How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. We met our sophomore year of college at UT Austin at a back to school party. We didn’t really know each other, and Sundeep came up to me and asked me to have dinner with him sometime and got my number.
Describe the proposal: We were ice skating at Rockefeller Center in November of 2007. As the session came to a close and the crowd began to exit the rink for resurfacing, Sundeep convinced me that we should do one more quick round on the ice before leaving. As we came around the loop and the ice was nearly empty, Sundeep used his superb acting skills and took a nasty fall to the ice. As I looked down at Sundeep, joking that I was a much better ice skater than him, Sundeep acted like he was hurt and couldn't get up onhis own. AsI grasped Sundeep's hand to help him up, I pulled him up on one knee before he paused. With his other hand, Sundeep had slyly pulled out the ring from his coat pocket. While I stood in surprise and “our song” played through the cold winter air, Sundeep proposed to me.The crowd of ice skaters and tourists (and a few of our closest friends hidden among them) went wild after I finally got over the shock and muttered a “yes” as we did a victory lap.
What attracted me to my husband was: His dashing good looks (obviously) and his goofy sense of humor. He has this power to make me laugh even when I’m down.
What attracted me to my wife was: She’s hot! She is the funniest person I have ever met in my entire life and makes me laugh every single day. She loves playing video games. She loves playing sports. And she’s the only other person that hates apples like I do.
A date we went on that we’ll always remember: Our first date at Thai Passion in Austin will always be the most memorable. It was our first time ever hanging out, and we knew nothing about each other. We ended up hitting it off and even shared our dishes with each other.
The weather on our wedding day was: Blue skies, sunny and 75 degrees
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? Royal Indian colors mixed with modern elegance.
Favorite design element of your big day: Our Mandap, the canopy under which our wedding ceremony took place. It was very open and grand, with colors that matched my wedding dress.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I purchased it at a boutique during a trip to India. It weighed about 30 pounds and felt like 100 when I was walking down the aisle! The traditional Indian wedding dress color is red but I wanted to be a little different so I wore a gold outfit with red accents.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: There are too many to have a favorite, but we loved it when my adorable nephew, who was our ring bearer, rode his decorated tricycle down the aisle.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? Sundeep and I live in New York City so it was definitely a challenge trying to plan a wedding from across the country. Every trip we took home was filled with vendor meetings and venue walk thrus. Also, since I am event planner in New York, I refused to hire a wedding planner which became a bit overwhelming at times.
Were there any special family traditions you included in the wedding? There were so many! Our favorite was when my sisters and closest girlfriends stole Sundeep’s shoes during the wedding ceremony (he removed them before the ceremony started). Usually, the groom will negotiate with the sisters immediately after the ceremony to get his shoes back. But my sisters/girlfriends decided to wait until 1am during the send-off outside before making their ‘demands’. As we got in the car, my sisters/girlfriends all jumped in front of the car and began singing a song demanding payment in return for Sundeep’s shoes. They wouldn’t even let the car leave, so Sundeep had to get out of the car and negotiate with them while everyone stood around laughing at the situation. Needless to say, Sundeep paid a hefty price to get his shoes back (The whole game is a way for the groom’s new sister-in-laws to poke fun at him, and it serves as an ice breaker between the two sides).
Funniest moment? When the priest broke out into song during the ceremony... And he decided to get the entire crowd singing the song, which sounded like a nursery rhyme. We’d never heard that song before and never heard of something like that ever happening. Sundeep and I just stared at each other biting our lips trying not to laugh.
What advice would you give to someone planning their wedding? Remember that the day is about you and your husband. Start early, and try to stay organized. And in the end, try to remember every moment, because it flies by so quickly.
What's next for you as a couple? Trying to settle into our apartment in Manhattan. And finally trying to enjoy living in the city again. We spent so much time wedding planning we forgot we lived in Manhattan. And maybe adding a new family member - a dog of course!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. We met the summer after I graduated from high school in Virginia, at a party. I was immediately smitten with the young man from California and asked my friends to "accidentally" leave me at the party. So, I asked Justin for a ride home. We began dating and after 2 years of dating we decided we were too young to commit. We broke up but always kept in touch. Justin moved back out to California. I finished college in Virginia and moved to LA. One day Justin called me and asked to hang out and we've been together since.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? The inspiration was the gorgeous landscape of Los Olivos. Bright pinks, oranges and browns were used to create a rich, warm and inviting atmosphere. Lots of fun and little fuss.
Favorite design element of your big day: Marigolds and lanterns on the tables
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I didn't try on a single dress. I always knew what I wanted. Brides by Liza was recommended by a friend so I went, described my dream dress and had it made.
Describe your wedding flowers: Our flowers were gorgeous we used succulents and orchids.
Describe your wedding cake: We had bite size cupcakes for our wedding cake.
What advice would you give to someone planning their wedding? Relax, have fun, know that things will go wrong but it won't matter in the end. If your guests see the bride and the groom having a good time they will too. Enjoy it! Make sure you check in with each other throughout the evening because it goes quickly and everyone wants your attention.
What's next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? Enjoying married life and traveling the world, then babies.

Congratulations Bridget + Justin! We wish you a lifetime of love and happiness!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story We initially met at our church in Los Angeles. Well, really it was after church while hanging out with friends at “The Alcove”, a favorite coffee shop of ours - we both share an intense love for coffee and we kinda feed each others addiction for the cursed caffeine. Its divine! (Blake) “(Sigh)...It was a dreary, cold night. I had a panini. Rey had a burger. Across 3 adjoined tables, in response to the offer of a sandwich, a girly voice uttered, 'Um no thanks, I don't eat meat.' 'Huh,' I scoffed, looking down at my juicy, chicken panini, then turning to Rey, 'that'll never work!'"(Stevie) “Little did he know.....haha!!!" And that's when it all started... (cue romantic theme song).
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? We wanted a vintage feel to color the entire day. We are both very traditional but also trendy so we wanted to combine all that together. I (Stevie) met with Kate Miller Events to describe what I wanted. Simple. Beautiful. Old-fashioned. Quirky. Lovely. And that’s exactly what I got. I was amazed when I walked through the doors and saw how everything turned out. Especially that groom down at the end of the aisle. You can't dream that up. We were on a very tight budget – we hosted 100 guests for a little over $13,000 – so everything had to be cheap and chic. Kate gave us lots of DIY projects to add our personality without spending a ton – like the lemonade drink umbrellas and our vintage telegram programs. We also had mostly candle centerpieces to add cheap ambient lighting.
Favorite design element of your big day: Our Dessert table. Amazing. Delicious. Delectable.The table contained seven different cakes on borrowed cake stands and was flanked by a small candy buffet on the ends that served as our favor to the guests. The glitter monogram cake topper, teeny little mushroom birds and the signage that Kate Miller Events created tied it all together. I also loved the Guestbook that Kate came up with. To defer costs Kate found us quilting fabric that we cut into square and fabric pens so that each guest could fill one out. They were all hung on a string accented by photos of Blake and I. My Aunt will be sewing the squares together to make a keepsake quilt that we will treasure for years.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: It’s one of those things - you just know. That moment when you put it on and you're head starts filling up with all your ideas of that special day and you can picture yourself walking towards that man. That's the dress. It was a Pronovias style that had a mock-neck neckline and I had it altered to a strapless sweetheart neckline.
Describe your wedding flowers: In this economy, a girls gotta’ save where she can.My mom had been a florist when she was younger and she's always had a knack for aesthetic things.After the rehearsal,we all headed over to my parents house where my mom taught all of my bridesmaids how to make their own bouquets! Itmade for beautiful flowers that were fun to do, personal to each girl and inexpensive! Kate found vintage yellow velvet ribbon to wrap around their stems and a special beaded cameo for my bridal bouquet.
Describe your wedding cake: We purchased miscellaneous cakes from our favorite local French baker. While they were not a traditional wedding cake, it certainly saved our budget! Ettore’s decorates their basic cakes beautifully – but they taste even better than they look.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The telegram programs inspired by Amanda at Vintage Glam and the pom poms that our guests tossed at us during our farewell.
Favorite inspirational blogs or sites: My wedding coordinator Kate got me hooked on Weddingbee and the SWS Blog, of course!

Congratulations Stevie + Blake! We hope life brings you joy!

To view more posts from Gia Graham's Guest Blogging on the Southern Weddings blog you can still view all of her old post here for some fabulous inspiration: I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII.

This DIY Download was inspired by one of her beautiful Color Palettes. Her readers were asked to vote on their favorite Color Palette to use for inspiration on her next DIY Download. Well the votes are in and this color palette, Vintage-Inspired Homespun Charm was the big winner! Check out the lovely color palette and click the link to learn how to make a little vintage-inspired homespun for your own wedding! {DIY Download: Cello Bag Labels}

image sources: {all from Gia Graham's Flights of Fancy Blog} Row 1 {Eva Lindh}, {Jose Villa}, {Marissa Wedding Invitation} by {Betsywhite Stationery} Row 2 {Martha Stewart Weddings}, {Saipua} Row 3 {Robert Sukrachand}, {Jose Villa} Row 4 {Martha Stewart Weddings}, {Matthew Mead}

The weather on our wedding day was: Tropical!! We were on a beach in the rainforest. The day started out beautiful, rained right before the wedding, and then cleared as I arrived on the beach.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? We wanted a Tropical, Romantic theme. We worked with a Coordinator to select the soft lighting and colorful flowers.
Favorite design element of your big day: The flowers!!! I love orchids and they were everywhere! I loved the tall see-through arrangements. I wanted the height on the tables, but I didn’t want people to not be able to see across at one another. I thought the vibrant colors and soft lighting set off the night. We even had flowers and candles in the pool. I also loved that we used Antique Silver cake-cutters that matched my mothers’ silver pattern. Although the wedding was in Costa Rica, I still included some touches of home.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: It was a true hunt for the perfect dress! I wanted to shop in Chicago with my mother. Our bridal coordinator was a sweet lady who picked it and insisted I try it on.
My mom and I thought the dress was too intricate for a beach wedding. As soon as they clipped it to my body— my mom and I both knew it was “the one”. We knew it would work, as long as we could get it to Costa Rica!
Describe your wedding flowers: ORCHIDS! Pink, Dendrobium, Yellow, White. My bouquet was all white orchids with thick ivory silk ribbon and ivory silk organza.
Describe your wedding cake: The wedding cake had two layers covered in white chocolate fondant. The first layer was white chocolate velvet filled with a Pina-Colada Crème filling and the second layer was macadamia nut cake with Passion Fruit Crème filling.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? It was in COSTA RICA! We tried to take care of as many variables as possible—like bringing our own photographers—but we couldn’t have done it without them!!! We could not have done it without the talented duo!! They were there to capture everything from the zipline tour to the catamaran trip to the rehearsal dinner and wedding day!
Were there any special family traditions you included in the wedding? We had so many little special traditions my mom and Brett’s mom snuck in there. Our families are both truly wonderful. We chose Costa Rica over Thanksgiving because we are so blessed to have them. Brett’s family put on a true variety show at the rehearsal dinner. Brett’s mother, Janis, an Opera singer, sang the French love-song she used to
sing to Brett’s father, Jerry while he was in Vietnam, and also learned a beautiful Spanish love song. Brett’s brother Kirk sang our favorite cute love-song and added a few special “home-made” verses!
Also, Brett’s sister Julie and her husband Jason wrote us a very special poem. But, I must say my favorite tradition would be when my mom and dad gave Brett the original Gold Coin. My mom is from Honduras and my grandparents told my father that although my mother (Antonieta) was not a wealthy girl, and came with no dowry, they would be honored if he would accept an old Gold Coin that had been in the family. Since my father died when I was a little girl, it was very touching for my dad (step-dad) Bob to present the gift to Brett. I am very fortunate to have not only had an amazing father, but also the most loving step-father a girl could ask for!! (also lucky because their first names are the same!)
Funniest moment? The Exit...We left as our guests held a veil of sparklers above us with me in my beautiful Ivory silk wedding gown and Brett left in an orange towel!
Hardest decision you made in planning? Deciding that we should forgo the Hometown Wedding. We both come from large families in a close community and we have many dear friends. If we were to have the wedding in Maryville, it would easily be larger than either of us really wanted (or could afford!) All of my friends that had big hometown weddings spent so much time and money stressing and planning. Brett and I just wanted to enjoy our day—not spend time stressing.
The most unexpected event on our wedding day was: Thank goodness you limited this question to just wedding DAY....we had a 7 day adventure so everyday brought something unexpected! On the actual day...I would say seeing my father-in-law and my father jump into the swimming pool with all their clothes on was totally unexpected.
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Soft, Romantic, and Tropical.
What advice would you give to someone planning their wedding? 1) Do NOT plan an overseas destination wedding without a Travel Coordinator, a Wedding Coordinator, and lots of flexible guests! I have a new appreciation for school teachers taking children on field-trips. When we started following the wedding agenda on the 3rd day— I was relieved because our Wedding Coordinator stepped in and took care of all the counting. 2)Take it all in! Even if the details get annoying (and they will)-- it will all be worth it in the end. The day really is special, don’t rush it!
Best advice or most memorable comment someone made to you during the wedding celebration. “May God Continue to Bless You” that was told to me in English, Spanish, and Portuguese! Since we planned our wedding over a Thanksgiving holiday, that really captured the theme.
Who was your most honored guest at the wedding? Since we went to Costa Rica, everyone that attended was very special to Brett and I. I was very touched at the guests that came from London, Brazil, and everyone that braved the trip down to the tropics. But I was most honored when I got a surprise appearance from my Grandmother from Honduras (she is 86). She brought 11 of my Honduran family members with her and the fact that she came brought me to tears.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? We are both extremely busy—so our next step is to keep-on- keeping-on! Neither of us has ever been away from home or work for more than 3 days FOR ANYTHING, so leaving for 11 days do get married AND go on our honeymoon left us both playing catch-up. We are looking forward to our next vacation (this time WITHOUT 61 other guests!). We enjoy vacation time when we can get it— but this time we are going to travel alone!!
Favorite inspirational blogs or sites (if any): {Beall and Thomas}, {Wedding Window}, {The Knot} and {Southern Weddings}.

Congratulations to Edna + Brett. May God continue to bless you each day!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story: Both hailing from active Maryville, Tennessee families and being Maryville High School graduates, there was always a few degrees of separation between us. We never met until much later, but our paths seemed destined to cross. I went to MaryvilleHigh School with Julie (Brett’s sister) and Brett was the same age as my step-brother. We both graduated from Maryville
High School (he six years ahead of me) and went on to pursue higher education and start our careers. One night after Brett finished a hard day at work and was checking his email, a message from his manager arrived announcing that his team had just hired a specialty product representative. The email went on to highlight that this new hire (a female) had experience working overseas and now would be working with the East Tennessee team. Brett called the number on the email and scheduled to meet her the following morning. “When she got out of the car, I knew I was in trouble,” said Brett. He spent the rest of the day working with me and by the end of the afternoon, we discovered how close we had been to meeting each other at other times. My dad operated on both his parents, Brett and my step-brother knew each other in high-school, and I was his sister’s Spanish 3 partner. Over the following weeks, Brett and I reminisced about growing up in the same community. After Brett got the boss’s blessing, we started dating. When Fall came, Brett took me horse-back riding on his parents’ Belgian Draft Horse Farm. At one time, Cunningham Farms raised over 25 Belgian Draft Horses and specialized in Carriage Rides and old fashioned farming with horse-drawn machinery. When we were leaving the barn, we both suddenly noticed a newspaper clipping on the barn billboard. It was a faded yellow picture from The Daily Times back in 1985 (our local Newspaper). In the photograph, Brett is driving a team of Belgian Draft Horses pulling a cart and family. In the photo, I am standing on a bale of hay while Brett is driving. We got engaged a few weeks later over
Thanksgiving.
What attracted me to my husband was: He is one of the most playful people I know—but he is also the first to take the shirt off his back and give it to someone in need. He is generous to a fault and is not afraid to sacrifice for causes he cares about. He can also make you laugh so hard your tummy will hurt for weeks. Did I mention- he’s not bad looking either??
Why do you love your husband? Because there is no one else for me. He has a softer side he hides under his mischievous armor.
What attracted me to my wife was: My husband said he now has to turn in his “Man” card for doing more wedding crap after being married! Best answer he could give “Her fiery Latin side.”
A date we went on that we’ll always remember: Our first trip to Costa Rica. Brett had never been in Latin America before! We found a long weekend to getaway. We both had a blast!
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The design of the actual ceremony. We had to have a tent at the last minute due to weather, but each seat was decorated with a beautiful wedding program, a cone of beautiful small tropical orchids, and a champagne bubble blower! We also had a beautiful table with our special Unity Candle and orchids to represent the loved-ones in our lives that could not make it. Even just after the rain, it looked beautiful!
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Getting our hair, nails, and make-up done! I loved spending time with my incredible wedding party and the other ladies on our trip. We turned the wedding day into a day of pampering! It was so much fun not only to be with all my ladies—but also to see the transformations! We had such a blast that day.

Scariest moment? I had two scares in one day! The first scariest moment was right before it miraculously stopped raining! I was so scared of walking over the bridge with my dad in the rain! I was so thankful when it finally stopped completely when I got out of the car. Then, I got even more scared after my dad announced that since the wedding in Costa Rica was just Ceremonial, he didn’t feel comfortable with me going on our honeymoon. At that point, my father-in-law jumped up and married us again! Twice in one day! The laws had just changed and the Costa Rican weddings were not considered legal anymore. Thankfully, Brett made me go with him to the courthouse before we left the country to get a marriage license. Since his father Jerry is a Mayor, he could marry us all over again!

Did you write your own vows? If so, what was your favorite phrase/ verse/or line? We did not write our own vows per-se- but we worked with Friar Jorge (our Celebrant) to create a blend of vows that focused on our unique wedding and love for each other. When Brett’s dad married us again that night, we used traditional vows.

More to come from Edna + Brett!

What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? The distance. I live in Birmingham and we were getting married at the church in Dothan, Alabama with the reception at my parents home.
Were there any special family traditions you included in the wedding? We both grew up in the Methodist church, and really wanted to make our ceremony a religious event. We took communion during our ceremony, which was the very first think we did as a married couple.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? The weather. It would rain, then the sun would come out. Then the bottom would fall out, then it all stopped.
Hardest decision you made in planning? Finding THE dress.
The most unexpected event on our wedding day was: Again, the weather. You plan months in advance for something, but we never expected the weather to be like it was.
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Elegant, Formal, Religious.
What advice would you give to someone planning their wedding? If you can make your budget work, definitely hire a wedding planner.
Best advice or most memorable comment someone made to you during the wedding celebration. "Enjoy every minute of it!"

Congratulations to Kate + Justin! We wish you a lifetime of love and joy!

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If I could invite anyone to dinner, I would probably invite my mother's step granfather. I've never heard of anyone my mother speaks of so highly, knowing all kinds of answers to all kinds of questions, and being everything a father should be. Never really having a father figure like that, I would have love to have known him longer before he passed when I was so young. My mother named me after him, and I think it would be wonderful to have the opportunity to get to know him.

June 17, 2009 

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Your mother's step grandfather sounds like he was a wonderful man. Thank you so much for sharing this with us! If you could email me at {whitney at iloveswmag dot com}, we will send you on your way with your brand new, stunning linens from {Saffron Marigold}!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. We have grown up together, and our parents are very good friends. We actually had a date about four years prior to when we started dating. We joke now that that time "Didn't take." Then about three years ago, we were both home for Thanksgiving and ran into each other. He asked me out over Christmas and we just really hit it off, and dated ever since.
Describe the proposal: We were moving him out of an apartment and into his new house back in July. His parents were in town helping him move and box up all his stuff on Friday. On Saturday, we went back to his apartment to move all the food out of the refrigerator. So as I open the door and start boxing up beer and milk, there is a ring box on the first shelf of the refrigerator, and he said "Will you marry me?" It was completely unromantic, but it truly was a total surprise!
Why do you love your husband? We share the same values, morals, beliefs and goals.
The weather on our wedding day was: Pouring down rain, and hailing, but everything stopped in time for the wedding and reception.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? I wanted everything extremely formal and elegant. Think Princess Diana.
Favorite design element of your big day: My dress, especially the jacket.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I had a very difficult time finding my dress. I tend to like very different things that not everybody has. I also had a definite picture in mind of what I wanted, and really could not find it anywhere. I would try on all these beautiful gowns, and every time it just wasn't the right one. I finally found my dress at Impressions in Atlanta, and absolutely loved it.
Describe your wedding flowers: Varying shades of whites and creams: Peonys, Orchids, Stock, French and Parrot Tulips, Quints, Bells of Ireland
Describe your wedding cake: Olexa's butter cream frosting! My cake was a five-tiered cake with pearlized panels. Very clean and elegant with a tight rose topping

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story.  I had just moved to Chapel Hill for graduate school and Eric was working for the basketball team at Carolina.  Eric set up “noon ball” twice a week with people in the athletic department at UNC. Usually, we play basketball but that day, a friend invited me to play ultimate Frisbee with the group.  I remember Eric as the guy who talked the most, laughed the most, and never stopped moving. Actually, I don’t think I could think of a better description of him.
Describe the proposal: Eric took me to a very nice dinner and suggested we grab ice cream on Franklin Street following dinner. We had to walk through campus to get there and when we got in front of the Davie Poplar tree, a Chapel Hill landmark, Eric dropped to his knee and asked me to marry him. I don’t remember exactly what he or I said but I remember he couldn’t stop shaking.
What attracted me to my husband was: His energy and passion.  He can and will make friends with everyone and anyone he comes into contact with and wants to do everything for everybody. He puts other people’s needs before his own without even thinking and has such a love of life.
Why do you love your husband?  He makes me laugh and has a great heart. I know one day he’ll make a great father.
What attracted me to my wife was: The cut-off worn orange t-shirt she was wearing.  I remember meeting her playing ultimate Frisbee and saying all day that I was guarding orange because I didn’t know her name.  In all seriousness, there were many qualities that attracted me to Amy.  She is beautiful, outgoing, fun to be around, athletic, smart, and independent.  We always had fun together and always had something to talk about.  I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with a person that had all of these great qualities.
The weather on our wedding day was: Beautiful and sunny. Hot enough for the bridesmaids to need to take hair dryers to their dresses prior to the ceremony.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? At first, the inspiration was the outdoors and I chose brown and green as our colors (Eric was mad no Carolina blue was included).  Since we had intended to get married outdoors, I was going to go with an earthy feel with rocks and grass and fans for programs.  Things changed, we got married inside, and I only partially followed that theme.
Favorite design element of your big day:  The rock place cards.  Several months ago, I made Eric stop at a river on our way home from vacation in the mountains.  We took off our shoes, took out our coolers, and went wading for rocks.  Eric thought I was crazy (and being cheap) but I had a vision and he was good about complying with all my crazy wedding requests. I laugh when I remember us lugging these rocks back to our car, pretending for the sake of the other picnickers, that we weren’t crazy.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: My roommates dragged me out the week I got engaged and it was the quickest and most painless decision I made. I tried on two dresses, liked the first, loved the second.
Describe your wedding flowers:  Gorgeous. I gave my florist one inspiration picture but beyond that, I had little involvement. I trusted my florist and he did an amazing job.
Describe your wedding cake: Cupcakes!  I loved them and apparently so did everyone else.  We realized people had started grabbing the cupcakes before we cut the “cake.”  We did an impromptu cake cutting and by the end of the night, there were no cupcakes to be found
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The photo booth was a hit.  I have our amazing photographer to thank for that detail. Our photographer, Eliesa, has a wedding giveaway each year and the winning couple in the contest gets free wedding photography. Eliesa is the best in the business and we were SO thankful to win.  Since we won the contest, we had a little wiggle room in the budget and I was able to justify splurging on a photo booth.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding?  The guest list. When I say Eric makes friends with every and anyone, I am not kidding. Cutting people from the list was difficult
Were there any special family traditions you included in the wedding?  Our toasting flutes were the same ones my parents used at their wedding 35 years ago.  Our names and wedding dates are engraved next to theirs.  Also, Eric's father married us. It’s not a tradition but it was special.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day?  Riding around campus in golf carts, taking pictures with our wedding party.  We had a blast and it was great to be able to hang out with each other and our friends before the ceremony.
Scariest moment?  None really.  Except when the coordinator at the reception site came up to us and told us there were two guests who didn’t have a spot at a table.  We had not invited these people, but we knew who they were and they knew many of our guests, which made for an uncomfortable situation.   We debated between pulling up a chair somewhere vs. telling the guests they were not invited.  It dawned on me that there was a reception at the Carolina Inn, a reception site very close to our own, and it appeared they were at the wrong venue.  About that same time in dawned on them that we were a different bride and groom.
Funniest moment? Eric golfed that day with his groomsmen and on the first tee, he swung his driver, made contact, and let go of the club.  It is still hanging on the trees at the first hole of the Finley Golf Course.  For me, as I was struggling to get into my wedding dress, I commented how graceful my entrance was and at that same moment, I elbowed one of my bridesmaids right on the side of the face. It was fitting that what is such a magical moment for most girls was full of bloopers and laughter for me.
The most unexpected event on our wedding day was:  Eric stepped on my dress on our way out to our first dance and then the DJ played the wrong first dance song.  The DJ realized his mistake and transitioned from the slower Elton John song to our song, Jason Mraz “I’m Yours.” Everyone I talked to later said they thought we planned it that way.
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Joyful, exhilarating, unforgettable
What advice would you give to someone planning their wedding?  Don’t get roped into what the industry says you need to make your wedding great.  Keep your guests in mind, keep it personal, and if it doesn’t bring you joy, don’t do it.
Best advice or most memorable comment someone made to you during the wedding celebration:  Prior to the wedding, someone told us to take a night the week of the wedding and go on a date, just the two of us, with no wedding talk.  We didn’t actually take this advice but we did go to the beach the weekend prior with some friends to relax.
What's next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future?  We are looking forward to gaining a sense of normalcy and being able to spend time with each other without talking about guest lists or registries or timelines.
Any DIY items?  Eric thinks a better question would be what I didn’t do myself.  I made the Save the Dates, invitations, programs, place cards, table numbers, half the centerpieces, charity cards, and photo booth reminder cards.  My competitive personality took over…I thought I could do most things as well as anyone else and for cheaper