Ranae + Matt | St. Philip Catholic Church + Lemont Restaurant Wedding

The first time I talked to Ranae + Matt, we were on the call for over an hour. The second time we talked, I invited myself on their honeymoon.

Guys.

I know. Comin’ on a littttle strong.

But it’s not my fault! Ranae + Matt are just the kind of easy going, happy people you want to hang out with. The kind of people who’s joy in each other overflows and envelops everyone around them. They’re the kind of people you invite over for brunch and then suddenly it’s dinner and somehow the day passed, but no one seemed to notice. To say I was excited hang with them, their families, and all for their favorite people on their wedding day is an understatement.

And their day was nothing short of spectacular. They prayed a rosary together before their ceremony. They exchanged vows in the church Ranae’s great-grandmother attended 100+ years ago. They wrote, sang, and recorded their first dance song, and choreographed a whole dance to go with it. Ranae and her dad followed with the most hilarious and wonderful father daughter dance I’ve ever seen. And when the DJ quipped, “Don’t know how you follow that one!” before introducing Matt and his mom for the mother son dance, I wasn’t sure the moment could be topped. But then, the music started playing, and I realized that Matt wrote, sang, and recorded that song, too.

And then, for the first time, it hit me. Some day, somewhere down the line, I’ll be dancing with my boys at their weddings too. And it’ll sting, the fact that they’ll be grown and gone. That they’ll turn to someone else for everything that they need, and I won’t be their #1 anymore. And as my shutter clicked while Matt and his mom danced, my eyes filled up, and my heart filled up, and I had to stop to take a breath. One of Matt’s aunts was next to me, and we leaned in and wiped some tears and had a moment of “you get it. This is heartbreaking in all the most beautiful ways.”

Ranae + Matt, your day was a dream. I’m forever honored you asked me to be a part of it.

Cheers friends,

C