♥ local love
AMY and MIKE
June 3, 2017 // Alvah Reida Photography
“ M
IKE CALLED ME THE MORNING
after our fi rst date. Not texted — called,”
Amy laughs. “I was with my mom and
I was like, ‘What do I do?’ She said,
‘Pick up!’” In true gentleman fashion, Mike had just
wanted to tell Amy that he had had a great time.
Amy’s millennial panic subsided and from then on
the two were attached at the hip, getting engaged
three years later at Jonathan Edwards Winery in
Connecticut. But while their beginning had all the
makings for a modern-day fairytale, they decided
on a different approach for their happily ever after.
“We knew from day one that we wanted to have
a traditional wedding,” Amy explains. “For instance,
we didn’t do a fi rst look because we wanted the
moment where I walked down the aisle to be more
special.” The two old-souls also wanted to tie the
past in with their future at their ceremony, calling
on the very same priest who married Amy’s parents
to offi ciate their own vows. “That was my favorite
part of the day,” Amy reveals. “Father Creedon just
made it so much more personal and his homily was
absolutely beautiful.”
The day wasn’t completely devoid of contemporary
touches, however. A trendy Del’s Lemonade truck
greeted guests fresh from the receiving line and a
state-of-the-art venue provided the ultra-chic setting
(see: all white walls and glittering chandeliers) for
the couple’s reception. And it was there that Amy’s
favorite color, pink, reigned supreme, making its way
into the uplighting, centerpieces, linens and cake
decor. Luckily Mike, a fi refi ghter, had no qualms
— just one request.
“He wanted to wear his dress blues,” Amy recalls.
“He said, ‘I love you and I love my job — this is the
only other thing I want besides you on our wedding
day.’ How could I say no to that?” And even though
Amy handled a majority of the planning, Mike was
there to offer his support every step of the way.
While googling fi rst dance song options one night,
they knew they had found the right fi t in Emily
Hackett’s “Take My Hand” when Mike pulled Amy
off the couch for a spontaneous dance. “After that,
if I ever got stressed, he would say, ‘Put the song
on,’” Amy says.
But thankfully the two never really ran into any
issues. “It truly was the best day of our lives,” Amy
says. “Months later people were saying how great
our wedding was and that was the best compliment
because I had worked my butt off.”
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