In Their Own Sweet Time

In Their Own Sweet Time

Anna & Scott

Scott and I met on my first full day in Washington, D.C. in late 2019, where I moved from Illinois to start my new (first!) job. My roommate Lauren invited a few of her coworkers and friends to meet for D.C.’s favorite pastime: brunch. Scott, one of the three friends she invited, had moved to D.C. earlier that same year from Ohio and just happened to live in our neighborhood. 

After we met, Scott and I started going for walks at the nearby National Zoo, learning all about pandas (and mostly trying to get a glance at the elusive red pandas). After a few months of zoo visits, bike rides, donut runs, and IKEA trips, Scott and I decided to make it official. (Lauren and my new D.C. friends were so thrilled — they knew it would happen long before we did.) We started dating in April 2020, one month into the pandemic, and we quickly realized just how much we liked spending time together and going for bike rides all over the city.

We moved into a one-bedroom, 700-square-foot apartment in December 2020, and trust me when I say that two people working from home and spending most of their day together is a quick way to get to know each other. Each day, we eagerly anticipated evening walks in our new neighborhood, taking in the sights and sounds of the city.

On our first road trip together, we visited Wyoming and Montana, passing through Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier national parks. We fell in love with the Teton area — the nature and scenery took our breath away. So, we decided to visit regularly on winter trips, when I learned to snowboard with the ever-patient Scott as my teacher and continued to fall more and more in love with the area. 

Fast forward to 2022: We started a new tradition of getting dressed up and going out to dinner early — or so I thought. This “new ritual” was actually a carefully contemplated plan by Scott for his proposal on our apartment rooftop, overlooking the U.S. Capitol Building. I never suspected anything. We went out to dinner one October evening — like any typical Friday — and when we got back to our apartment, Scott thought it would be nice to have a couple drinks upstairs and watch the sunset (my ideal way to end the day). With our special song playing, “Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye” by Bettye Swann, Scott proposed to me under the setting sun. I will never forget that day.

Newly engaged, we knew we wanted to share our favorite part of the country with our friends and family, many of whom had never been Out West. We were thrilled to book Diamond Cross Ranch as our venue. We loved the outdoor setting, the barn, and, of course, the horses! 

We gave ourselves plenty of time to plan (it was nearly two years between our engagement and wedding), and we did a lot of things on our own. We incorporated secondhand items, aiming to reduce waste and single-use plastics as much as possible. We found beautiful glassware and decor, including our champagne coupes and cake stand, in local thrift stores and on Facebook Marketplace. I learned how to use (and have fun with) Canva and Zola, so I crafted our printables. We chose vendors who sourced things locally, including Provisions Jackson Hole and MD Nursery. The food, in particular, was incredible, and we won’t forget the wall of donuts! I am a big donut fan, so when we found out this was Provision’s specialty, we knew they were the caterers for us. 

We incorporated fun details, like a vintage phone for guests to leave voicemail (It was so fun to listen to these afterwards.), a polaroid guestbook (These were some of our favorite pictures.), and a stack of postcards to fill out that we later mailed to our guests (I always send postcards from my work trips, so this was a thoughtful inclusion.). 

We wanted our guests to experience the beauty of the area, enjoy delicious food and drink, and dance the night away. We are so grateful for all of our vendors who made our guests feel like family, from our “Western Disco” welcome party at Hand Fire Pizza, to our “Wild Days” hike in Grand Teton National Park, and our “Wildflowers & Denim” rehearsal dinner. We really enjoyed coming up with creative ways to bring our friends and family together. 

On the morning of our wedding day, Scott and I grabbed coffee together and took advantage of the Teton backdrop with our first look and private vows. The ceremony opened up with “Shine on You Crazy Diamond” by Pink Floyd, a favorite of my dad’s (now deceased). I could hear the music from where I was waiting, and I felt like he was there with us. Our dear friend Lauren officiated our wedding and opened with a land acknowledgement, recognizing the stewardship of indigenous peoples of these lands. We felt this was important to honor and celebrate their history and presence. Our first kiss was graced with the arrival of the Diamond Cross Ranch horses, taking many of our guests by complete surprise. 

We enjoyed a leisurely cocktail hour and dinner, provided by Provisions, complete with specialty drinks. After dinner, we invited our guests to join us for “sweets and the sunset.” While Scott and I were busy posing for sunset photos with some of the horses, our guests took in the spectacular views. Then, we kicked things off with our first dance to “For Once in My Life” by Stevie Wonder and stayed on the dance floor the entire night. 

We will always cherish the memories from our wedding — the love and joy that surrounded us and the feeling of having all of the most important people in our life under one roof. Nothing compares! 

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Advice for Couples

Savor every moment. Everyone told us how quickly your wedding day will go by, so we thought we were prepared. But we weren’t! Take it all in. The day truly goes by in a blur. Make sure to capture quality photos and videos so you can relive the day later on, as you surely won’t remember everything without a little help.