After only 6 months of dating Chris asked me if I would marry him. When you know, you know, right?
Well, shortly thereafter, we found out we were pregnant. This was shocking, scary, happy, sad, & very exciting, pretty much every single emotion you could feel. We decided to wait until after our little bundle was born for the wedding, basically because I wanted to be able to drink and have fun on my wedding day and didn't want to feel like a big marshmellow. And because we wanted our precious baby to be the ring bearer :)
We were really close to doing a May wedding in Boston. But once Landon was born, all grandiose wedding plans were kind of thrown out the window. I didn't care about having a crazy Bachelorette party or bridal shower. I didn't care about what kind of shoes I was going to wear. I didn't care anymore about any of the wedding planning drama I had been sucked into. I just wanted to marry Chris and make our family a real family, and vow to each other before God, all of our lives and our futures. Planning a wedding so far out and out-of-state became increasingly difficult & expensive & a total headache. I thought seriously about telling everyone we were having an "engagement party" in September and inviting all our friends and family and then surprising everyone with a walk down the aisle. But then a lot of people didn't want to travel and I knew they would only come out here if they knew we were getting married.
One September night amidst this aggravation, I put Landon to bed and sat in the rocking chair in his nursery and thought about what I really wanted and what was best for us as a family. I decided we were going to get married, here in Chicago, and sooner rather than later. I knew in my heart this was what we were supposed to do, and the very next day we met with our priest and he looked at his book and said, "I have a 4:00 on December 18th open."
With less than 3 months to plan - we pulled it off, and it was unbelievably spectacular. With a close 125 guests, open seating, buffet style holiday dinner, lots of drinks, mingling, and dancing....Everything was perfect. From the breathtaking cathedral, the silver & gold lit Christmas tree, to our romantic horse drawn carriage ride, to kicking up our heels and dancing all night, to having the best bridal party a bride and groom could ask for, and to marrying the absolute love of my life.
The day after, Landon was baptized in the same Church we were married in, and we all lived happily, sacriment-aly, ever-after.
Getting ready and pre-ceremony shots:
Honeybunny was our adorable little immobile ringbearer :)
I think someone stole the show
Honeybunny with Mimi & Poppa
I seriously started crying when I put my dress on....Good thing I had Sazzy there to blot my tears :*)
my beautiful and awesome bridesmaids on the rooftop of theWit
goin' to the chapel ;)
it was a long day for the little guy. Passed out on grandma Bauman <3
best wedding planner ever :) don't know how i would have pulled all this off in 3 months without you!!
Do you & I Do's ;) ......
Holy Name Cathedral
the happy couple: a few stops on our way the reception....
Our reception @ Maxim's:
father/daughter dance
First Dance
i think my favorite part of the reception -- the surprise Serenade
the sibs
.... & they lived happily ever after.
Photography by Jen Soares
We preferred this place because they are all-inclusive, so you don't have to worry about linens, chairs, catering, and cake because it's all part of the package.
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