All Inclusive Virginia Wedding – Cara and Ryan 6.1.19

Snuggled in the back seat, on the drive to the mountain top, Ryan said to Cara “so how did your morning go?” and she replied with a laugh “hair was interesting…the beginning stages of ‘the pouf’ are truly terrifying”. This sort of sums up Cara and Ryan for me. They are just so light-hearted and funny, with a wry wit that made their wedding day so much fun. I soon learned that Cara got her excellent sense of humor from her mom. I usually do a few quick pictures of the bride and her mom in the dressing suite, before the ceremony begins. These are sometimes tearful, with lots of exclamations from the bride to her mom “don’t make me cry, I’ll ruin my makeup” etc. Cara and her mom took their place for the photo, and when I gently coached them to look at one another, they burst out giggling, and the mother of the bride gazed at her daughter and teasingly said “oh honey, you’re someone else’s burden now”. There was just so much love and laughter in the room – between Cara and her family, and her amazing maid of honor and bridesmaid Josie and Caitlyn. This was a group who knew how to enjoy themselves! There were lots of quirky and original touches to this wedding day as well! I think this wedding was our first that featured a dragon climbing up the wedding cake. In fact, there were dragons galore at this wedding! As a girl, Cara learned to play Dungeons and Dragons, a pastime which she taught to Ryan and that they both now enjoy! And the person who taught Cara how to play was none other than their wedding officiant Mr. Webb who playfully began the wedding ceremony with a “Princess Bride” tribute. We loved the little figurines that dotted the cake – especially the Cara and Ryan look alikes placed on top! I have to give a shout out to the absolutely fantastic bridal party as well! Josie, Caitlyn, and Best Man Beau and Groomsman Tim were all so incredibly helpful. You could tell that this was not their first rodeo! This efficient crew made sure our sweet couple kept well hydrated during photos, that the car was well decorated for the send off, and even packed everything up for our couple at the end of the night, all on their own. This wedding kicked off our busiest June ever, at the Golden Horseshoe Inn – thanks Cara and Ryan for starting our summer off right! Here is a little sneak peek of this amazing day…