As I write this post, I am seriously asking myself HOW has it been almost 6 months since I got engaged? I know that 2020 has felt like a complete blur for most of us, but time really has flown by. As soon as Lucas and I got engaged, I was extremely motivated to begin wedding planning. Just a few short weeks after, COVID became so prevalent and I was feeling a little discouraged and demotivated with all that was happening in the world around me. One would think that with all of the extra time at home, I would have more free time but I feel busier than ever. Perhaps it is because I am finally getting to all the things at home (and at work) that I haven’t had time to tackle before.
I had NO clue what I was doing or where to start, but at my engagement party I was gifted two wedding planners – The Knot Ultimate Wedding Planner & Organizer and The Wedding Planner & Organizer by Mindy Weiss. Both have been extremely helpful and I would recommend either. These are wonderful gifts for a new bride-to-be. The Knot also has an app that allows you to create a wedding website and search their massive repository of vendors where you can check out their awards and recognitions along with customer reviews. The app was SUPER helpful, especially with selecting a photographer and videographer – two of your biggest vendor selections.
So, what have we done so far 5-ish months into planning?
We’ve selected our wedding venue! We will be getting married at Little Piney Lodge located in Hermann, MO in October 2021. I recommend that if you are newly engaged, this is the FIRST vendor you select. Every other vendor that will be a part of your special day will ask for your date and location. October is one of the most popular months to get married so we knew we needed to make our venue decision quickly. Out of all the decisions we’ve made so far, we were the most decisive with this one. It is truly a beautiful location and we can’t wait to spend our wedding weekend in the town we met!
We’ve booked our photographer! Our photographer will be Melissa Shelton! She is incredibly sweet and her photos are GORGEOUS! We can’t wait to get our engagement photos done with her this October.
We’ve booked our videographer! Our videographer will be Bruce Gaines Cinematography. He has such raw, documentary style which we knew we were looking for. His pricing was also extremely reasonable. Added bonus, he and our photographer have done many weddings together.
And finally, we have a wedding planner! One of Lucas’ prior teachers who is ALSO a wedding planner will be helping us with our wedding day timeline and providing directions for the day to our vendors about 6 months out from our wedding. She is amazing and I am so thankful she is doing this for us! I wouldn’t say a planner is an ABSOLUTE necessity, but if you have room in your budget I highly recommend at least getting someone who will help with the “day of” so you can relax and be stress-free.
Right now I am focused on selecting our caterer and our DJ!
Now, onto our engagement story…
Lucas and I were engaged on February 29, 2020. That’s right, on a leap year! How cool, right? Lucas has the biggest heart, and I knew that on the day he finally asked me to marry him that he would go above and beyond to make it special.
During one of our getaway weekends in Hermann, MO (the town we met), I thought we were getting photos done to help out a local photographer. We walked the trail at Grands Bluff all the way to the top where the Conservation Deck is located. We had made the hike before when we first started dating and I remembered it being MUCH easier then. Ha! I’m not going to lie to you all – I was cranky the entire walk up!
At the top was waiting a blanket, champagne, rose petals and the photographer. As soon as I saw everything, my heart melted. Lucas proposed while we were surrounded by the beautiful view. It was also an oddly warm day for February in Missouri which made it feel even more special.
And then… out pops my best friend, Taylor! She was in on the whole thing and it was one of the best surprises of all. She hiked the trail along with Lucas’ mom that morning to get everything set up. I loved having her there to give a big hug after he popped the question.
Meanwhile, back in town Lucas’ mom had a surprise party set up at a local distillery’s private loft with several of our closest family and friends from both sides. We got to eat our favorite foods, drink our favorite wines and celebrate! It was truly a wonderful day that went by way too fast. I will cherish these photos forever!
If you made it this far, thanks for reading! I’ll be back in a few months with another wedding planning update!
