Melissa + Greg // A Wedding with a Cave and the Luck o’ the Irish

Melissa and Greg’s wedding was a special one for me for several reasons. Melissa found me at a bridal show last January, and shortly after she won a free engagement session due to the super sweet words of friends and family who wrote in to nominate her and Greg. (It’s hard to believe that’s been over a year ago!) Then, when Kelly and I decided to start Bham Bride last year (which is kind of on hold due to how busy we both are, but we hope to revive it someday), Melissa was by FAR our biggest cheerleader. She has participated so much on our Facebook page, and she even used Bham Bride as inspiration for a big project her last semester in art school. She has essentially been the ideal Bham Bride and Kelly and I have come to love her. :)

One of the first things Melissa told me when she described their vision for the day was that they wanted to get married in a cave. A cave! How awesome. Also, their wedding day was St. Patrick’s Day, and it was so fitting given all the green and the redheads present. Let’s just say I fit right in. ;)

Their wedding was also incredibly nostalgic for me, because it reminded me SO much of my own wedding almost four years ago. Seriously. I was showing my mom some of these photos when I was back home a few days ago, and before I said a word, she was like, “Wow- it looks so much like your wedding!” We even had the same first dance song, “First Day of My Life” by Bright Eyes. That’s how much Melissa and I are on the same wavelength. :)

Anyway, lucky for both of us, Kelly was available to second shoot, and we all had so much fun. And now I’ll stop jabbering and get to the photos…

The insanely talented Celine Russell did a phenomenal job of bringing Melissa’s Zooey Deschanel-inspired hair and makeup to life. I mean, how gorgeous is she?!

Such a sweet First Look.

We then headed to DeSoto Caverns for their ceremony, which was in a gorgeous cave.

I loved how they chose to go the nontraditional route and have a co-ed bridal party. (Although I feel like we’re still trying to figure out what to call them… bridesmen? groomsmaids?)

Melissa makes the most adorable faces ever.

Then it was back to Morgan Creek Vineyards for the reception… and of course some lovely golden light portraits!

I kid you not… one of the sweetest moments in all my wedding memories happened when Melissa’s stepdad, Mark, brought her out on the dance floor to dance. When the song started playing, Kelly and I looked at each other and I think it was all we could do not to sob, because the lyrics to the song (“Stepfather of the Bride” by Mike McLaughlin) were just so poignant and emotional. I love that Melissa didn’t hold back her tears. :)

These days there aren’t that many couples who go crazy with the cake feeding, so it was kind of awesome to see these two smash it.

When Melissa’s maid of honor and sister Ashley got up to give her speech, she said that Melissa had joked with her that it was Irish tradition, if the younger sister married before the older one, that the older one would dance with a broom. So Ashley decided to do it for her. So awesome. :)

Congratulations you two! I hope you guys are having an amazing time honeymooning it up!