Emily + Austin

A Belmont Manor Wedding – Howard County, Maryland

Emily and Austin were married on July 28th, 2018 at the GORGEOUS Belmont Manor in Howard County, Maryland.

I am seriously SO honored and lucky that these two came into my life. You see, I had ZERO ties to them. Well, that is until I met one of my now brides, Susie, at another bride of mine, Erin’s wedding. Small world right? Right. Well, Susie actually ended up giving Emily my information after she got engaged, and the two of them having been college roommates at Virginia Tech, Emily trusted her judgement 110%. Can you say…WOW?! I mean, how cool is that?! Emily had never met me, and knew she wanted to work together. It. Was. The. Best.

Meeting Emily and Austin, was…well, kind of unique and fun! We actually “met” on Skype the Monday before their wedding, because they live in good ol’ California now (JEALOUS). You know, building a timeline and stuff, but that was really besides the point. We really chit chatted a lot and realized we had so much in common. We shared photos of our babies (our animals), and I may or may not have actually put Cooper on my lap for them to video chat with. Just through the Skype call…I just knew this day was going to be extra special and it sure was.

The wedding day itself was finally in front of them. Emily put on her dress with ease, and Austin walked out to prepare to meet her for their “First Look” under ‘the’ tree at Belmont. Austin’s reaction was EVERYTHING, and def one of my favorite yet. That for sure set the stage for the rest of the day to come. Everything was just so…easy. The ceremony filled with so many what could be considered not so “normal” moments that were SO totally them and they wouldn’t of had it any other way. It made the ceremony that much more intimate and have SO much feeling in it, and the rest of the evening was a night to remember!

Their Love Story

When and where did you both meet?

Austin and I met at Virginia Tech when we were only 18 years old. We were in the same class but I was sitting in the very front while he was sitting in the last row. One day I noticed him with a paddle he had to carry for the fraternity he was pledging at the time. One of my good friends was pledging the same fraternity so I asked him to introduce us at their annual Halloween party (Austin was painted blue and dressed as a smurf!). At first, Austin completely blew me off. I ended up going up to him later that evening and telling him I thought that it was very rude! I think he secretly liked that I stood up for myself and ever since then Austin and I have been the best of friends.

When did you know he was the one and vice versa?

Emily: I don’t know if there was ever one singular moment when I knew Austin was “the one” but when I first saw him in class all those years ago I knew in my gut that I needed to know him and that he would mean something special to me. I fell in love with Austin very quickly, but at 18 there is still so much you don’t know about yourself or even life in general that made it very difficult for Austin and I to be on the same page. Despite our romantic relationship being somewhat on and off again for the first few years, what remained constant was our friendship and respect for one another. I always hoped that we would find our way back to one another because I knew that what we had was very special. Flash forward to 4 years ago, I was in Philadelphia visiting the city for the day. I was about to go home when a friend of mine suggested at the last moment that we get a beer in the bar down the street. Right after we sat down I look to my right and Austin is standing at the other end of the bar. It turns out that his company at the time owned that bar. Austin was on the bus about to go home when his friend called him to get a drink before he left for the day. Neither one of us were planning on being at that bar yet there we both were – that was the first time we had seen one another in over two years. If that isn’t fate I don’t know what else is. We’ve been together ever since.

Austin: I agree with Emily here…I’m not sure when I knew. I was young and dumb for a very long time but that didn’t stop her from being there. We’ve always had our “thing” and dated a couple times but it seemed that we couldn’t get our timing right. I knew we were supposed to be together but things outside our control kept us apart. Again, I don’t know when I knew but I do know WHY. She’s what I always default to, who I wanted to be around. She’s the one that I didn’t want anyone to have other than me, the one that I felt/feel most comfortable with, and the one that let’s me be me – and still likes me!

What is the one thing you both love each other the most for?

Emily: There are so many things that I love about Austin but what initially drew me to him is his light. Austin is the most easy going, fun, flexible person I have ever met. He goes with the flow and doesn’t take anything too seriously. When things don’t go according to plan or challenges arise, Austin always remains positive. That light has made me a better person and I have been able to find so much more joy in life because of it.

Austin: I can’t pinpoint what I love the most (she loves me and that’s enough) but one of the things that sticks out is her consistent growth as a person. She has a drive to make a improvements in our relationship, forces me (in a good way) to talk about things, and works with me to make sure our relationship remains healthy.

How did he propose?

Before Austin proposed, I made it very clear that I did not want a public proposal as it would make me extremely uncomfortable. During this conversation I half jokingly said that I would love it if he would propose to me over a box of Federal Donuts (our favorite donuts in Philadelphia). Fast forward to the first nice Saturday we had in March since winter and I told Austin that I wanted to spend the day outside. Normally he would want to do the same but this day he was acting very strange. We ended up having lunch at a restaurant outside and Austin was on his phone the whole time. I was a bit frustrated so we ended up going home. Austin took a phone call outdoors and came back in with a box of Federal Donuts. It turns out the reason he was on his phone all during lunch was because he was ordering the donuts online to be delivered. He had me open the box and inside was a ring box. Austin proposed and the rest is history.