One Heck of a Dinner Party.

Well yesterday's post was about the people, today's post is about the fabulous event put on by those people.

When Delaney & Austin first approached me about capturing their fabulous day - I knew I was in for a treat. He likes soccer and good beer, she loves cooking and has an incredible knack for details...not to mention they are just really genuine and enjoyable people. (For extra credit - they took me out for a pint at one of my favorite watering holes - 12th South Taproom!) As they began to unfold the day for me, I relaxed in the overwhelmingly fresh air...

"This isn't about cliche photo ops, or about typical wedding moments...this is about homemade love, an awesome party with friends and family...and good food of course!"

My job? Capture that.

Phenomenal venue that came through in the last minute clutch? Houston Station

Best dang snowballs around handcrafted by: Fleur de Lis Flavors

And of course...the wicked good food catered by: B & C Bar-B-Q

Weddings: The Beauty in the Beast.

Weddings quite often are an interestingly beautiful beast...

The fine line between a beautiful represenation of one couple's public profession of love for one another all too often gets blurred with somebody elses expectations of a 'perfect day.' Stress, frustration, meltdowns...it almost always creeps up somewhere. Thankfully - most people find a way to look back and have a good laugh later on, however it still adds weight to the day that perhaps wasn't necessary.

I got married not too long ago (2 & 1/2 years) so this comes from personal experience as well as professional. My wife and I often look back and talk about the details from our day and how only a few short years would change our approach dramatically. The really miraculous part about it all though? It always seems to work itself out. No matter the issue, big or small...someone is there to help. To me - that is the beauty.

This past weekend I had the privilege of seeing this picture painted ever so masterfully. In all reality, I can't even fully do the story justice as I only know pieces of it all...but this couple went through it all. From the beginning - this bride and groom were working hand in hand with friends to make every detail personal and delightful. Handmade everything it seems...from flowers to desserts, the details were impeccable. The ceremony location to tie it all together? Bicentennial Mall ampitheatre overlooking downtown Nashville with reception at the Nashville Farmer's Market. Can you say GORGEOUS? They could...until the flood came. Three weeks out - and their dream ceremony location = ravaged.

All in all, it came down to the week of and going with Plan C - and this was not with a wedding coordinator pulling out all the stops. Rather...it was a bride and groom keeping their day to day schedules and their friends uniting together to make it all happen. And allow me to assure you - it did NOT look thown together last minute. It had unparallelled elegance and precision that even the best have a hard time attaining.

The highlight though...? The souls that created the safety net all together in one place, celebrating the love and joy that could not be subdued.

As I sit here and try to put into words the experience I had only a few short days ago I find words extremely inadequate, as the only true representaion of that night was the communal warmth that was bursting at the seams. So much joy, so much life - all shared in celebration of matrimony.

The food and attention to detail were epic - but the picture of community will stick in my mind forever.

**Keep an eye out for more from this wedding tomorrow afternoon**

Mister and Misses Cox.

Allow me to share some bullet points from the amazing wedding day of Donnie & Rachel Cox.

• He's a rock star. (Plays keys for Jeremy Camp)
• She saves childrens lives for a living. (Pediatric trauma nurse at Vanderbilt)
• He chased her for a LONG time...successfully.
• During pre-ceremony pictures, a bird pooped on him. True story. Left shoulder.
• Brad Paisely happened to be nearby, so he wished them well and was kind enough to pose for a picture.
• The reception was catered by Barbara's...if you aren't familiar with Nashville, you have no idea what that means and how awesome it is.
• There was a bride + brother interpretive dance to the theme song of Free Willy.
• To top off what was already a ragin' party - for the first time ever (that we know of) there was a SONIC bar! That's right - SONIC brought in 4 flavors of limeade!

I really don't need to say much more. Donnie & Rachel are amazing...and I'm thankful to call them my friends.