When I was a little girl I loved fairy tales. The dresses, the adventure, but most of all the prince whom the pricess always married in the end! As I grew up my perception of fairy tales became jaded. “My knight in shining armor turned out to be a loser dressed in tin foil” ~ unknown. That quote can be loosly applied to my relationships. The older I got, the less in love I was with fairy tales. Don’t get me wrong, I am still in love with love! Why else would I do what I do? I am in love with genuine, unconditional, and profound love…the fairies, as far as I was concerned, could keep to themselves.
That was of course until I heard Emily & KJ’s story! It has restored my faith that true fairy tales exist!
I’ve known Emily for several years now, I’ve seen her through some bogus relationships and she’s seen me through some of my own. We’ve laughed, danced, and commiserated together. Then, after a lot of deliberation (and a not so great break up) Emily decided to move to Binghamton for art school.
While she was there, she was connected with a BASIC group which in turn connected her with the United with Christ Church in Johnson City. During her time at the church she befriended many people who kept telling her about this guy, KJ. Unfortunately he was in the military and wouldn’t be on leave until February. Emily, had plans to go to Italy in January with a one way ticket. So she wrote it off and continued with her plans. Little did Emily know, that prior to her even arriving at church, the pastors & leadership were in continuous prayer for KJ’s wife and when she arrived everyone instantly knew that she was it! To everyone’s surprise, KJ came home on leave in October. It’s then that he met Emily and both of their lives instantly changed. Less than a year later they’re happier than either of them can imagine as husband and wife!
Their wedding day reflected their personal fairy tale, complete with wedding favors describing the whole thing. Though traffic and storm clouds threatened to foil their day, it went off with out a hitch. The sun cam out for group formals & we partied the night away! I was compltely blessed and honored to be the one capturing it all. I am so thrilled for Em & KJ! Let their story be a reminder to us all that fairy tales really do exist!
xoxoxo,
Mabyn
How did you meet?
We both attended a BASIC Bible fellowship meeting, and were invited by a mutual friend to go to dinner afterward. I had just left ballroom practice and was disgustingly sweaty, and he appeared out of nowhere, surprising everyone here on a two week leave from Afghanistan. When we met everything clicked. The day before he left to go back to Afghanistan he asked me on a date that would be postponed for 4 months.
How did your fiance propose?
For two months straight the weather didn’t do anything but rain. He wanted to take me on a picnic, but the rain would cause a problem; so, he prayed that God would part the clouds and He did! We had a huge assortment of sandwiches, fruit, cheese, crackers and of course wine. After we ate we were laying down and he slipped off a ring he gave me for Christmas that needed to be serviced. He asked about that needed to be fixed, and left it on his finger. He then slipped a ring on my finger (I thought it was my ring) but when he moved I saw something shine that I knew wasn’t normal. By the time I figured out that it was a different ring he was on one knee and asked me to marry him! 🙂
Tell me a bit about the planning process for your wedding (how did you pick the venue, colors, funny stories, etc..):
The date, we actually picked around the wonderful Mabyn Ludke’s schedule because we wanted to get married sooner rather than later (why wait!). The colors I didn’t officially pick until we found the Bridesmaid dresses. The venue was because the place was beautiful and the price was right. We both LOVE wine, so we knew we wanted a wine themed wedding. I made everything for the tables and place card holders and thus needed a lot of corks; so inevitably, we drank a lot of wine in the three months of planning! 😉
What details at your wedding had special significance?
Vino Vino Vino and more Vino! The majority of the wine bottles on the tables were consumed by us!
What was the most memorable moment(s) of your day?
Well, I can think of a number of events: Like the torrential downpour before the wedding; My mom giving me a 150 year old five generation heirloom ring for my borrowed, blue and old; The hotel for the wedding night canceling at the last minute making the groom barely on time; Him getting stuck in traffic on the parkway; My dad giving me a twirl at the end of the aisle; Forgetting to put out the communion for the ceremony so we did an impromptu silent vow exchange/ prayer over each other while the special song played; My dad giving a blessing over us and slightly roasting KJ’s phone call to set up a time to ask for my hand; We had Mabyn, the best man and his wife along with KJ’s older brother in the limo with us.. It was an EPIC time!!; The toasts by my Dad, KJ’s Dad, my sister’s- the maid and matron, as well as the Best Man; KJ’s dad singing an Irish styled song after his toast; My dance with my Dad was pretty amazing; Our first dance was incredible- it was us. I could go on and on.. 🙂
If you had to do it all over, would you change anything?
I really don’t think we would change a thing.
Funniest memory from your wedding day?
How can we pick? Just go back to the previous list!
What was your favorite wedding purchase?
My dress! It was perfect from the second it was zipped up the first time!
Where did you go on your honeymoon?
On a cruise in the western Caribbean. It was beautiful all the way around!
Any advice for future bride & grooms?
Just roll with the punches.. Things are going to happen, just go with it and be flexible; if you concentrate on the little things you’ll get stressed out. Oh, and HIRE MABYN!!!!
Hair: My beautiful sister and Matron of Honor- Katrina Smith//Makeup Artist: The wonderful Christy Haller (bridesmaid)//Dress Designer & Store Location: Oleg Cassini at David’s Bridal, East Syracuse//Jewelry: Joette’s in Armory Square//Veil or Hair accessories: Ceremony- Made by yours truly; Reception- David’s Bridal//Shoes: DSW//Bridesmaids Dresses: David’s Bridal//Grooms Attire: Tuxedo Junction//Ceremony Venue://United With Christ Church, Johnson City (Binghamton)//Reception Venue: Summit Tea Room; New Milford, PA//Additional photo venue: Otsiningo Park//Florist: Lori Bredesen (lady from church)//Transportation: A1 Limo Service//DJ: Jeannette Luther//Caterer: Summit Tea Room//Cake: no cake- Chocolate fountain//Event Designer: Myself and my girls//Wedding Coordinator: Margie Scarinzi//Invitations & Stationary: Michael’s Arts and Crafts Store//Other: Girls hair pieces: made by yours truly; Jewelry- everywhere! (JCP, Claires, Macys, Mandee)
