These two friends of mine got married on a Friday in July and now y’all get to experience their day :D. A day of laughs, color, elegance, “Star Wars”, and fun. Hehe 😀

This turquoise bench was the BEST. Haha. Complimented her details so well :D.

LOVED their rings 😀 :D.

It was pretty spectacular inside too.

And just down the road, Stephanie and her girls were chillin’ :D.

We begin with a surprise gift from her man! 😀

And here’s the lovely face of the bride, Stephanie Marie Downing now Trosclair!! 😀

He got her a bride and groom Pandora charm :D.

Stephanie was so wonderfully relaxed (AND BEAUTIFUL. Man. Just look at her! No make up! And her hair! [swoon]). I had such a nice time being with them that cozy morning :).

Her adorable blonde friend she’s laughing with is her life long buddy Sarah Koger 😀 (you may remember seeing her with her boyfriend at Josiah and Sarah’s wedding on Valentine’s Day). And SHE’S getting married on a Friday next March and I’m photographing it! So fun!! 😀

We said these looked like Krabby Patties. Hehe 😀

One of the sweetest aspects of the day was everyone’s adoration of Stephanie’s niece Elaina (John and Melissa‘s daughter! :D). John and Melissa live in Nebraska, so her family doesn’t get to see Elaina very often, so they spend as much time staring at her as they can :D.

Stephanie’s beautiful, generous mother Mrs. Kim :D.

Mom took pictures with my back up camera again for fun and got some great shots through out the day! And pictures of me. Haha 😀

There’s Mom to the right :D.

Stephanie looked SO enchanting. Seriously. She is the Disney princess that should have been.

Precious bridesmaid tears 🙂

😀

I also went up a couple floors and visited the guys!

Jonathan (Stephanie’s younger brother) is a cop, so that’s why he has a gun with him. Haha.

Man of the hour! Hehe 😀

Matt the groom, everyone :D.

And his merry men. Haha 😀

Getting closer! 😀

Enjoying the wind. Hehe 😀

Ready to go get Stephanie in her dress! 😀

Happy, stunning bride 😀 😀

Yeah, her belt was magnificent (her dress as well!!)

Aaaaaaaah, man. Crazy beautiful.

🙂

Hey, lovely 😀

Then her dad came to see her! 😀

Just like when her older sister Melissa got married, they had an heirloom diamond made into a necklace for her :D.

Him praying with her was such a precious moment to witness <3

Yeah, tears came. Haha.

Hehe 😀

Stephanie and her two sisters 🙂 (well, Tammie isn’t a biological sister, but they treat her as such 🙂 <3 )

Beautiful ladies 😀

Heading down to take pictures!

The salmon colored wall outside also perfectly complimented her color scheme! So fun 😀

Stunning, y’all.

😀

They just all looked so beautiful 😀

We begin with her junior bridesmaid: Kaylee Sedberry! Their families have been friends ever since Kaylee was born 😀

Then her older sister and matron of honor whom y’all’ve already met: Melissa Slavik :D.

Beautiful sisters 😀

Now both married!! 😀

Then her other “sister” y’all already met too: Tammie Hoyt 😀

Then we had the happy interruption of her brother seeing her as a bride for the first time :D.

So sweet :D. They’re really close :). Their whole family is :).

Then there’s her married friend Jessica Barrilleaux! 😀

Along with being life long buds with Sarah Koger, she’s also great friends with Sarah’s sister in law Jessica Koger! 😀

There’s Sarah :D. What a bride she’s gonna make :D.

She loves Stephanie so much :D.

😀

And last but not least, Stephanie’s beautiful friend who’s also getting married soon: Brittany Constantine :D.

Stephanie’s flower girls were Jessica Barrilleaux’s daughter Olivia and Matthew’s mom’s best friend’s daughter Olivia Ganey. That’s not confusing at all. Haha. They were precious though :D.

LOVE this shot my mom got through the pillars. So lovely.

Beautiful, happy women. Hehe 😀

I just could not get over how stunningly enchanting Stephanie was as a bride.

You are breathtaking, Steph 😀 <3

There were two other little flower girls who didn’t walk down the aisle, but definitely were an honored part of the day :D.

Jessica Barrilleaux’s newest daughter Sophie! 😀

And of course little Elaina 😀

Then it was almost ceremony time, but we had to get Matt and his guys :D.

Super cool, y’all 🙂

Stephanie’s dad stopped by for a picture too. Hehe 😀

This is their ring bearer who was one of the best dancers on the dance floor that night: little Corey Barrilleaux. Haha 😀

He’s just too adorable. Haha.

Handsome little guy :).

Then we have Brett Stirling!

Zack Hodges!

Jonathan of course :D.

Christopher Blanchard!

Alex Crump!

Matthew’s younger brother: Troy Tanguis!

And lastly, Matthew’s uncle (he introduced himself as the 16 year old uncle. Haha): Nicolas Poloma!

Haha, these guys had fun.

Matthew was an easy going, happy groom. Hehe 🙂

😀

Matthew’s parents visited Stephanie before the ceremony started 😀

They get along so well and they love her to death :D. Hooray for new family!

😀

All of the girls came down the grand stair case (or skipped down. Hehe :D)

THIS was too sweet.

And there she is 😀

So so captivating.

🙂

😀

<3

😀

And again, just like at John and Melissa’s wedding, her dad married them :).

Such a beautiful setting for a ceremony :).

😀

There’s me in the aisle. Hehe :).

Lace, Chucks, and love. Hehe 🙂

🙂

Time to kiss the bride 😀

Hooray 😀

Like the wall says, the new Mrs. and Mrs. Trosclair! Hehe :D. Also, their recessional was “The Imperial March” from “Star Wars” Hahaha. It was awesome :D.

😀 😀

The sun was about to go down, so we made the most of 5 minutes out in the light :D.

Hehehe. This is so very them :D.

She loves her goofy, happy man and he loves his beautiful, fun woman 😀

Speaking of how they love each other, let’s read their love story, shall we? 😀

“Our love story started with Matthew sending me a message on Facebook asking if we had ever met in person. I found out later that he remembered meeting me two years earlier, but as he says he needed a way to strike up a conversation. We started to talk about mutual friends and the military, our dads worked together; it turned out we had quite a few mutual friends, but only met once. After many Facebook messages, that gave me butterflies every time he responded, we exchanged numbers. After a couple of days Matthew asked me to go to dinner with a group of his high school friends. I thought it was a perfect opportunity to go and see if I was even really interested since I knew most of his friends anyway. After dinner and frozen yogurt I realized Matthew and I really did hit if off and it didn’t hurt that he was funny, smart, nice and handsome. He asked me out on a date the next day and I gladly accepted. However, he threw a curve ball at me. We were going on our date on a Friday night and the Thursday before I casually mentioned that I was going running after work, and he asked to join me. I tried to think of a legitimate reason to not have him come, but I couldn’t think of one. Great, the guy I like is going to see me all sweaty and stinky before our first date. We met up on campus and ran two miles, which killed me because his pace was faster than mine, but no way was I going to stop. After almost dying we walked around for another two miles and talked the whole time. We had such a good time just talking by the time I left I could not wait for our date the next day. Matthew came to pick me up Friday evening and talked to my dad so long we missed the movie we were going to see. We ended up getting coffee and swinging in the park until the later showing of the movie. After our first date he officially asked me to be his girlfriend :)! I remember always wanting to be around him or always wanting to talk to him. I still, to this day always want to be with him. He makes me happy and gives me butterflies still after a year and a half. Even if I’ve had a bad/hard day all I have to do is think about the fact that I love him and he loves me and we get to be husband and wife soon. As long as I remember that everything else will be ok since we’re together.”

😀

They are each other’s favorite and it makes me smile 😀

Hehe 😀

Don’t they look so good together?!

😀

Hooray for the last light of day shining on these two 🙂 🙂 <3

Matthew told me…

“Stephanie is very affectionate, especially with Patches [her little dog. hehe 🙂 ]. She likes long walks in the bookstore, and multiple cups of coffee a day. I love everything about her even if she’s being silly. I love how determined she can be in any aspect of life; whether it’s saving money or going to the gym. I love when she playfully smothers me with kisses and puts up with my car obsession. I love her eyes and her smile. I love that I get to spend the rest of my life with her.”

😀

And Stephanie told me :)…

“Matthew is always being goofy and trying to make other people smile. He is kind and caring; always putting others first. If I’m upset he will do anything to make me smile. I love how he thinks all his decisions through before he makes them (sometimes he over thinks). When he does finally make a decision everyone knows it’s well thought out. I love his dimples and the way his eyes almost completely close when he smiles really big. He treats me like a queen even if he has had a rough day. I always feel safe, protected, and loved when I am with Matthew and I can’t wait to be his wife.”

😀 😀

Love love love :D. I’m so happy for y’all :D.

I asked them what were some of their favorite things to do together.

“We love to have ‘movie days.’ When Matthew is off on a weekend and we don’t have plans we buy candy and snacks then we watch movies all day. We also like to hang out with our friends. Usually we get dinner or frozen yogurt and wander around downtown Hammond. We both love spending time with our families. We do things like paint pumpkins for my birthday, or dye eggs for the first time. Mess, but fun :). As long as we’re together anything we do can turn into a favorite activity…Oh and coffee dates on my lunch breaks.”

😀

Dreamy, y’all! <3 <3

Stunning and fun: them in a nutshell. Hehe 😀

Beautiful, happy man and wife 😀 :D. Congratulations again! Hehe 😀

Their wedding day was the fairy tale Stephanie dreamed it would be and they were the charming prince and princess no doubt :D.

Wedding partyyy! 😀

Too awesome. Hahaha.

Haha

Hahaha

Hehe 😀

The way she’s looking at him 😀 <3

There’s my dad with our dear friends the Ortegas! 😀

When our families are together, it’s the best. Hahaha 😀

And y’all know this girl! (if not, you probably haven’t followed me long. Haha). My bestie +Allix Ruby and her husband +Trevor Ruby were guests at the wedding! 😀

I was able to take a break to hug and visit friends like +Pearl Ortega and eat mashed potatoes out of a martini glass. Yay. Hehe :D.

Matt and Stephanie ate up on the balcony while a slideshow played for everyone :).

First dance on the balcony 😀 :D.

Maaaagical <3 <3

Then the father-daughter dance 😀

Then the mother-son dance 😀

Then his mom brought her best friend Nikki Ganey (and close friend of the family) to come dance with Matt 😀

Then everyone started coming out to dance :D.

And the evening continued to just be a blast 😀

Oh, you know, just “freaking out.” Haha 😀

Now, this is Boba Fett and he pretty much made the reception. Hahaha. Also known as good friend of Matt and Stephanie’s: Kyle Tidmore.

Socks too. Hahaha.

Sweet 😀

Two father-daughter dances going on right here! 😀

Yeah, this was a fun evening. Haha.

Lookin’ fancy, y’all! Hehe 😀

Then there was the cake pull! (which I was included in :D)

I got the “next to find true love” charm!

Me upon discovery of that: “Woohoo!” Hahaha.

Back to the party. Hehe 😀

This was fun 😀

Yaaaay! 😀

Bouquet toss time! (which I was also included in. Hehe :D. But unlike recent bouquet tosses I have participated in, I didn’t catch it! I was glad ’cause I kept catching it. Haha)

She did! Yay! 😀

Then it was garter toss time. Haha.

And like almost every garter toss I have witnessed…

It didn’t fall close enough. Haha.

Boba went and got it…

…but wanted to give it another fairer try.

Buuuut, it didn’t make it up high enough. Hahaha. So, we left it at that….

…and got back to dancing. Haha.

But then we had the happy interruption of speeches :D.

Hahaha. Despite the encouragement, Bro. Ryan (Allix’s dad) did not join the guys. Haha. (yeah, Allix’s parents were guests too! :D)

Me and my bud in our natural state of laughter. Hehe 😀 <3

Our moms are buds too! 😀

I didn’t know why Joanna and Pearl were cracking up until…

…I saw Bro. Joe (their dad) headed over to come join!! Hahahaha. Too great.

Way to go, Bro. Joe. Hahaha 😀

Their squad. Hehe 😀

Hey, parents of mine :).

Hey, new married couple :D.

Then they brilliantly took turns wearing Kyle’s Boba Fett helmet. Hahaha. Loved it :D.

Off to Disney World!! 😀

Congrats again!! Can’t wait to hang out with y’all as husband and wife next time I’m down! 😀 Love y’all 🙂 <3

With a smile,

{ Rachel Leigh }