March 18th

Today is a special day. Today is March 18th.

On March 18th in 2011, I saw my husband for the first time. I smiled at him for the first time. I flirted with him for the first time. And I went to bed thinking about him for the first time. From that day on, I haven't gone a day without speaking to him. March 18th has been a special day for 5 years now.

This year, I have a secret to share with you all. Not only is March 18th the day that I met my husband... it's also the day that I became his wife. Today is our 1 year wedding anniversary.

Miles and I decided around November of 2014 that we wanted to be married privately among immediate family members and our very best friends before our big wedding in July. There were a number of reasons that informed our decision, the most pressing being that my health insurance was going to lapse if we waited to be married until July.

We asked our close family and friends to keep our early marriage private out of respect for us and to help keep others from feeling left out. Our intention was never to hurt anyone by excluding them from our wedding. However, we feared that sharing that we were already married prior to our wedding in July might take away from the magic of the day. Despite us already being married, our "big wedding" was still very special to us. That being said, we're choosing to share this little secret with you all now, because our wedding day was the absolute best day of our lives, and we want to celebrate with all of you! And what better way to celebrate than by sharing some photos and stories from our wedding day?!

We were married at 11 AM on a Thursday at the Old Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana (which is actually the same town we had our big wedding in). The courthouse is a historical landmark and is over 100 years old. It's absolutely stunning, and it photographs so beautifully! I highly encourage everyone to visit the courthouse and free museum inside. (Fun fact: You can see the courthouse and courtroom that we were married in featured in a number of films, including Legally Blonde!)

The Old Orange County Courthouse

Miles got ready that morning at my sister's house and drove to Santa Ana with my dad. I arrived at the courthouse with my brother-in-law, sister, and mom. It was a gorgeous, bright, and sunny spring day. My amazing friend, Tiffani, from Sun and Sparrow arrived early to catch a shot of our "first look." We signed our marriage documents and headed upstairs for a quick three minute ceremony. My dad walked me down the aisle to my very nervous and teary-eyed fiancé. As quick as it all was, I still managed to cry like a baby.

Just before our first look

When we started planning, we knew that we wanted the day to be relaxing and fun. We quickly thought of the perfect place to celebrate. Disneyland! Disneyland has been a huge part of our relationship, and we knew we'd manage to have an awesome time there.

With close to 20 friends and family members in tow, we invaded Disneyland! Miles and I checked in to our hotel room at the Disneyland Hotel and then met up with Tiffani for some photos inside the park. Afterward, we met up with all of our guests at the Uva Bar in Downtown Disney, where everyone was already pretty toasty (if you catch my drift). It was barely 1 PM, and our entire group was already in full party mode. This made for an incredible day!

At the Uva Bar with our guests

We all entered California Adventure, going on rides and catching the attention of tons of people around the park. It was very obvious that Miles and I had just been married, and we delighted in the "Congratulations!" and cheers that we received all afternoon. The Disneyland cast members were incredibly accommodating, even going so far as to block off portions of rides so that our entire party could enjoy the attractions together. Drunk, happy, and very silly, we took the park by storm!

Beer and champagne in Paradise Pier

We all sat down for a fancy dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Napa Rose, which is located inside of Disney's Grand Californian Hotel. If you haven't been to Napa Rose, you absolutely MUST. Our dinner was phenomenal, and we left there ready to party the rest of the night away!

A little peek at all of the mischief

We finished off our wedding day by spending every last moment, right up until closing, with our guests inside Disneyland. A cast member even gave Miles and I free churros as we were walking out of the park. The day was as close to perfect as you can possibly get. After saying our goodbyes to our friends and family, Miles and I headed back to our beautiful hotel room to wind down from the day as husband and wife.

Waking up in our hotel room the next morning

I cannot encourage engaged couples enough to have a small courthouse wedding prior to having a large wedding. There is nothing quite like sharing your marriage with the people who are nearest and dearest to you. As much as I loved our July wedding, if I had to choose only one day, I would instantly choose our courthouse wedding for its charm and intimacy. I wouldn't take that day back for all the money in the world. It really was the best day ever, and I've never had more fun in my entire life!

Thank you to my mom, dad, Aleah, Alex, Brianna, Mikie, Ashling, Alannah, John, Tim, Matt, Cory, Jules, Mike, Val, Christine, Tom, Tiffani, and Mai for helping make the day so unforgettable!

Photos taken by Tiffani at Sun and Sparrow

(click photos to enlarge)

And some not-so-professional photos taken by friends and family

We've made it one year, and it's been our best year yet. Thank you to all of our family and friends for your support and love. Our marriage is all the better for it, and we don't take you for granted for one second. Here's to Year Two!