This is one of those weddings where I’m left with about a million things I want to say. At the end of a wedding day like Terry and Amanda’s, I find myself both completely exhausted and immensely grateful. The thing about a wedding day like theirs – the ones where there’s a ton of rain and changes in plans – is that at the end of the day, my heart feels chock full of love for my couple. I love Amanda for thinking to ice her soon-to-be husband at the last minute when I took her letter to him when they were both getting ready in separate rooms, and I love Terry for the way he looked at his guys when they all realized his soon-to-be wife just pulled off one of the best icings of all time. I love them for the way they walked across the muddy ground with me, and for the way Amanda scooped up the train of her dress in one hand and held Terry’s in the other. I love them for taking swigs out of the bottle of champagne together while standing out in the cold, and for setting the umbrella down even though it looked like it could start raining again at any moment. I love them for how they embraced these moments fully – for the way they looked at one another, and the way they savored this alone time, and the way I no longer had to tell them what to do or how to pose because they simply wanted to kiss each other regardless of my prompts.

In their toasts, Amanda and Terry’s loved ones went on to describe many of the additional qualities I had grown to love about them in getting to know them – Amanda’s passion and her energy and her determination, and Terry’s seemingly tough exterior that contains an incredibly kind, loyal heart. I caught myself tearing up during these toasts, and again during the dances, and caught myself grinning from ear to ear as they cut their cake and tore up the dance floor with their family and friends. There’s so many ways a wedding day can go down, and these two, man – these two, despite the rain and the weather and the plan changes – they did it absolutely right.

Reception Venue + Food: The Crystal Ballroom
Ceremony: Winnetka Congregational Church
Dress: RK Bridal in NYC
Cake: The Baking Institute
DJ + photo booth: Music by Design
Flowers: Amanda’s Uncle Steve
Centerpieces: DIY [Handmade paper flowers from pages of an old bible + peanut jars from bride’s grandmother’s farmhouse]