Heather and Josh know how to start off a wedding weekend!! The couple both met a few years back in New Orleans, neither a native of the beautiful and vibrant city. Heather, originally from Connecticut, and Josh, a Missouri native, fell in love with New Orleans almost as hard as they fell in love for each other. Since the majority of their wedding guests would be traveling to Louisiana to celebrate with them, they wanted their wedding weekend to be a celebration of all things New Orleans. The kickoff event was a fun and jazzy second line! For those of you who are not familiar with a second line, it is basically a large parade with a brass jazz band, loud and colorful celebrating throughout the streets! Heather and Josh wanted their friends to wear fun and crazy costumes, and they delivered. This parade couldn’t be missed. Everyone on the streets and up in the balconies stopped what they were doing to cheer us on and we cruised through the streets. It was a blast, and the band was amazing. It was definitely a showcase of what was to come.
The next day, they hosted a crawfish boil on the bayou. I had never cracked open my own crawfish before, so Heather gave me a demonstration. It took me a few to get the hang of it, but they were delicious. Unfortunately, the rain started rolling in. Everyone had been checking the weather forecast repeatedly that week. We all knew it was coming, but no one wanted to admit it. It was supposed to rain the rest of that night, and all of the next day– their wedding day….
After continuously refreshing my weather app on my phone, everyone came to terms with the fact that it was definitely going to rain on Heather and Josh’s wedding day. The weather report even had a red exclamation mark noting “extreme thunderstorms” and “100% chance of rain” for the afternoon. I got to the beautiful wedding venue, RACE AND RELIGIOUS, and watched as friends and all of the groomsmen ran around trying to figure out where the ceremony would know be held inside. Plans had changed. The girls took their time getting ready, trying to stay optimistic about the weather. After all, Heather and Josh were STILL going to get married, rain or shine, and that was something to be happy about. But then….it was like a scene out of a movie….literally as Heather was buttoning up her wedding dress, the sun started to pour through the window! It was a wedding day miracle! People ran upstairs and said to her, “you have 10 minutes to decide if you want to move everything back outside for the ceremony or not, but if it rains again we will all have to get wet.” We took the chance anyway! The groomsmen and helpers moved EVERYTHING back outside! And it didn’t rain a drop the rest of the day!!!
It was truly meant to be. Not only was the weather cooperating, but the entire event was such a joyous occasion. The wedding was unconventional and traditional at the same time. Instead of having seats for all of the guests, Heather and Josh encouraged everyone to stand up and as close to them as they could. In the middle of the ceremony, the officiant, their friend Myles, even had everyone talk amongst themselves about what made the bride and groom unique, asking them to shout out answers. I’ve seen a good share of emotional grooms, but Josh probably takes the cake. Just the sight of Heather walking down the aisle made him tear up, as well as trying to get through their vows. (It was adorable). They also each took time to read aloud notes that the other had written to them from years ago. It was very sweet. There was no formal dinner, just a food truck serving yummy greek falafels! Guests could go up and order whenever they were hungry. Most of the details were DIY, such as the signs and flower crowns, and Heather even drew the portraits on the cake toppers! One of my favorite aspects of the night was how Heather and Josh had “shifts” of their wedding guests for bartenders! Every hour, they would switch out and someone else would be behind the bar. The food, the desserts, the music, the details, the WEATHER, they were all perfect. Some guests even jumped into the pool before the night was over. It was a great weekend. Congrats Josh+Bird!!
