They met in high, they both were in the school band, Rich was a senior and played trumpet, Alyssa was a sophomore and played the clarinet. Alyssa needed a ride home from the late night away football game, turned out that Rich only lived four houses down. For their first date, they went to see The Blind Side. They were only two people in the theatre, the lights never dimmed and they did not even hold hands that night. Little did they know how much their love was about to bloom. While they were dating, she was accepted to UGA and Redcoats, Rich made many trips to Athens that fall. They both made trips back and forth between Marietta and Athens over the next 2 years.

On a Thursday night, they decided to go to dinner at a nice restaurant downtown, The Place. Towards the end of the dinner rich starts to get really sweaty and nervous. Alyssa thought the pork chop made him sick, she asked if he was okay, he said it was a little warm. They leave the restaurant and start walking back to his truck. As they reach the crosswalk, Rich acts really distracted and are looking all over the place. Little did Alyssa know that Rich was looking for her friend, Erin to see if she was in a position to take photos of the proposal. Alyssa was confused, she sees the crosswalk sign light up, and she tells Rich they can go. He says “ooookay” they get to the middle of the street and he turns her around, gets down on one knee, shakily holds up the ring and says “Will you marry me?”. Alyssa looked up and saw the timer had 6 seconds left, she said “YES”.  Quickly puts on the ring, they hugged and he picked her up. The street filled with cheers from bystanders, her brother, and some friends were hiding in the bushes. She cried, of course, and all her loved ones were there to celebrate with them. They headed to Insomnia Cookies with everyone, call family, and plan social media posts. They had  been dating 2,498 days as of on their wedding day November 19th

When Alyssa told me her wedding was taking place at Shiloh Farms, I could barely contain myself from excitement to return to one of our favorite venues. On a North Florida fall day  they had their wedding ceremony. They said their vows underneath one of the most gorgeous oak trees at Shiloh Farms in Tallahassee, Fl.  Alyssa and Richard celebrated their marriage with a southern shabby chic reception at the barn. One of my favorite elements was the mismatched vintage chairs and gorgeous chandeliers. It was perfectly decorated,  I was swooning all day over the rich reds and southern charm that embraced us all day.

Venue: Shiloh Farm
Florals: Bill Cooper
Wedding Coordinator: Elegance Affairs
Photographer: Elizabeth Birdwell (check out their wedding photos here)
Bartending: Pour Man’s Bar
Band: The Plan B Band
Cake: Sandy’s Sweets
Catering: Jackie’s Catering