Andrew & Britany Lappin - Wedding Story
Memorable. Our wedding was very memorable not only us, but for our family and friends. We picked multiple elements from our lives to integrate into the wedding, making it a personalized and unique day. Andrew's Scottish heritage was the background for our theme and influenced our ceremony music (bagpipes), attire (kilts), décor (tartan), ring bearer (our Scottie "Maggie") and flowers (roses & thistles). I am an equine veterinarian so we had a horse-drawn carriage bring me to the end of the aisle and give us a ride after the ceremony to the barn, where the reception was held. We both enjoy wine and met in Michigan, so we decided to get married in a vineyard in Three Oaks near my family's summer cottage. The unique blend of these items made our wedding a memorable affair for all.
Stressed. Of course all weddings are stressful, and ours was no different. Thankfully we live in the age of the internet and 90% of the wedding was planned online. During our year-long engagement Andrew was working outside Chicago and I was completing my senior year of veterinary school at Purdue and then moved to Virginia to do a year-long internship at an equine veterinary hospital. So we planned the entire wedding while living hundreds of miles apart from each other and from Michigan, thus the internet was an indispensable tool for our planning. Another very stressful element was that we were in charge of all of the decorating and setting up for the wedding. Luckily we had tons of help from our family and friends in making the wedding run smoothly and decreasing the stress on us.
Favorite. The most favorite thing about our wedding was how much fun we all had! We have received so many comments from our guests about what a great time they had and how the atmosphere was so joyful. We were so thankful and happy that our family and friends traveled great distances to see us and wanted everyone to have fun. Many members of our family had never had the opportunity to meet one another before that day, but by the end of the night we were all dancing together and enjoying each others company. Besides us getting married, knowing that our ceremony and reception were unique and provided an atmosphere for all to enjoy themselves was definitely the best part of our wedding.
Advice. Make sure to set aside time for you and your new spouse to spend together before and after the ceremony. We took pictures together before the ceremony, which calmed us down and allowed us to have our "first look" in a more private and intimate setting (the beach where we were engaged!). After the ceremony we (and our dog "Maggie") took a ride in the horse-drawn carriage and shared some champagne. This way we were able to focus on what the day really meant before we began socializing with our guests.
Stressed. Of course all weddings are stressful, and ours was no different. Thankfully we live in the age of the internet and 90% of the wedding was planned online. During our year-long engagement Andrew was working outside Chicago and I was completing my senior year of veterinary school at Purdue and then moved to Virginia to do a year-long internship at an equine veterinary hospital. So we planned the entire wedding while living hundreds of miles apart from each other and from Michigan, thus the internet was an indispensable tool for our planning. Another very stressful element was that we were in charge of all of the decorating and setting up for the wedding. Luckily we had tons of help from our family and friends in making the wedding run smoothly and decreasing the stress on us.
Favorite. The most favorite thing about our wedding was how much fun we all had! We have received so many comments from our guests about what a great time they had and how the atmosphere was so joyful. We were so thankful and happy that our family and friends traveled great distances to see us and wanted everyone to have fun. Many members of our family had never had the opportunity to meet one another before that day, but by the end of the night we were all dancing together and enjoying each others company. Besides us getting married, knowing that our ceremony and reception were unique and provided an atmosphere for all to enjoy themselves was definitely the best part of our wedding.
Advice. Make sure to set aside time for you and your new spouse to spend together before and after the ceremony. We took pictures together before the ceremony, which calmed us down and allowed us to have our "first look" in a more private and intimate setting (the beach where we were engaged!). After the ceremony we (and our dog "Maggie") took a ride in the horse-drawn carriage and shared some champagne. This way we were able to focus on what the day really meant before we began socializing with our guests.
