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Jamila+James // Wedding at NC Arboretum in Asheville

Greetings from Asheville! Oh man, it was great to be there for the past few weekends because the humidity drops substantially and it was actually cool and wonderful outside for a change! Asheville’s also an awesome place to have a wedding in the States when you have quite the international crowd as these guys did. I believe we had some Brits, a Danish guy, possibly a Finn if we’re remember correctly… and many of them live in Guatemala. :) Jamila and James themselves have been internationally long-distant frequently over the course of their relationship. They met salsa dancing in Guatemala, but Jamila was finishing up her doctorate and residency in Connecticut while James lives in England running his business. But they stuck it out and made it work, and now that their wedding is finally done, and Jamila’s officially a doctor, she’ll be going overseas to live with James in England. :)

They held their wedding in Asheville because Jamila’s family lives there, but also because it’s a beautiful place to take all of their awesome international friends for a gorgeous wedding over the 4th of July. We were super excited to be there and photograph the wedding among a supportive cast of characters who love Jamila and James so much! For instance, check out the lengthy scroll of the Best Men speech below (completely with rainbow stickers and hearts on the back for decoration). That was, in fact, the actual length of the speech, and it was an incredible speech for all ages (I wish we’d have videotaped it, but we kind of were occupied taking photos). Their reception was a crazy amazing dance party where we felt incredibly inadequate comparing our non-existent dancing skills to theirs (but thankfully people don’t pay us to dance). A huge thanks and congratulations to Jamila, James, and their wonderful family and friends for having us in Asheville!

Date: July 5, 2014

Ceremony Venue: NC Arboretum // Asheville, NC

Reception Venue: The Venue // Asheville, NC

First Dance Song: “La Llave De Mi Corazon” – Juan Luis Guerra

Jamila’s Occupation: Doctor

James’s Occupation: Entrepreneur

How You Met: Salsa dancing in a bar in Guatemala through mutual friends

Interesting Fact about Jamila: She still knows all the Disney princess songs by heart and sings them regularly!

Interesting Fact about James: He drove a Guatemalan chicken bus from Kansas City to Antigua, Guatemala. What bus license?

Honeymoon Destination: Maldives!

Vendor Credits: Officiant –Rev. Gary Mitchell (fun fact: was to be Jamila’s high school choir director before he changed careers) | DJ – James Donaldson of Sound Extreme | Florist – Beth Hohensee at FloraDiva | Cake – Karen Donatelli at Donatelli Bakery | Caterer – The Venue | Hair – Adorn Salon | Makeup – Wendy Ballance at Blush | Coordinator – Cassey Barret

Shanon+Ryan // Wedding in Morgantown, WV

Welcome back to West Virginia, readers! We’ve had three weddings now in Morgantown… all at the Erickson Alumni Center at WVU… and each time the weather’s been a bit crazy in its own way. The first time was absolutely hot. Ridiculously hot, even. The bridal party did their photos inside because everyone was melting. The second time brought a ton of tree-leaves-turning-inside-out wind. This time finally brought the rain. Up until about 10 minutes before we took their photos, it rained. Thankfully it was hot enough that most of the moisture evaporated by the time we got out there, and all was right with the world… until their ceremony. The clouds came back, and a large rain drop fell on their officiant’s notes… at which point Shanon told him to hurry up the ceremony and they all escaped unscathed. :)

Shanon and Ryan are two hilarious and awesome people. Their friends were also quite entertaining (one of which was impressively able to do crazy dancing despite being incapacitated in one leg) and super nice (the maid of honor ordered me a pizza). The reception featured an awesome band (The Soul Miners) whom Shanon and Ryan frequently see in downtown Morgantown when they get a chance… and they came sporting a Lava lamp, which we think might’ve been the source of their power. Shanon’s dress was our first heavily sequined wedding dress, which I was thrilled about (sequins, as well as most shiny little dots, photograph really well!), and Ryan’s wedding present from her was a watch equipped with a note scribbled on a paper napkin that said, “Don’t lose this one.” Here are our favorites from an awesome weekend with two people that we absolutely love.

Date: June 21, 2014

Ceremony and Reception Venue: WVU Erickson Alumni Center // Morgantown, WV

First Dance Song: “Nothing Can Change This Love” – Sam Cooke

Shanon’s Occupation: Pre-Kindergarten Special Education Teacher

Ryan’s Occupation: Master of Public Health and Master of Science in School Health Student at WVU/ Substitute Teacher/ Teaching Assistant/ Farm-to-School Intern

How You Met: We first met in our early high school years through our group of friends, but it wasn’t until 4 years later (after those awful years of braces, shaggy Beatles-wanna-be hair and puberty) that we decided to date when Shanon started her freshman year of college and Ryan was a sophomore.

Interesting Fact about Shanon: Shanon survived cat scratch fever as a young girl. Needless to say, Ted Nugent is not her favorite recording artist.

Interesting Fact about Ryan: Ryan was a chicken chaser at the Dixie Stampede, an interactive dinner show created by the wonderfully well-endowed Dolly Parton.

Honeymoon Destination: St. Lucia

Vendor Credits: Officiant – Justin Bowers (Cousin of the Groom) | Band – The Soul Miners | Florist – Blooms Florist | Dessert Table – Family and Alumni Center-made cookies and desserts | Caterer – Erickson Alumni Center | Hair/Makeup – Rondal Mitchell