Wedding FAQ

Either click a question below to be taken directly to its answer, or scroll down to "play the full version" of our 21-questions game.

General Wedding Questions:

1. When is the RSVP deadline?

Please reply by June 6th. Included with our formal invitation is a snail-mail RSVP postcard, which you should fill out and (gently) cram into your local mailbox no later than June 6, 2014. For the more electronically-inclined, of course, you can RSVP online right here instead.

2. I'm from out of town; where should I stay?

Because our wedding venue is a short drive from Christa's family home, there are many Camarillo hotels located within a short distance from the weekend festivities. We heartily recommend using TripAdvisor to inform your hotel research; try Camarillo Hotel Ratings for the closest hotels, which are mostly located about 10-15 minutes away from our venue.

In the hope of helping our traveling guests to find recommended area hotels with somewhat-discounted rates, we've reserved a few guest-bookable blocks of rooms at both the Hampton Inn and the Courtyard Camarillo:

Hotel Option 1:

Hampton Inn & Suites Camarillo

Top-Rated Camarillo Hotel on TripAdvisor

50 West Daily Drive, Camarillo, CA 93010

(805) 389-9898 | Website

How to reserve: Directly call the Hampton Inn at (805) 389-9898 on or before June 10, 2014 to make your sleeping room reservations. Identify yourselves as "part of the Young-Wormek Wedding Group staying at the Hampton Inn," located at 50 West Daily Drive, Camarillo, CA 93010.

Dates included in this block reservation: Thursday July 10, Friday July 11, and Saturday July 12. You should be able to add-on or subtract days according to your needs when you call in to make your reservation.

If you'd like to stay here with this block rate, you must reserve by: June 10, 2014. You'll need to call the Hampton Inn to make your hotel reservations on or before this expirational cut-off date.

Hotel Option 2:

Courtyard by Marriott Camarillo

Well-Rated, Close to Wedding Venue, Many Eating Establishments Nearby

4994 Verdugo Way, Camarillo, CA 93012-8637

(805) 388-0120 | Website

How to reserve: Directly call Mariott Reservations at (805) 388-1020 on or before June 16, 2014 to make your sleeping room reservations. Identify yourselves as "part of the Young-Wormek Wedding Group staying at the Courtyard Camarillo," located at 4994 Verdugo Way, Camarillo, CA 93012-8637.

Dates included in this block reservation: Thursday July 10, Friday July 11, and Saturday July 12. You should be able to add-on or subtract days according to your needs when you call in to make your reservation.

If you'd like to stay here with this block rate, you must reserve by: June 16, 2014. You'll need to call Mariott Reservations to make your hotel arrangements on or before this expirational cut-off date.

Please feel free to make alternative hotel arrangements on your own if that is more convenient for you, and also feel free to check around the internet in search of better prices if you prefer to do so! Be sure to inquire about other discounts you may be eligibile for through AAA, AARP, etc.

P.S. If you're looking for more of a "fancy-time" stay, and although we have not reserved blocks at these hotels, you can't go wrong with the Westlake Village Inn or the Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, which are both about 35 minutes away from our wedding venue — do keep the heavy Friday freeway traffic in mind, though, and allow plenty of extra driving time to compensate! The Inn seems to have some great deals on occasion, but do let us know which stocks to buy if you roll this large, won't you? ;)

Westlake Village Inn

31943 Agoura Road, Westlake Village, CA 91361

(800) 535-9978 | Website

Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village

2 Dole Drive, Westlake Village, CA 91362

(818) 575-3000 | Website

About the Venue:

3. How do I get to the ranch?

For plotting your own directions on your personal device of choice, the address is 201 Camarillo Ranch Road, Camarillo, CA 93012. If you want specific directions from your starting address, check those out here, through MapQuest. Just enter your starting address and away you go!

We've also embedded a handy-dandy map below, for your technological zooming and/or satellite-peeking convenience (if you'd like an enlarged version of the same map, click here):

4. Where should I park, and will I have to pay for parking?

There will be plenty of parallel street parking right next to the venue, along Camarillo Ranch Road. It's completely free, too! While you won't be able to park in any of the lots around the venue — alas, these are strictly reserved for local businesses — the street will have space for all. (It seriously does, even during busy events. We've looked. We've seen. We know.)

5. Is the ranch wheelchair accessible?

The spaces used for our wedding will be wheelchair accessible, yes. Let us know if you need any accomodation in this arena!

6. Is there transportation being provided to and from hotels?

Unfortunately not, but the ranch is within 10-15 minutes driving distance of pretty much every single hotel in Camarillo. (Note: It may be possible for us to get a single hotel shuttle going from the Hampton Inn Suites Camarillo to the ranch and then back. We're still looking into it!)

About the Ceremony and Reception:

7. What time should I arrive?

Please plan to arrive at 4:45 p.m., which is fifteen minutes before the ceremony is slated to begin at 5 p.m. Keep in mind that there may indeed be some Friday traffic involved — grr, arrgh — so please bear the ol' freeway shuffle in mind! (If you'll be staying at a Camarillo area hotel and therefore won't have very much freeway driving to do, the traffic shouldn't affect your travel-time too badly, if at all. Hooray for side streets!)

8. What can I expect regarding the weather?

Our ceremony and reception will be outdoors, among gardens with paved areas, shady trees, and, eventually, starry skies. July in the area is generally mild, usually neither too hot nor too cold during the day, and there is a lot of shade on the property in the case of an unusually-hot sun.

What about the evening, you ask? Well, Christa, a weather-sensitive California native, advises guests to bring a "just-in-case" over-layer like a cardigan or jacket for the evening, since the humidity-free summer nights of Ventura County can get a little chilly from time to time. (We hope to have a few party-heaters at the ready. Yay, comfort!) Daniel, a hardier Missouri native, advises equally-hardy guests that although it is practically never cold in Southern California during July, it still gets cold here at night sometimes; a stand-by over-layer is always recommended. Choose your own temperature-preparedness adventure!

9. What should I do between the ceremony and the reception?

We'll be in the same place for both events. We plan to have a cocktail hour with light beverages and snackages, so you can eat, sip, socialize, and savor!

10. What kind of food will be served?

Oh, summer picnic comfort foods, we love you so! In tribute to our surroundings, season, and the comfort of caloric 1950s classics, we're envisioning classic burgers (both regular and veggie-type) with all their delicious accoutrements. Who doesn't crave an awesome burger every once and awhile? Stay tuned for other comforting fare like lemonade, sangria, tempting confections of times past, present, and future, and so on!

11. What if I have a dietary restriction?

We, too, have a few lovely friends who happen to have gluten-free and/or celiac needs, and Christa herself is a vegetarian/pescatarian. We're going to try to have at least something for everyone to nosh on — however, if you have very specific needs, you might want to bring some extra snackages with you, just in case. Know thy systems, know thyself! If you have any questions, worries, or concerns in this arena, please let us know! :)

12. Will there be dancing?

We definitely plan to dance! Neither of us are anywhere near dance pros, but we kind of love the glorious awkwardness of it all. (Christa is currently in back-quandary-and-recovery mode, so she may not exactly be twisting the entire night away and may have to take some "bridal breaks" every now and then, but yes, we love silly dancing and we hope you do too!)

13. What time will the reception end?

Our relatively triumphant exit should occur somewhere around 10:45 p.m.

Dress Code and Dapper Attire:

14. Is there a dress code?

We're thinking dressy-casual, a.k.a. informal evening wear. (That basically means — or so we've read — one step away from semi-formal, e.g. party clothes/fancy clothes/garden party clothes.)

15. What should I wear?

We're aiming for a fun garden party, so go on, wear anything dressy-casual that allows you to escape from a daily monotony of jeans, shorts, and tees. Gents, think trousers with a sport coat or light-weight seasonal suiting — and if you want to wear a bow tie or a vintage straw boater hat, hey, be our guest! Gals, think sun dresses, party dresses, or cocktail separates — and if you want to wear a fabulous print or retro feather fascinator, go right ahead!

For both gents and gals, as suggested above in the "weather" section, remember your +1 cardigan or jacket to thwart any possible night-time chills.

16. What kind of shoes should/shouldn't I wear?

The reception takes place on the lawn, so consider any footwear accordingly. There are plenty of paved areas at the ranch, but your feet will definitely touch the grass at some point.

Miscellaneous Questions:

17. Are kids welcome?

If your kidlets' names appear on your formal invitation (or if you spy the key words "and family") then that means we've planned for them. Let us know if you have any questions or concerns, of course!

18. Can I bring a date?

If the name of your significant other (or the oldskool-etiquette term "and guest") appears on your formal invitation, then that means we've planned for your guest. Please make sure to let us know your guest's full name when you RSVP so we can seat them correctly! As always, if you have any questions, ask away, especially if you're wondering about making travel arrangements for you and a guest-to-be.

FYI: We feel that weddings shouldn't automatically mean that everyone has to pair off; we cherish all of you and we don't care a whit whether you are single or coupled. We have wonderful families and friends, and we're sure you'll have a happy and well-fed time, with or without a date!

19. Is there a gifts registry?

Yes, we've registered at Amazon, Williams-Sonoma, and Macy's. Links to our registries are right here.

20. Will last names be changing after the wedding?

To symbolize this mutually-amazing moment in our lives, both of us plan to change our last names. We feel that the joining of our two fabulous families evokes a similarly-fabulous joining of names, so we'll be sharing them, with a hyphen, a la The Young-Wormeks. (Privately, though, we'll always think of ourselves as The Yomeks, because that is a truly awesome combo-name.)

21. I have a question not answered here; how do I contact you?

You can send us a quick email by using the handy-dandy form below (no worries; it's completely private and automatically emails your info to just us):

the game show twenty-one aired in the late 1950s (our version is unrigged)