Kelsi and Joshua’s Elegant Wedding at Woodlake Reserve

Josh and I’s relationship is what I would call a whirlwind. We both grew up in a small town, always knowing of each other, but it wasn’t until years after graduating college (from the same college, may I add) that we reconnected. I took a travel nursing position in my hometown, and Josh recently moved back to start his doctorate degree. You could call it fate or love at first sight, but I know we were magnetic, and things moved quickly. It only made sense for us to assemble our dream wedding in five months since we both had a break from school. I underestimated how much planning would take place, but everything turned out far more perfect than I ever expected.

I did not have a vision for our wedding until I found my dream dress. This dress gave me fairytale garden vibes, which is what we went with. Since everything was happening so quickly, my mom took over and became a designer, planner, florist, and every other leg of the wedding planning operation. The ceremony was in my parent’s front yard and consisted of our closest family and best friends. I remember the excitement of seeing Josh waiting for me while I descended the aisle.

We shared our first kiss as husband and wife on the steps to the front porch of a home that already had many memories for me. It felt much more intimate and unique, recognizing every face in the crowd. We picked a newly opened venue next to my parent’s home called Woodlake Reserve for the reception. We chose our favorite Mexican food for dinner, and a local restaurant catered for it. I do not want to discuss how much queso I had for dinner!

For desserts, my grandmother baked pineapple upside-down cakes, cinnamon roll cakes, and some of her signature recipes that I grew up on. Our cake was from Nothing Bundt Cakes, and I still dream about that red velvet. One of my favorite parts of the reception was our “biscuit bar” for our two dogs. We wanted to show our love for our babies and share that love with the guest’s fur babies at home. In remembrance of family members who could not join us, we set up a memorial table to showcase the beautiful faces with us only in spirit.

We snapped many pictures in the photo booth, some of my favorite images of the night. As the evening and craziness began to wind down, our closest friends joined us on the dance floor in sweatpants and t-shirts to dance the night away.

Bride’s Advice: Do what makes you happy for YOUR wedding! If you want the most extravagant celebration Kentucky has ever seen or an intimate backyard barbeque, go for it! The most important things are having fun, enjoying your new spouse, soaking up time with family and friends, and living in the moment.