Wedding Date on Sep 13, 2020

Derek and Kayla work together at a hospital in the Twin Cities. After flirting at work for several weeks, Derek asked Kayla out on a date. It took him asking her several times for her to finally agree to go out with him. They loved spending time together, became close friends, and fell in love. Derek proposed to Kayla in the summer of 2019 at a park where they enjoyed taking walks together. Their wedding was originally planned for May 2020, but when the pandemic hit, their plans were derailed and had to post-pone their wedding with little notice. The hospital they work at treats COVID-19 patients and Kayla worked in the COVID ward throughout the summer. The added stress of this health risk made planning a new wedding all the more difficult. Their plans changed from a big wedding at a local country club to a scaled down celebration in Kayla's parents' stunning backyard. Their backyard has flowers, a small apple orchard, pine trees, and rolling hills of green grass. It could easily pass for a rentable venue! Their original wedding day came and went and was a miserable rainy day. That made things a little easier to bear! The rescheduled date, September 13, was a gorgeous sunny, pleasant day. Their guests gathered (distanced) in their backyard for the ceremony and a tented reception. The day was so full of the fun, playful character of these two. When Kayla walked up behind Derek for their first look, instead of the usual tap on the shoulder, she gave him a smack on the rear. Needless to say, that got the photographers and videographers laughing along with the surprised groom. As Kayla walked down the aisle towards Derek, he was overwhelmed by his beautiful bride and teared up (like we all did!!). Their personal, handwritten vows made everyone cry and made it clear that these two are perfect for one another. Family and friends formed a sparkler circle in the field for the couple's first dance to the song Still by Scotty McCreery, which included a series of spins and dips. It was a beautiful, emotional day and was another amazing example of how what seemed like a negative (rescheduled, down-scaled wedding and changed plans) turned out to be a huge positive.