Southern Weddings

When Emily emailed me about today’s video, all she said in the email was “You are going to LOVE this one!” and oh my stars, she was right! Jordan and Bryan could not be sweeter together, and their whole wedding was centered around faith, family, and music. Limestone Films did an amazing job capturing the joy and excitement of their big day!

How did y’all meet? Tell us your love story! Though we attended high school together, it wasn’t until we were both working at Cohutta Springs Youth Camp that the spark began. I was a drama instructor and life guard and Bryan was a swimming instructor. We life guarded together, and over many flirty splashes, late summer night talks, and a country contra dance, we knew there was an attraction. Two and a half years later he proposed to me on a beautiful dock in my families’ traditional vacation spot: WaterColor, Florida. Both of our families even hid behind the bushes to congratulate us immediately after he proposed!
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: One detail I loved is that we used my great-grandfather’s 1928 Whippet to drive me down to where I would walk in. He used to sell snack cakes out of this car, so it was special to use a family heirloom!
What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? The wedding was at my house, so I wanted our guests to feel true Southern hospitality! Though our wedding was not a “small” wedding, it was still very intimate. We knew every friendly face that greeted us at our wedding–it was like a town or church gathering! We also served my family’s homemade cookies as favors–a recipe that many people in our friend groups know and love! Perhaps the most Southern part of our wedding was the relaxed and personal atmosphere. We included a lot of personal details in the music, decorations, and reception program, so in order for our guests to understand why we chose certain details, I made a “personal touch program” for them to read, so everyone could feel like they knew Bryan and I as well as our closest family members do.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Of course, for every girl, walking down the aisle is such a memorable moment. My dad and I had so much fun hanging out before the wedding began–I’ve always been a daddy’s girl. My grandparents surprised me by decorating the bridge I walked over with gorgeous flowers–I was almost in tears! Walking in to beautiful music, escorted by my father, surrounded by smiling friends and family, and seeing my future husband beaming at me in front of a pink flowery garden is a moment that will forever be precious to me.
Tell us more about the singing and dancing! What’s the back story there? My entire family is musical! My grandfather was a choir conductor and my siblings and I all sing and play string instruments. Thanks to this musical background, all of my siblings sang in my wedding! I also have a Bachelors in Music Education, so my entire college career was dedicated to singing–how could I not include singing in my wedding? As for the dancing, that is a different story. For Christmas, Bryan bought me swing dancing lessons (best guy ever!), so our wedding dance was an accumulation of these lessons. I am so blessed to have a husband who is willing to dance with me. We convinced our wedding party to participate in the dance too, and it was an absolute blast! A jazz band that I have sung with many times played for our reception and they truly gave our reception the atmosphere I was hoping for. Overall, the night was full of singing and dancing, and being a girl who loves the stage, I was in heaven!

Find more of our wedding films here!

Written with love by Lisa