Proposal stories are always the best and this particular bride has quite the tale!
“Every December my husband’s entire family, along with thousands of other cowboys and gals make the journey to fabulous Las Vegas for the National Finals Rodeo,” shared Katie. “I had been once before with my mom, but this year was my first time going with the whole Alford gang.
In the months leading up to their Vegas trip, the soon to be groom, Jack, had shared with Katie that something "big" might be happening during their time in Vegas and it was something for her birthday.
"I didn't pester him about it, but I totally knew what was coming and I was afraid that I was go-ing to be expecting it around every corner,” laughed the soon to be bride. “It was a six-hour drive and we had plans to meet my aunt and uncle for dinner in a neighboring town which meant we got to our hotel with just enough time to check-in, drop off our stuff, change clothes quickly, and head back out the door. We got to my aunt and uncle's house to visit for a few and then rode to dinner together. While at their house Jack seemed a little off, I just thought he was bored and ready to get dinner over with so we could get back and start partying with everyone else.”
Little did the bride know, that big things were about to happen.
“We enjoyed a big Mexican dinner along with margaritas and then we made our way back to the hotel. As soon as we got back, we went to a particular bar in the hotel that Jack's family always visits and it was like a family reunion!”
“We grabbed drinks, said hello to some of their rodeo friends, and then somebody suggested we should take family pictures,” said Katie. “At this point, I was completely clueless. We rounded up our large group and made our way over to the gold carpet and everyone took turns having their pictures taken. I pleaded to skip the photo op because I was so stuffed from dinner and didn't have time to get cute since we went straight from our drive to dinner and back. I really didn’t want my picture taken. Everyone got me up there and I remember thinking that it was odd seeing so many people with their phones out, but I still had no freaking clue!”
Jack put his arm around Katie as they smiled for the cameras and then Jack backed up and said "wait, hang on,” and then reached into his pocket, dropping to one knee.
“I was so surprised and the first thing that came out of my mouth was not yes, but instead I cov-ered my face and said shut up,” laughed Katie.
Moments later she leaned in for a kiss and agreed to marry him.
“Everyone thought it was so funny that after months of knowing it was coming, I was still com-pletely oblivious,” she laughed.
The happy couple got married at The Last Stand Guest Ranch in Sonoita, Arizona April 27th, 2019.
Friends and family traveled from all over to attend their wedding, so it was important that they had time to spend the entire weekend with their guests, making memories.
“We found the most perfect outdoor venue that had some accommodations onsite, plenty of room for camping, and hotel options nearby,” shared Katie. “Yes, our wedding was a total blast, but I will say our Sunday bloody Mary bar, biscuits and gravy, and lounging by the pool with our friends and family was the absolute best!”
The couple’s closest friends and family worked hard to help them with everything. From decorating to keeping chips and salsa topped off, the couple thought the extra accommodations for their beloved guests was the least they could do.
“My husband and I are both guilty of being stubborn in the respect that we wanted to do every-thing ourselves and we wanted to do it on a budget,” said Katie. “All of the things we made, our decorations, our bar, even our alter were so worth it, but we had no idea what we were in for as far as coordinating, hauling all of it hours away to our venue, grocery shopping, picking up flowers, cake, and putting it all together.”
The couple’s officiant was Jack’s first roommate in college and their first dance was to Danny’s Song by Kenny Loggins. They had a fun cocktail hour with corn hole and a roping dummy for guests to play with before dinner. They used a bull skull as their guest book and they branded a wooden frame to put their favorite photos in from the special day along with a passage from the officiant wrote. Thanks to Caitlyn Jennings Photography, the couple has many photos to choose from.
Bride’s Special Moment:
Right when the bridesmaids were ready to take photos before the ceremony, the bride had a “bit of a mishap” with her dress.
My seamstress had added thicker straps and brought the zipper up higher on my dress and it didn’t secure the hook and eye properly,” shared Katie. “So, when I went to get into my dress, the eye was unfortunately missing and I forgot to bring my sewing kit.”
Having once been a professional seamstress, Katie rolled her eyes.
“Everyone started scrambling and finally, one of my bridesmaids found a tiny safety pin while the other was asking around for a needle and thread.”
Having decided to use the safety pin, the ladies went to zip up the bride, but the zipper head ripped off on one side.
“All of the worst things started running through my head,” shared Katie.
Prepared to walk down the aisle in her rehearsal dress, Katie desperately brainstormed for a way to fix her dress.
“My only option was to rip off a couple of teeth at the very bottom of the zipper where it would-n't be noticeable and slide the head back on. It was a freaking miracle that it even worked and even more that it held,” said the bride. “We somehow started the ceremony just five minutes be-hind schedule, it was insane and amazing!”
Congratulations to Katie and Jack Alford! May there be many more years of joy and happiness!
