Atlee and Mike are so stinking cute together! When asking Atlee to fill out a survey on how the pair met, this was her reply: “We met three years prior to the wedding at the bride’s best friend’s bachelorette party (where I was the maid of honor at). Some of the bridesmaids knew that Mike would love to surprise the bride to be since they had not been reunited since college, so they invited him out to the drag show they were at. After eyeing each other all evening, he left after telling me “save me a dance at the wedding.” At my best friend’s wedding, we were inseparable. We went on our first date to Pumpkinfest two weeks later and made it official shortly after that. Both of us knew that this was something special, and the long distance from the south side of Chicago to the rural town of Sycamore would be worth it. The proposal was a complete surprise. We both had the day off of work after I had been out of town at a dance competition all weekend. After getting coffee and taking our dogs to the park, we decided to take a picnic lunch to White Pines Ranch and enjoy the beautiful spring weather. I almost spoiled the surprise a few times, needing to reach into Mike’s backpack for one reason or another…but thankfully, I never found the ring. After enjoying a picnic lunch in the rock canyon, I found myself covered with dust and pine needles. I stood up and started to walk down the trail brushing myself off and laughing that Mike would have to “deal with my mess for the rest of his life.” When I noticed that Mike wasn’t following me, I turned around to find him down on one knee with a ring box out. He simply said “Speaking of the rest of my life…I can’t imagine it without you there. Will you marry me?”After realizing what was happening and making sure my knees didn’t completely buckle under me, I hugged Mike and of course said yes! We finished our hike on cloud 9, enjoying that private and special moment that we shared together.”

18 months later, after a rock-paper-scissors match to decide who would recite their vows first, the pair wed under twinkle lights and chandeliers on a VERY rainy day in Oregon, IL. I am honored to be a part of this lovely couple’s journey! Take a peek at their wedding photos below! <3

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