Real Bride – Whitney and Jon

Bride and Groom’s names: Whitney and Jon Morton

– How did he propose? We were in Maui and drove up with another couple to the top of the Haleakala volcano to watch the sunrise.  We were standing at the very top overlooking the island and he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.  I was totally surprised!  The other couple was in on it and were hiding taking pictures of the whole thing.  They joined us after with champagne, lots of happy tears, and hugs!

– Tell us about your venue and why you chose it: My venue was The Lookout Mountain Fairyland Club.  I’ve seen it all my life and always admired the beauty and character of it.  We chose it because of the gorgeous view overlooking the valley, the large but warm and inviting banquet hall, it could accommodate the people attending, and it had a perfect place for the band to play.  The list could go on.  It was everything I could have hoped for.  We got married in front of the large fireplace and had a beautiful fire going during the ceremony and reception.  We also had a seated dinner which was delicious.  I recommend this venue 100 times over!

– What was your favorite and least favorite part about the wedding planning process? I can honestly say I enjoyed every part of it.  I did a lot myself (invites, place cards, programs, etc.) and my mom and dad helped me a lot; meeting with Tammy at The Fairyland Club, the florist, the cake maker, etc.  My family was a huge help as I live out of state now and couldn’t make the required meetings.  That took a lot of stress off.  The only thing that was a little tough was the seating arrangements but even that wasn’t bad.  It was just our time to get married and everything was so right that the whole process was just a pleasure.  Super busy but it was all wonderful.

– Any advice for other brides planning their big day?  DON’T STRESS!!  You will suck out all the joy of this wonderful day that you’ve waited for so just enjoy each and every step.  It will be over in the blink of an eye so try really hard to drink in every moment and be grateful you found your someone special.  Who cares about the budget, how many people come or don’t come, where you are getting married…people won’t remember or even know this stuff but they will remember how happy you two looked when you said “I do”.  That’s what it is all about.

– What was your favorite part of your wedding day?  Everything.  Getting married to the man of my dreams, joining our families, sharing the big day with our friends and family.  I loved the ceremony, the reception, dancing the night away…literally everything.  My 4-year-old flower girl freaked out at the last second so her dad was my flower man.  My dad tripped over my dress after he gave me away.  They didn’t have a knife by the cake when we had to cut it so we used Jon’s pocket knife (he ALWAYS has it with him, even in his rented tux).  They brought one out but we had to do what we had to do because everyone was looking at us so we couldn’t wait for it!  The evening was just very us in every way from start to finish.  A wonderful evening with great people and amazing memories.