Here’s What Your Favorite “Real Wedding” Couples Are up to This Valentine’s Day

With T-minus one week left until Valentine’s Day, we’ve checked back in with the lovebirds behind some of your favorite “Real Wedding” stories to ask how they’re planning to celebrate their very first V-Day as married couples. Their responses? Full of bright ideas and, of course, truly adorable.

Mary Bohenek and Todd Keller

Photo by Todd Wilson Images

“Our first Valentine’s Day as a married couple involves no reservations—unless someone hopes to sit on a specific side of the couch. We’ll likely be watching Netflix (he’s been going old school lately with Star Trek: The Next Generation and I’m currently indulging in The Crown). There will be snuggles on the couch and joining us will be the newest addition to our household, a three-year-old short-haired tiger cat named Loops. We adopted her from Scituate Animal Shelter in early January. We’ll also enjoy a classic dinner served couch-side with deliciously gooey grilled-cheese sandwiches, expertly prepared by Todd, along with creamy tomato soup for dunking.” -Mary

Nathalee Kong and Christopher Tsai

Photo by Scott Zuehlke Photography

“Every Valentine’s Day since about four years ago, Chris and I go and see the Oscar-nominated animated shorts at the Institute of Contemporary Art, and this year is no exception. This tradition is actually one of the main reasons we chose to get married at the ICA last June, and we’re so excited to return to the place where we exchanged vows just eight months ago.” -Nathalee

Carlie O’Connor and Danny Pardini

Photo by Carly Michelle Photography

“It’s been really fun to start our own holiday traditions as a married couple. I’m looking forward to Valentine’s Day because its a chance to celebrate ‘us’ with no distractions. No matter how busy life gets, I’ve vowed to always take my wife out to a nice dinner on Valentine’s Day.” -Danny

“We are going to start our evening by bellying up to City Bar at the Lenox Hotel for a cocktail. It’s swanky, chic, and they make amazing espresso martinis, which are my favorite. From there, we will walk next-door to City Table for dinner. We both love a good steak, so we will definitely be ordering the special grilled porterhouse for two. We cannot wait to spend time reflecting on the last six amazing months as newlyweds. We will be raising a glass of bubbly and toasting to the first of many Valentine’s Days together.” -Carlie

Lauren LeBlanc and David Mason

Photo by Scarlet Roots

“When we started dating in 2008, David surprised me with a home-cooked four-course dinner. It was so thoughtful and romantic, especially because he does not like to cook! From then on, this became a special tradition: Valentine’s Day is the one day out of the year that he cooks, and it’s always a multi-course, themed meal. One year, after we’d traveled to Peru, he made a traditional fish entree, and another year he made a Rwandan-inspired chicken dish after we took a trip there. This year, our first Valentine’s Day as husband and wife, I’m once again looking forward to his feast. We honeymooned in Turks and Caicos, so I can’t wait to see what he whips up!” -Lauren

Alice Anastasia and Alexander Richichi

Photo by Henry + Mac

“We’ve never been ones to celebrate a traditional Valentine’s Day and this year isn’t any different. I will be traveling on the 14th for work, so we are moving our celebration to the week before. Instead of enjoying a night out in Boston, we’re staying at home and doing what we do best: cooking and eating. We’ll be making a three-course dinner together featuring delicious steaks paired with our favorite wines and cheeses from Formaggio [Kitchen] in the South End. We like to choose a couple of days a year to celebrate our relationship, so Valentine’s Day will be a night for us to relax, make and eat our favorite foods, and reflect on our almost one year (!) together as a married couple.” -Alice

Kaitlyn Chisholm and Noel Acciari

Photo by Sabrina Scolari

“Due to Noel’s demanding schedule while playing for the Bruins, we unfortunately do not get to spend Valentine’s Day together. That being said, we always make it a point to celebrate a few days early! We plan to dine at Ocean Prime, our favorite restaurant in Boston. We had a family gathering there after we got engaged, so it will always have a special place in our hearts. We will end the meal, as we did that night, with our favorite dessert: peanut-butter pie. During hockey season, evenings that Noel and I get to spend time together are few and far between, so whenever we have a chance for a date night we take it. While our life can be crazy, we are so happy we get to live it together forever.” -Kaitlyn

Lori Manzelli and Michael Basu

Photo by Erin Chapman Imagery

“We’ve never been that into Valentine’s Day, plus my birthday is the very next day. We aren’t total wet blankets though! We usually spend Valentine’s Day doing something fun with friends. For the past two years, we attended the Lady and the Tramp-themed Valentine’s Day dinner at State Park in Cambridge with our friends Matty and Diana. This year, we’re switching it up and going to see Mortified at the American Repertory Theater’s Oberon theater in Harvard Square. It’s a stage show (and podcast) in which adults share the embarrassing things they created as kids. [People read] from their old diaries and journals, and it’s always hysterical. The theme of the show is “Doomed Valentines” and even though we have had our happy ending, we can all relate to having a bad Valentine’s Day. It also just so happens that the Oberon is across the street from José Mateo Ballet Theatre, where we had our wedding, so there may just be a little romance in the evening after all.” -Lori

Chris Cipriano and Steve Curtis

Photo by Lauren Killian of Person + Killian Photography

“Our first date was [at] Post 390 just 10 days after Valentine’s Day. We remember both ordering Old Fashioneds and sharing oysters to start off the night, then digging into the NY strip steak for dinner. This year work has us both traveling the week of Valentine’s Day, so we are going to be celebrating with a belated date back at Post 390 the following week. This time, I will be passing on the oysters and bourbon and ordering my steak well-done—we are expecting a little girl later this spring!” -Chris

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