I’m so excited to finally share pictures from my sister’s wedding! It was a day we’ll always remember.  Weddings are part of a family’s history, and the pictures are what is left to document the carefully chosen details, the decor chosen to reflect the tastes of the couple, the guests gathered to celebrate, and of course all the emotion as the bride and groom become one family.  I know all of us will treasure the pictures of this amazing day!

I had lots of fun helping to plan Lora’s wedding and create her Winter in the Woods theme!  I am not particularly crafty so I’m extra proud of how all of the DIY projects came out. The bouquets and boutonnieres, the pew decor, the table numbers, the easel for the table assignments, the programs … everything looked beautiful! I learned a lot about glue guns, removing bugs and even scorpions from pinecones, choosing the right wood for wood slices, wrapping floral tape evenly, and more. The wooden cupcake towers were another DIY project made by Lora, Kyle, and Kyle’s mom, and they looked perfect too!

Lora and Kyle have lots of exciting adventures ahead and they were on a very tight budget for their wedding, but it felt important to them to have an elegant evening reception for family and friends to eat dinner, dance, and celebrate together. We are incredibly grateful to the vendors who worked with us to make this wedding happen! Cari Collinsworth from KyleLynn Weddings was there the morning of the wedding to do our hair and makeup and make us feel beautiful. My girls were so excited to have their hair done and be fancy, and Cari was great with them! Jason worked hard to balance being part of the family and also the photographer and I thank him for that, especially considering the challenge we gave him with sunset and tight timing!  The ceremony was at St Stephen Catholic Church and Father Curtis was the officiant. Our kids love him! Jose Rivera was there with a violinist for the music at the ceremony.

The reception was held at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center in Tampa.  Luis of L&L Events Tampa is just amazing. He is so kind and helpful, and he went above and beyond to make the day just what Lora wanted! Everyone enjoyed the food, and I still want more of the antipasto skewer appetizers! Premier Bartending Services was also at the reception for drinks. Michelle at Grant Hemond & Associates, Inc. is an awesome person and we were happy to have Jeff Tarquinto to DJ the reception! He did even more than we could have expected when Lora and Kyle had some unique requests, including a Mission Impossible themed garter removal. Thank you so much to the entire vendor team!

It was such a blessing to have our family together and to see my sister and Kyle so happy, and truly special to be part of the day they officially became a family!  We love you Lora and Kyle, and congratulations again!