Dec 1

Dec 1 Adventure Elopement

As some of you know, Justin and I eloped nearly 5 years ago at the court house on a Wednesday afternoon in January. We knew we wanted to be married. We knew we didn’t want a huge wedding. We knew we just wanted to be together. We both showed up to the court house after work (me in my work clothes) and were married by a guy wearing a Duck Dynasty tie. “This is my marryin’ outfit,” he said as he donned a tie with “HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY” in big capital letters dashed across the front. Us being us, we took it for what it was and chalked it up as a good story.

Our adventure began there. We’ve enjoyed 5 wonderful, growth filled, love infused years. However, we did lament the fact that we didn’t have nice wedding attire, flowers and, most importantly, beautiful photos to look back on forever. Do you want to see the photo we have from our court house elopement?

Do you?

Here it is!

what is this face? what is this shirt? what is anything?!

It is….not…nice. It’s not nice! I was making this face because I had been smiling so much and it’s also pretty horrible and that shirt and the hair and the courthouse background and the grainy and the blurry and the ugh.

So, as you can clearly see we did not print this off and put it in a frame for everyone to see.

Like, I would be pleased if no one saw that photo.

After trying to ditch buying people physical objects for Christmas this year (because I think everything ends up in the landfill), I started to think about how I wanted to gift Justin with real elopement photos. I wanted us to have something that encapsulated our life. Something that showed our passion for adventure, travel, hiking and the outdoors. If you’ve followed this blog or if you know us IRL you know we love being outside. You know we love hiking for miles and miles and miles and posting pictures of blisters, trees and food. You also know we tend to do things in a nontraditional way…of course.

Here you see two people who have known one another longer than we haven’t. Some of you don’t know, but we met when we were 14 years old in our freshmen year of high school.

Cue Katy Howard from Kate How Photo. Our friend from high school, church and fellow participant in teenage antics and angst. Katy, being the kind person she is, offered her excellent photography skills. She helped me plan everything. And largely, I left the majority of the details up to her because that is how much I trust her skill, her creativity and her vision. We ended up going to Foster Falls just outside of Chattanooga, TN. And when I say it’s gorgeous, I mean ethereal, Pacific Northwestern style of gorgeous.

If you’re wanting to have your life captured in a beautiful, meaningful and intensely personalized way, contact Katy and you’ll have photos to cherish for the rest of your life.

These photos she took of our elopement and re-commitment ceremony are us. They show our life. Who we are, what we love. Our journey past, present and future are in these photos.

I want to wear my flower crown everyday.

Speaking of trusting the vision of creatives and having something beautiful made for you, the wonderful Courtney of Femme de Fleur not only officiated our ceremony but she also created the most beautiful flowers. She nailed down exactly what I wanted. I just told her some loose ideas and let her do the rest. Like Katy, Courtney can read your vibe and produce something that aligns with your energy. These women are a powerhouse of artistry.

Courtney customizes your flower crown on the spot so you know it fits your hairstyle perfectly. They met us at our little cozy airbnb and we finalized everything there.

Trying to support small businesses, my dress was handmade by Blush Boutique out of Tel Aviv, Israel and my copper bracelets were handmade by Marjorie of Full Moon Crafting. She’s had Full Moon Crafting since 2013 and is a self taught metal worker. She came from a family of do-it-yourselfers and has been exploring the world of craft her whole life. She says, “things I’ve learned: don’t just sit there wanting to do something, go do it. If you screw it up, you had the experience of doing it. And if it was monumental fail, you got a funny story to share with friends and make them smile.”

You better believe I’ve already printed this one off.

This experience was everything. It was what we were always meant to have. We just had to get here. I’m a full believer in your path leading you to where you’re meant to be. I’m meant to be here. With my husband. In the woods.