

The most convenient airport to fly into is (SNA) John Wayne&nbsp;&nbsp;Airport. The airport is located about 25&nbsp;minutes from our wedding venue in&nbsp;Silverado, and 15&nbsp;minutes from the Marriott Irvine Spectrum (our host hotel) in Irvine. Almost every airline flies into this airport, and there are plenty of Ubers/cabs available for those who do not plan to rent a car.&nbsp;

If you are looking to rent a car, or if you want more direct options from New York, (LAX) Los Angeles International Airport is a good option, although it is about an hour away (60 miles)&nbsp; from our host hotel. (LGB) Long Beach Airport, about a 30 min drive and 28 miles away, is another good option and so is (ONT)&nbsp;Ontario International Airport, about a 45 min drive and 45 miles away.&nbsp;

If you have questions on travel and transportation, feel free to contact Melissa and Dan at meldormanbutler@gmail.com and/or danhbutler@gmail.com.&nbsp;

John Wayne Airport

Travel

We are so excited to show off this beautiful state&nbsp;and more specifically, Orange County, where Melissa grew up, and Irvine, where many guests will be staying! Interested in exploring the surrounding areas? Here are some of our top suggestions!

Welcome to California 

Check out one of the best <a href="https://irvinespectrumcenter.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=locallistings&utm_campaign=yext">shopping and entertainment centers</a>&nbsp;in Southern California - at least in our opinion!&nbsp;Here, find a movie theater (Dan's favorite), a comedy club and&nbsp;a variety of shopping and dining options nestled in between palm trees and twinkly lights.

Irvine Spectrum Center

We LOVE&nbsp;Newport! This is the beach Mel grew up going to, spending many summer days&nbsp;soaking in the&nbsp;sunshine and ocean air. One of our favorite things to do is rent an <a href="https://www.rentelectricboats.com">Electric Duffy Boat&nbsp;</a>and drive around Balboa Island. You can pick up some charcuterie from the local grocery store, and some wine or beer and experience the beauty of&nbsp;Newport Harbor. You'll also get a peek at some of the most beautiful homes on the waterfront. If boating isn't your thing, check out&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeachcombercafe.com/crystalcove/">The Beachcomber Cafe at Crystal Cove</a> for an early breakfast (especially East Coasters - you'll beat the line) or&nbsp;<a href="http://bearflagfishco.com/menu.html">Bear Flag Fish Co.</a> for the best fish tacos and guacamole. Some fun bars? Woody's Wharf, American Junkie and Helmsman Ale House.

Newport Beach, CA, USA

If you've never been before, you have to go to the ORIGINAL&nbsp;Disneyland or Disney California Adventure. They are separate theme parks, very different from each other. California Adventure serves beer and is a good mix of adult roller coasters and fun, while Disneyland features all the classic rides. If you're looking to get a taste of Disney without actually entering the parks, you can go to Downtown Disney, a shopping center featuring restaurants and a movie theater with the magic of Disney.&nbsp;

Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure

We know our people like to golf and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sf-golf.com">Strawberry Farms Golf Club</a> is a great course, 15 minutes away from our host hotel.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.oakcreekgolfclub.com">Oak Creek Golf Club</a> is another beautiful option, just a few minutes away.

Golf, Golf, Golf

Shop and dine at the most beautiful, tucked away area&nbsp;in Newport -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lidomarinavillage.com/shopeat">Lido Marina Village</a>. This quaint village is the perfect place to walk on the dock with a coffee in the morning from <a href="https://www.lidomarinavillage.com/malibu-farm">Malibu Farm</a>, or relax with some wine and seafood at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lidomarinavillage.com/lido-bottle-works">Lido Bottle Works</a> and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lidomarinavillage.com/cirlce-hook">Circle Hook</a> around happy hour.&nbsp;

Melissa & Dan

Melissa & Dan

Photos