Interview with the wonderful Cait + Kevin:
HOW DID YOU MEET? We met on a backpacking trip in Kauai, Hawaii in January 2011. At the time, Cait was a senior Elementary Education/Special Education major at Messiah College and Kevin was a freshman Adventure Education major at Messiah College.
WHAT ATTRACTED YOU THE MOST TO YOUR HUSBAND/WIFE?
Cait-I was attracted at first to Kevin’s ability to handle difficult situations. We experienced a flash flood while backpacking with our group and the way Kevin responded stood out to me. As a new backpacker myself, I was attracted to Kevin’s love of the outdoors and his adventurous lifestyle. As we got to know one another through the trip and the months and years following, I consider Kevin’s positive outlook on life a gift to experience.
Kevin– I was attracted to Caitlin’s excitement and love for life. She is adorable when she experiences new things and it is impossible not to have fun with her. Her eyes are amazing too.
HOW DID HE PROPOSE? Kevin proposed March 2013. We both really enjoy being outdoors and experiencing God’s creation. We live in southeastern Pennsylvania and are under 2 hours from Shenandoah National Park. Kevin took me for the first time to Shenandoah National Park to hike Old Ragg Mountain. He proposed to me when we were almost to the top of the mountain. It was perfect because what usually is a very popular and crowded trail wasn’t too busy because it was early spring. It was a beautiful day and I was happily surprised. I don’t know who was beaming more that day…me or Kevin. I’d say it was a tie. : )
WHAT INSPIRED YOUR VISION FOR YOUR WEDDING?
Kevin and I live very intentionally with those who are close to us and we definitely put a lot of thought into the days leading up to the wedding and the wedding day itself. We were a group of 55 people (including us) for the wedding. Kevin’s family is from New Hampshire, my family is from the New York tri-state area, and we have other family members and friends from all over the country reaching as far west as Arizona, as far east as Germany, and as far north as Canada. It was very important to us that we enjoyed our time with everyone making the trek to Florida before the wedding day itself. My parents rented a house on the island and we were able to relax and celebrate with about 80% of our guests the days leading up to the wedding. We enjoyed the beach, I took the women out to Brunch, we had a golf cart scavenger hunt on the island, and we relaxed together. It was such a fun weekend with our closest family and friends. We are so thankful to my parents for hosting during such a busy time and allowing the space for everyone to meet.
Kevin and I both wanted the wedding day to focus on Christ and how blessed we are because of our faith in Him. We knew the day would be very focused on us, but we wanted the day to point to Christ overall. It was also very important to us to incorporate our families into the ceremony. Kevin’s grandfather married us, his sister read a passage of scripture, and his parents read the tying of the knot portion of the ceremony (We had incorporate rock climbing in there somehow!). My sister was my maid of honor, my littlest brother was my ring bearer, my other two brothers played a ukulele duet at the end of the ceremony, and my parents read the blessing of the hands near the end of the ceremony. We asked Kevin’s gifted friends to play a worship song for everyone to participate in singing to. It was important to us to include our guests in the worship rather than listening to a performance. It was a beautiful ceremony.
DID YOU HAVE ANY DIY DETAILS? Our faith in Christ is very important to us and our ceremony focused a lot on our faith. My dad built a wooden cross for us for the end of the aisle. It was beautiful with the protea and succulent arrangement from the florist on it. I wanted succulents incorporated into the wedding because I love plants and have a lot of succulents myself. My mom made all of the centerpieces for the reception using bowls, sand, shells, and succulents we picked out together. I am so thankful that my parents made our special day even more special by contributing their gifts and talents toward the ceremony and reception.
HOW WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER? Working with Sarah and Jason was truly a gift. Before the wedding, they were available to skype and communicate whenever I had questions and provided a lot of help and guidance in regards to timing the events in our day. On the wedding day itself, they made taking photographs a fun experience for everyone involved. We appreciated how both photographers were very intentional about their use of time and light. They came prepared with fun and creative ideas for photographs in town with our wedding party and were also very flexible with ideas I had since I have vacationed in Boca Grande since I was in elementary school. I also appreciated how they worked very professionally with my cousin who was our videographer and with family members who wanted to take pictures of their own. The day was so, so fun and part of that credit goes to Concept Photography. Thank you!
WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU AND YOUR HUSBAND AS A COUPLE? Currently, we are in route for our honeymoon! I had to go back to work a few days after the wedding to finish off the school year. I teach Kindergarten in Biglerville, Pennsylvania. We are thankful for the break between the wedding and honeymoon to get our backpacking gear and meals prepped. School just let out and we are on our way to Kauai and Maui to backpack the Kalalau Trail (a trail we backpacked when we first met), stay at a cottage in Kauai, stay at a tree house in Maui, and also go car camping at various sites on both islands. Shortly after our honeymoon, we are going on a road trip out west and stopping along the way in various states to rock climb and hike. Our destination is Grand Tetons National Park, where we will meet up with friends and their children at a cabin for a couple days. Life is an adventure with Kevin and I am just as excited for our everyday adventures together once summer journeys come to a close.
CAN YOU PLEASE LIST YOUR VENDORS:
Sugar Island Cupcakes- wedding cake (http://www.sugarislandcupcakes.com/)
Native Gardens Florist- florist ((941) 964-0007)
Boca Bay Pass Club-location of the ceremony and reception (http://www.bocabaypassclub.com/)
Jay Goodley Entertainment Inc.-DJ (http://www.jaygoodley.com/)
David Listor Studios-videography (davidlistor.com)

Baby makes three! We met this beautiful couple a few years ago when we took their engagement photos on the UF campus. Then we were lucky enough to work with them again for their spectacular wedding in Melbourne, FL. Now they are expecting a son and we just couldn’t be any happier for Lindsay + Trey!

Interview with the beautiful couple, Ashley + Ryan:
HOW DID YOU MEET? It all started with a chance meeting at MacDinton’s in Tampa. The rest is history.
WHAT ATTRACTED YOU THE MOST TO YOUR HUSBAND/WIFE? Ryan- Her gorgeous looks are undeniable and her soul was equally as beautiful
Ashley- The way he genuinely cares for others and his ability to be lighthearted yet sincere in everything he does. He has such a Christ-like love for me and his salt water, Bob Marley, Pizza, loving soul was perfect for mine.
HOW DID HE PROPOSE? Ashley had never seen snow before and dreamed of going skiing in the Rocky Mountains. Ryan planned the surprise proposal to occur on the top of the mountain at Deer Valley, Utah. Ryan faked like they were going to take a scenic picture with the entire Rocky Mountains as a backdrop and as his sister and brother-in-law went to take the picture, Ryan dropped to one knee and asked Ashley to spend the rest of her life with him.
WHAT INSPIRED YOUR VISION FOR YOUR WEDDING? I don’t think either of us knew what our dream wedding would be until it happened. It exceeded any vision we had. All we knew is we wanted our wedding to represent us and our values. It’s not every day you have all your favorite people in one place at one time, so we wanted everyone to have the time of their lives and feel our appreciation for being a part of us.
TELL US ABOUT FINDING YOUR VENUE: We started with the idea that we wanted a place that would be special to us that we would want to revisit in the future. We looked all over but wanted to find a venue that reflected us and after searching different places between Orlando and Sarasota, Ryan remembered a little fishing village he would go to as a kid. When we drove on to the island and saw the town and the Gasparilla Inn, we found the place we wanted to get married. You can’t help but smile when you are on the island and it was a perfect mixture of Ryan and I.
WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST PLANNING CHALLENGE? With so many people who have had an impact on our lives, refining the guest list to fit with the size constraints was very difficult.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE DESIGN ELEMENT OF YOUR WEDDING? Our favorite design element was the personalization of it. We both really wanted to express our appreciation and gratitude towards our family and friends for being a part of our big day and tried to incorporate that into the details in everything from the coasters, to the thank you place cards. We wanted to make the night not only about Ryan and I, but all the people who have helped shaped who we are.
DID YOU HAVE ANY DIY DETAILS?
Ryan- We could not have pulled off the wedding without Ashley spending night after night for 6 months creating and making so much of the decorations.
Ashley- I loved every second of the DIY decorations because they meant so much to me and to see them displayed at the wedding made it that much more meaningful! My favorite was the dedication to our parents chalkboard sign.
WHAT WAS THE MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT OF YOUR WEDDING DAY?
Ryan- Never in my life will I forget the look or feeling of seeing Ashley walk down the aisle towards me. She literally took my breath away.
Ashley- Ryan’s cousin sang a beautiful song during our ceremony. During this time Ryan and I had our backs facing everyone and it seemed like it was just Ryan and I in that room. I remember looking at his face and I couldn’t hold back tears. Also, seeing the gorgeous sunset and feeling so much gratitude for the backdrop we were given!
DESCRIBE YOUR CAKE: It was a simple cake with three tiers made of a red velvet layer and two layers of vanilla with strawberry and cream cheese filling.
HOW WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER? The first major detail Ashley had planned was the photographer. After a ton of research there was one photography team who’s quality and ability to capture the important moments stood out above the rest, and that was Concept Photography. They were absolutely amazing to work with! They were fun and so patient with our very large bridal party!! They were one of the best decisions we made and we always knew we were in good hands!
WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU AND YOUR HUSBAND AS A COUPLE? Since the wedding we have felt an amazing euphoric feeling but we can’t wait to experience whatever is next in our lives as a married couple! We do not have any immediate future plans, but that is part of the fun!
CAN YOU PLEASE LIST YOUR VENDORS:
Band: All The Answers
Decorations & Flowers: Concept Bait
Invitations & Paper Products: Inviting Business Paper Boutique
Venue: Gasparilla Inn & Club
Hair & Makeup (for Ashley, not Ryan!): Rachel Reumann
Day of Coordinator– Christina Harris with Swanky Soiree