Brooke and Alex’s Wedding Day Pros
Photographer Laura Wills Photography | Ceremony & Reception Venue Bride's childhood home | Caterer Grandma's famous spaghetti recipe | Cake Shonda and Sara Mouser (family friend) | Floral Modern Floral Creations, Lisa Faye | Hair Ashley Asberry (family friend) | Makeup & Tanning Blonde Blur | Fitness Orangetheory Fitness in Coralville, Iowa | Wedding Dress Bridal Boutique, Willowby Lainie | Menswear Joseph A. Bank | Stationery XOXO Invites | Rental Classic Events & Parties | Officiant My father was our officiant, which was very special | Music DIY playlist
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Q: Did you think about canceling your wedding due to the pandemic?
A: Yes, we canceled our postponed wedding because of the virus. It was going to be on August 22nd in Orland Park, Illinois, but because it was so close to Chicago, we knew it was not going to be possible.
Q: Did you have to make changes to your original plans? If so, what did you do differently?
A: We were supposed to get married on May 23rd at the Crystal Tree Country Club in Orland Park, Illinois, but changed to my childhood living room when we realized that a May wedding was not going to happen.
Q: Why did you decide not to delay your wedding?
A: We were so ready to be married. About a month prior, we had gone down to Atlanta to buy a house and ended up finding our dream home. Since we were set to close on April 24th, it just made sense to go ahead with a wedding on April 18th. My bridal shower was going to be the same date, so my family already had flights home and the weekend off work. We are both in law school, which had gone virtual at this point, so we had the flexibility to get married, move into our new home, and take finals.
Everything worked out perfectly. My parents were selling my childhood home, so it was practically empty. Alex’s parents had found a tux on sale a few months prior. The alterations on my dress were completed right before everything shut down because of COVID. The list goes on and on. It truly could not have worked out better.
Q: What was the best thing about your intimate wedding?
A: Getting to live every moment. We were planning on having a fairly large wedding, so scaling it back to just 15 people was a huge adjustment. It also took all the pressure off of us and allowed us to be so present with the people around us. I didn’t have to worry about a timeline, coordinating out of town guests, tripping down the aisle, etc. It was just about Alex and I. We heard so many more toasts than a typical wedding. We didn’t have 300 guests to greet, so we were able to start dancing as soon as dinner was over. It was all those little things that made the evening so spectacular.
