I believe each of us has a handful of moments in our lives that are so purely magical that they become part of who we are at our core. For me, I know I will forever be able to conjure the smell of the autumn rain, the sound of a barn packed full of loving cheers, and the warm and tingly feeling that surged through me as Henry and Emily each made their entrances into their October 1 wedding ceremony at Planet Bluegrass. Pure magic.
It all started in May 2022 when I made the scary but necessary decision to leave a legal career and reliable government paycheck to pursue my love of wedding planning full time. I was introduced to Emily and Henry through mutual friends. My husband was discussing my career move at dinner with his friend and former roommate Corey. It just happened that Corey’s cousin, Henry, had been searching for someone to help coordinate their upcoming wedding. The introduction was made, and Henry and Emily became Hitched AF’s very first clients.
As October 1 approached, everyone involved was obsessively checking every weather app we could. Each app predicted a different likelihood of rain, and the forecast seemed to change by the minute. With the ceremony and cocktail hour planned in the gorgeous and sprawling Planet Bluegrass outdoors, all we could do was hope that the weather gods would bless us with a couple of rain-free hours in the afternoon.
As we arrived at Planet Bluegrass, the sun was shining and the forecast was looking optimistic. Fox Meadow Floral delivered gorgeous table centerpieces and bouquets and arranged a stunning ceremony piece on-site. Henry and his groomsmen played lawn games and sipped the whiskey Emily gifted them while the ladies got dressed with mimosas across the property in the bridal cabin. The ceremony musicians – Henry’s dad, Tico, and the rest of the Peach Pie Jazz Band – were in place, and guests began to arrive and sip their welcome champagne from Greens Point Catering.
And then it happened. The skies opened, the thunder and lightning rolled in, and the rain began to fall, with the hail starting a couple of minutes later. Nearly 200 guests rushed inside the pavilion that had been carefully set for dinner. Without being prompted, wedding vendors and guests grabbed flowers, chairs, sound equipment, and anything that was in the storm’s path and carried it inside. Inside the pavilion, Great Family Reunion was set up on stage for the dance party that would come later. They helped Peach Pie convert to an inside set-up. Guests found their assigned dinner seats that had been dried off and placed at the tables. Emily’s aunt Alicia, who officiated the ceremony, asked everyone to hang tight while we decided what to do.
Back in the bridal cabin, I broke the news to Emily and Henry – the ceremony is going to have to happen inside the pavilion. While there was definitely an air of disappointment hanging over the room, bride and groom, family, and wedding party rallied as we walked through the new ceremony plan. Then it was time to line up and make their entrances into the new ceremony space.
What happened next defies description. It was one of those moments that can never be replicated and lives on only in our memories. The weather outside the pavilion was gloomy and gray, but inside the pavilion there was electricity, warmth, color, and most of all love. As the procession began, with Henry escorting his parents Tico and Courtney, the crowd burst into cheers, hopping to their feet, and raucously celebrating the vows they were about to witness. Cheers only grew louder and more enthusiastic as each groomsman entered, followed by the bridesmaids and flower girl, and finally, by Emily and her parents, Vern and Betsy. While the physical setting wasn’t exactly what any of us had expected, the ceremony had been completely transformed into a magical, palpable celebration of love. It was like we were at the Super Bowl of weddings!
As the ceremony concluded, the rain stopped and revealed a beautiful, sunny autumn afternoon, just in time for an outdoor cocktail hour. The rest of the evening went exactly as planned, ending with an epic dance party to the unbeatable Great Family Reunion band.
Sometimes in life, and definitely in marriage, things don’t go as planned. We have to make decisions on how to handle the curveballs that are thrown at us – do we let it get us down, or do we make the best of it? Emily and Henry are the type of couple who will always choose the latter, and this time, it turned out even better than we could ever have imagined.
The Team
Wedding Planner: Hitched AF
Photographer: Mastrosimo Photography
Venue: Planet Bluegrass
Catering: Greens Point Catering
Hair & Makeup: Melissa King, Love & Lavender Beauty
Floral: Fox Meadow Floral
Transportation: Green Ride Boulder
Entertainment: Great Family Reunion
