When I first walked into the hotel room where the ladies were getting ready on Stacey and Nick’s wedding day, I can’t remember if the first thing I experienced was Stacey’s infectious smile or her excited greeting as I entered – it’s hard to say, really, because the two so often go hand-in-hand with her that once you’re in the midst of it, you kind of forget about anything else but how contagious her happiness is in general.

I asked her how things were going, and she responded with a, “great!”, which was followed by more laughter and an explanation that the pizza place they hired had accidentally delivered all of the “late night” pizzas that were supposed to arrive during the reception at 10 am instead of 10 pm. But the thing is, her “great!” was sincere despite this – she shrugged it off and went on chatting with her girls.

This was the first wedding to kick off my “busy season” this year, and it was one of those wedding days that had a way of reminding me just how much I love this job. Stacey and Nick spent the day taking photos here and there with me, sure, but more importantly, I had the chance to observe them in their element with their family and friends. One of the things I love most about the two of them lies in how good they are to their people; the way they embraced each and every one of their wedding guests in a way that showed just how much they meant it. They lit up with every greeting and hug and cheer, and then again when they observed each other doing so. As Nick’s friend, as well as Stacey’s sister and father all gave toasts sharing with the room all the things they love about these two people, one of the best parts was seeing them each beam when they heard their loved ones talk about the person they had just married.

They spent the day loving on each other and the rest of their family and friends, and eating barbeque and drinking Coors lights, and dancing and singing along with their Purdue friends to the college fight song, and I am not exaggerating when I say it really all just felt like the best thing to me. Every so often I’ll leave a wedding with an absolute “wedding high” – I’m exhausted and my shoulders ache and yet I’m strangely alert and grinning alone in my car and reminiscing about everything I just witnessed, and to say I left this wedding with one of those would be the most accurate thing.

Venue: Warehouse 109
Catering: Baby Back Blues
Hair + Makeup: Blushing Reflections
DJ: DJ Chicago
Videography: Native Creative
Cake: Harner’s Bakery
Florals: Redberry Floral
Transportation: Mane Limousine