Jordan & Katie Meyer; Wedding
Young love, people say it's too good to be true, that it'll never last.. or that you don't know what you're getting into. I can speak from experience on that. What people don't tell you is just how incredible it is for two people are when they fall in love at a young age. People don't tell you how many more memories you get to make with a person when you fall in love at a young age. But mostly people don't tell you how LUCKY you are to find someone who is your soul mate.. at a young age.
Last weekend I created timeless imagery with Jordan and Katie at their Wedding. The two have been friends for pretty much ever, and if you talk to anyone who went to Damascus with them, they'll say they aren't surprised that they got married.. because they were perfect for each other.. even back in Middle School. They grew up around each other, being friends first-- then boyfriend & girlfriend-- and on June 16th, 2018-- they became husband and wife! I worked with the couple last fall and their adorable puppy Stella (at the time she was so small, but she's grown so much since) to photograph their engagement pictures. We had a lot of fun, hiking and trying not to break any ankles. It was apparent at that time that Jordan and Katie were just the match made in heaven.
On Saturday I met Katie and Jordan at their Wedding Venue in Union Dale, The Farm at Cottrell Lake (another of my favorite venues to work at). The location was perfect, and the weather couldn't have been any better! The sun was out, and so were the smiles on all the bridesmaids and Katie as I walked into the room! I have been so excited about this Wedding since last year! You could feel the excitement contained by everyone in the house.. especially Katie. The day was perfect.
Katie and her Dad did a special father-daughter first look! It was so nice, you could tell how incredibly excited her dad was to see her in her dress. She was stunning! He walked her down the aisle with so much pride, arm-in-arm right to the front where Jordan waited. His eyes sparkled when he looked up to see his beautiful bride standing in front of him. A smile graced his face, and hers as they peered into each others eyes before the pastor started the ceremony. Jordan & Katie wrote their own vows, which was so awesome. They included vowing to cheer for each other's sports teams and other creative and meaningful things like that. Even listening to their vows, you could tell they were meant to be!
I am always so overwhelmed with emotion during the course of the day. Sometimes I find myself crying during the ceremony, sometimes during the reception. I held myself together until I watched as Jordan and Katie danced their first dance as husband and wife. That was my breaking point. I saw such a love between the two of them, and could feel the emotion that they shared as they glided across the floor. They were on cloud 9, and you could see it in their eyes. It was almost as if they were the only two people in the room. So precious,
Jordan's friends, family and groomsmen surprised Jordan with a Hawaiian t-shirt (which they all changed into at some point during the reception). His face lit up so bright and was so excited to put on his t-shirt with the guys! Such a neat moment to watch, and capture. A memory that he will treasure for a lifetime, just like so many detailed moments of their day! Katie also had a beautiful detail, when her bouquet was made, they placed a small red bird inside the bouquet, as a memorial to her grandmother who passed a few months prior. These incredible details make a wedding day, the most rememberable and important, and we were so very happy to be able to capture these beautiful details. Jordan & Katie also recreated a photograph taken long ago, where Katie's dad was helping Jordan tie his ice skate-- you'll see the re-creation below-- so many fun moments encompassed the day!
The bride and groom spent the remainder of the evening dancing and making memories with friends a family. They took part in an entertaining cake cutting, danced with their parents, and also the night led to a very funny bouquet and garter toss. Every aspect of the wedding was incredible. Every detail was astonishing, and everything was planned out perfectly!
We would like to send a Congratulations out to Jordan & Katie, and also wish them a lifetime of happiness, laughter, adventure, and love! We look forward to seeing more from the two of them, and also watching as their love for each other continues to grow! We are so grateful to have been a part of their most special day! And we are super excited to share this sneak preview with them and you all!
Bobby & Joanne Wales; Wedding
True love, it's a funny thing really. It can happen in an instant, or it can progress over time. For some people it hits you like a baseball to the face, for other's it's a slow-and-steady type of thing. Somehow we always know. We know when we've met the one who sets our soul on fire, the one who makes every bad day-- good in some way or another, someone who can see the beauty in our early morning messy-selves, the person that flips our worlds upside down, and then right-side up. True love, it's a funny thing-- a miraculous thing, a mysterious thing-- but all in all, an incredibly wonderful thing!
Last Saturday, June 9th; I met a true love struck couple-- Joanne and Bobby. They'd known each other for years, Joanne being a close friend of Bobby's sister. A wonderful story of love-- true love, meant to be love, progressing over time love, incredible love.
I could tell this was going to be an incredible Wedding at the first time that we spoke. Such a fun couple, even through what little I had known about them, they were my ideal couple. They were full of life, and so excited to celebrate their marriage with friends and family. I was almost counting down the days to their wedding, maybe I was almost as excited as they were?! When the day came-- it was everything I imagined.. their love-- was everything I had anticipated.
Joanne and Bobby decided on Woodloch Pines as their Venue. One of my favorite Venue's to work with. I knew everything was going to be perfect, as that is the following that Woodloch's Weddings are known for. Joanne and Bobby were from Virginia, and had searched high and low for a Venue that fit their exact expectations and needs-- and after so much searching, they decided on Woodloch. They had visited multiple times, and they said nothing quite compared to the area-- our little slice of heaven up here in NEPA.
Their ceremony was set up to be very intimate, with a small guest list of just 37 people (including their bridal party). It was beautiful. Bobby was walked to the alter linked arm in arm with his parents, and Joanne was walked partially down the aisle by her two brother-in-laws, and then the rest of the way by her mother. Every detail of their Wedding was beautiful- was perfect. The colors, the weather, the smiles, the tears shed, the love of friends and family encompassed the entire day. As Bobby and Joanne said their vows, everyone was overjoyed. Such a beautiful union. Through the entire ceremony I watched as Bobby and Joanne gazed into each others eyes, smiling from ear to ear. You could tell that there was no place these two would rather be than in the arms of the other. Their intimate ceremony included a very special bridal party containing Joanne's two sisters, Bobby's sister, and daughter, and Bobby and Joanne's nieces-- as flower girls. After the ceremony was over, and they vowed to be husband and wife, through the good and the bad, they walked down the aisle gleaming with excitement!
Working with Joanne and Bobby was so great. They were so excited to take photos, and also to celebrate their marriage with friends and family. After we finished with portraits, we walked inside for the first dance, and parent dances. Watching Joanne and Bobby dance together was so enlightening, their love shown out of them like sun rays! Everyone watched as they glided along the floor, in that moment I was overcome with so much emotion and excitement for how happy they looked, and how in love-- in true love-- they were. Joanne danced with her mother, which was so heartwarming. We love to watch Mother-Daughter dances, as you can feel the strong bond between the two.. and the love and pride that mother's show for their daughters on their wedding day. We also watched as Bobby danced with his mother. It was a very emotional dance, which always brings a tear to my eye. So beautiful, so much love through both families; now joined as one.
After all the formal dances were over, and dinner was served-- the excitement and energy filled the dance floor. The DJ's were incredible and got almost everyone out on the dance floor, moving to the beat. Everyone was having fun celebrating Bobby & Joanne and their future as husband and wife. It's always so exciting to see guests enjoying the day just as much as the bride and groom. The room was continuously filled with laughter, stories, and smiles. A beautiful day, for such a beautiful love story to continue.
As I reflect back on the day, I can't imagine a more perfect chapter in Bobby & Joanne's love story. As their lives continue, I hope that they always remember how much love they felt and shared on this day, and how rare and wonderful true love is. Congratulations to such a wonderful couple! May your lives be blessed with happiness, love, and adventure for many, many, many year to come! We hope you return back to our hidden treasure-- NEPA to remember the glorious place that you made a memory.
