Mishawaka, Indiana, Wedding Photography |June 4, 2011

Photographer: Katie Whitcomb | Photographers, Ceremony Venue: Coalbush United Methodist Church, Reception Venue: Knights of Columbus, Catering: Knights of Columbus, DJ: The Music Place, Florist: Sam’s Club, Cake: Cakewalk, Hair: Studio 23

Alex and I met in the fall of 2004 when I joined the handbell choir that he played in at Coalbush United Methodist Church. We were stand partners in the choir and he taught me how to read music and learn how to play bells. We were both very shy but Alex finally asked me out on Valentine’s Day 2006 and we have been inseparable ever since!

Alex proposed on June 23, 2009. Alex and I had planned to go to Warren Dunes to go swimming and hang out at the beach then watch the sunset that night. We invited one of our friends along and it was a great afternoon. Alex even bought me ice cream at the beach which was unusual so I was very happy (little did I know it was an excuse to go get the ring out of the car!). When sunset got nearer we climbed Tower Hill because Alex said the view would be best from the top. When we got close to the top we sat down to wait for sunset. Soon Alex turned to me, told me he loved me, got down on one knee, and asked me to marry him!! I was completely surprised and so happy! The best part of it all is we have pictures of everything because the friend we brought along was all part of Alex’s plan and he captured every moment! I couldn’t have been happier that night!

I have always loved roses and lillies so I really wanted to incorporate those into our flowers somehow. When we decided to order our flowers from Sam’s Club we did not have as much choice as we would have had elsewhere, but I still had my two favorites in the bouquet! My bouquet was varying shades of pink and looked almost like wildflowers, which I loved. During the ceremony I wrapped an old family hankerchief around my bouquet as my something borrowed (since Alex got me pearls that replaced my original something borrowed!). I loved our flowers and would gladly order flowers from Sam’s Club again!

It is so hard to pick one moment out of the entire day, but I would have to say one of my favorite moments is when I started walking down the aisle with my dad and saw Alex for the first time. Words can’t explain how happy I was right then! Alex’s favorite moment was watching me walk down the aisle toward him. Another of our favorite moments was when we were standing at the front of the church facing the congregation and the pastor pronounced us husband and wife. I wanted to jump up and down and shout (several people said they thought it looked like I was going to!).

We were married at Coalbush United Methodist Church. It was an easy decision for us to pick Coalbush because it is the church where we met so we had a lot of history there. It is a beautiful church with stained glass windows and I couldn’t imagine being married anywhere else.

For our reception we decided on the Knights of Columbus after looking at a few places around South Bend and Mishawaka. We loved the enthusiasm of the coordinator at Knights of Columbus, its location near Beutter Park, and the overall size and look of the venue. We wanted our reception to be cozy and fun, but also beautiful, and I think that is what we accomplished!

We first looked at many photographers online trying to find someone that fit the classic but creative style we were looking for in the price range we wanted, with little success. Then I saw photos of an engagement session Katie Whitcomb Photographers had done for one of my friends on facebook and I fell in love with them. I emailed Katie to set up an appointment to meet and see more photos. When Alex and I met with Katie we left knowing that we had found our wedding photographer. We loved their style and we immediately felt like Katie was a friend who knew exactly what we wanted for our photos!

When we chose the food for our reception we decided on chicken marsala and sausage along with rice, mashed potatoes, and vegetables. We weren’t sure what to expect since we hadn’t eaten at the Knights of Columbus before, but the food was very good!

For our wedding reception favors we made baggies of Alex’s great-grandmother’s sugar cookies and attached a recipe card to the outside. Alex’s aunt made over 1,000 cookies that took us more than 5 hours to ice, but it was well worth it on the day of the wedding to be able to give our guests such a meaningful and tasty treat!

For our wedding we wanted something classy and somewhat formal with a Victorian vintage flair. We decided on light pink and mocha brown for our colors since I have always loved brown but with a summer wedding we wanted to lighten it up and add a pretty pink too. We wanted a somewhat Victorian feel at the reception so we decided on making candles inside teacups ourselves to use as part of our centerpieces. My dad also made us a beautiful wishing well for our cards that we used at the reception. The centerpieces were all put together by the coordinator at Knights of Columbus, and I think she did an excellent job capturing the beauty and flair that we wanted, without the added stress for me right before the wedding!

Our cake was made by Cakewalk, LLC in Plymouth, IN. We had three different types of cake, including vanilla cake with strawberry mousse filling, chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache and buttercream filling, and spice cake with cream cheese icing. The cake was iced with buttercream and had piping details that matched the beading and lace on the bodice and skirt of my wedding gown. The pink fondant draping matched the maid of honor’s dress, and our monogram on top matched the rest of the bridesmaid’s dresses. We had pink-tipped sugar calla lillies on the cake because I love calla lillies but I could not have them in my bouquet so I had them on the cake instead! We loved how beautiful the cake was and it tasted delicious too!

Try not to stress about the little things too much because the day of the wedding goes by so fast it will be over before you know it and the small things you stressed about won’t be important. If you are on a budget get the things that you know you will remember and forget the things that you can live without (we decided not to get a limo so we could have the cake we really wanted). Also, if it is hot drink lots of water, get some cooling mist, and bring a big fan!

To view more image from the day, got to: http://pictage.com/862629