Allison and Christian got married on a beautiful day in the Spring. The weather was perfect and the company such a blast. Outdoor ceremonies are always some of my favorites! And a “few” words from the bride (haha…just kidding, Allison)….
What were your favorite details? I absolutely loved everything about our wedding. Seriously! I’ve lived in Austin my entire life and I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a prettier day to celebrate outside. Our venue was absolutely perfect for the weather and I loved that the reception had such a wonderful indoor/outdoor feel. Beauty in nature has always been important to me and I felt like we found the perfect place to experience this. Exactly what I had hoped for!
My mother made our guestbook and it is so special. Since April is the time for wildflowers, she hand painted a different wildflower on each page of the book. We’ve loved looking back through the pages.
Also, I loved the thumbprint balloons guestbook we did. It looks like the balloons in the movie UP, which was one of the first dates Christian and I went on. My dear friend Kelly helped encourage guests to ink up their thumbs and take part- and it looks great! The funny story with that is, a couple hours before the wedding, things were getting set up and an entire bucket of lemonade was spilled on top of the thumb print print! I was a little disappointed and figured we’d just have to throw it away. Then, to my amazement, my maid of honor, Hillary, sprinted out there and magically took care of it. The print was saved and you can’t even tell it was ever soaked! Oh the joys of a wedding day!
What part of your wedding was DIY? I made all the table numbers and seating cards. Our table numbers were different years ranging from (1981-2012) and we used pictures of ourselves from the various years in our lives. Surprisingly, we were able to find very similar pictures for some of the years. We thought it would be a fun way for our guests to get to see our history and we tried to place friends and family according to the years they knew us best. I definitely got some funny comments about middle school cheer leading pictures and Christian’s senior photo!
The best part of the story, though, is that during my bachelorette party (the Thursday evening before the wedding) instead of going out on the town, all my best friends ended up circled around the floor putting together table numbers and seating cards. We had an embossing station, alphabetizing, and much more. It made me smile to look around and see each of my sweet friends lending a hand (even the ones who hate that sort of thing) and we had a GREAT time crafting and bonding together! I cannot think of a more perfectly suiting bachelorette for me!
Did you have any traditions or special events that were a part of your wedding? We had a few small touches to make our day special. First, I had a piece of my baby blanket sewn into my dress in honor of my grandmother. She used to always tell me that I’d get married with that blanket someday because I loved it so much, so my mom and I thought it would be a special way to honor her presence in our lives and I know she would have LOVED to be a part of everything. I also carried a bluebonnet handkerchief in honor of her.
Did your write your own vows? If so, what was your favorite part? We did not actually write our own vows, but we did do something a little different in memorizing them. Our minister suggested it and we immediately thought it was a great idea. He said, after all, this is the promise that you guys are giving to each other- it should be something you internalize and can recite to each other years from now. I’m very grateful that we did it, but I know Christian spent the entire wedding day stressing over them! (I guess it was a good way to keep him focused.
What was the most memorable moment of your wedding day? There are way too many memorable moments to choose just one. However, Something that stands out (that was a total surprise to all of our guests) was our getaway vehicle. Christian is a firefighter and arranged for the Kyle Fire Department to pick us up in a fire engine! Not only that, but people who know me know that I’m obsessed with the number 22. Well, lo and behold, Engine 22 showed up to carry us away! Christian swears he had no idea and did not ask for that engine. Serendipitous if you ask me!
What song did you choose for the first dance? Was it meaningful or just a favorite? We chose “Never is a Moment” by Jimmy LaFave, who is a local artist and performer. We both liked the fact that we had and could potentially hear him perform this song live for years to come. In fact, Christian did something amazing for our1 month anniversary. He took me to a Jimmy LaFave concert at Threadgills and had Jimmy dedicate this song to us. It was such a surreal moment! The only backfire was that we had to get up in front of the entire audience and dance, again! I think I definitely have an amazingly thoughtful husband!
What do you look forward to the most about marriage? I look forward to sharing thousands more laughs and smiles with my sweet husband. I’ve never met someone that made me feel more loved and made me laugh so much. I’m so excited to begin our family together and continue laughing and smiling through life- TOGETHER!
VENDORS:
Venue: The Winfield Inn
Food: The Winfield Inn
Flowers: Westbank Flower Market
Band: The Argyles
