Big news from my little corner of the world!
Brian and I got married—and our wedding was a bit unusual in the best way. We opted to have only three members in our wedding party… and yep, they were all horses.
The only humans in attendance were our parents and the photographer (all the photos are by Elizabeth Hay—she did an incredible job). Going into the day, we were thinking about it mostly as an elaborate photoshoot. We were a little uncertain if the emotional significance would be felt, but the whole day was naturally filled with so much symbolism, and looking back at the photos is when it all clicked.
We started with a first look with my dad and Tucker, which turned a bit chaotic with Tucker deciding I was being chased down by a white monster… but it all worked out in the end! Then my dad delivered Tucker to Brian at our ceremony location, where Trubee and Adee were already hanging out with the other parents.
Once they were all settled, my dad walked me down our “aisle” while I watched Trubee hone in on the bouquet, Adee look at me with curious acknowledgement, and Tucker try his best to hold himself together—probably thinking I was being chased by a monster, yet telling himself, “Everyone else seems calm, so I should be too.”
After fighting Trubee to keep my bouquet, then getting him to stop pawing my dress until finally trying to pee on it… we exchanged vows, and thanks to the non-clergy marriage license we were able to use, Tucker was able to be our unofficial officiant (since we didn’t technically need one). Fortunately, by that point, he had settled enough to step into his role and took it quite seriously! 😉
The day was nearly perfect. The only rough spot was Tucker’s reaction to my dress. I thought that might happen—he’s had a thing about the color white since the day I met him—but I hoped his many photoshoots with bigger dresses would translate to the white dress for my wedding day. That was not the case. I should have tried harder to make a practice dress! But you know what? Totally okay. When Tucker was nervous, we simply paused and waited for him to relax. Because this day was just as much about Tucker as it was about us. As Brian said when he proposed: it will take many, many years before he can catch up to Tucker in regards to years spent with me. I’ve had Tucker by my side since I was 14, and he’s seen me through every single relationship that I’ve ever had, as well as every single milestone since high school!
Overall, Adee was absolutely perfect the entire day and didn’t even flinch when she saw me approach in the big dress. We were both SO proud of how good she was, even when being held by Brian’s very non-horsey parents. She was the best.
In the end, looking back, I think Tucker’s nerves weren’t just about the white dress, but about the significance of the day itself. While the others take new things without too much thought, Tucker has an awareness about my life journey that they’re missing. We’ve grown up together. He’s known my parents from the beginning. But doing something with my parents, a photographer, and a big weird dress? That was new. He’d never seen that happen before, in nearly 20 years of family portraits, visits, and life. Being the overthinker he is, I think he was more overwhelmed by the difference of the day as a whole than the dress itself. Had he seen weddings before, I think he would have thought much less of the whole event. That might sound crazy, but I’ve seen him observe and apply what he sees over and over again. And there’s no doubt in my heart that he sensed the day was significant and different in ways he could not understand.
Some other highlights from the day – Brian’s dad brought a bowtie from Brian’s mom’s father—a special touch with much family significance. Brian, being an expert bowtie-tyer, had the honor of tying his grandfather’s bowtie on his dad, and it was just the most adorable moment. The dads really brought their best when it came to the horses, too. One of our favorite photos from the day was of all the parents and all the horses—Tucker with my parents, Trubee torn between in the middle, and Adee with Brian’s parents. The arrangement wasn’t planned, but looking at it later, I realized how much story was in that image: my parents having been part of Tucker joining my life, Trubee being my solo adult addition and the reason Brian and I started hanging out (trail rides), and Adee being the first animal we adopted together. Then when my parents were heading out, I loved that we have a photo of the genuine moment between Brian and my dad shaking hands.
I can’t imagine a more perfect way to marry the very best partner for this life. Brian embraced the day like he embraced me and all the animals I brought with me. His steady energy is a constant grounding force for my chaos. Sharing this day with the horses was exactly the right decision. We were both OBSESSED with Adee the entire time—she was by far the most cool and collected. And of course, we loved that Trubee brought the most Trubee-est energy ever, constantly taking the spotlight, trying to destroy my dress and steal my bouquet.
Such a special memory—and I’m so glad we shared it with our trio. 🤍🧡🖤 ALSO shameless share – but I know a couple people have asked so here is our registry which is of course still active and mostly what we’d love are balls for the dogs and a better bag to protect our camera! We have been so thankful for all the support we’ve received for starting this chapter together.
If you want to see the recap of the FANTASTIC proposal that completely surprised me (somehow, even though we’re together nearly 24/7 and live in a teeny tiny home) you should take a look at this video first, then my recap video here! We’re right in our mid-30’s, and this entire marriage still feels surreal! I never thought I would break free of an ongoing cycle of toxic/bad relationships, until Brian showed up in my life like a true knight in shining armor. The world truly needed to stop in 2020 for us to meet, and I am incredibly grateful for everything we’ve been able to accomplish together since.
