Ashley and Matt

Ashley and Matt's wedding was wide-open, flat-out amazing! These two ECU grads began dating in high school when Matt's mom invited Ashley along on a family outing...she must have had a second-sense about Ashley, because these two were obviously made for each other! And they certainly know how to have a good time. Even their rehearsal was fun! The dinner afterwards at Venero's Pizzeria's Monti Hall was fabulous. There were lots of great moments during the dinner -- singing Happy Birthday to Matt's Grandad, watching the couple's parents open gifts from the bride and groom, listening to several very heartfelt toasts. I think everyone, me included, got a little choked up when Matt announced he'd been offered a job with Caterpillar in Illinois. You could tell everyone was really happy for them, but so sad they'd be moving away. It's obvious that this couple is well-loved by all their friends and family.

The wedding day was a celebration from start to finish. The weather was beautiful and Ashley looked amazing in her gown. I'm not sure I can describe it adequately in words, so I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. The rest of the wedding party was elegant in black. Ashley let her bridesmaids choose their own dresses and each lady carried a different colored bouquet of roses from Jody at Annie V's in Clayton  that popped beautifully off the black. Matt and Ashley agreed to see each other before the wedding (but Ashley strictly specified, "No kissing pictures!") so that they could get to the reception as quickly as possible...with good reason! The couple chose the elegant Hinnant Family Vineyards for their reception site. What a fun party!  Matt's fraternity brothers from ECU were there contributing to the general mayhem and merriment. Colin from Island Sound kept everybody on their feet dancing right up until the stroke of midnight. I'm convinced that they would have stayed until the wee hours of the morning if they could have! The image below was the last dance of the evening. The couple had already changed into their street clothes in prep for leaving for the hotel but they were still grinning from ear-to-ear. Matt and Ashley, it was a blast -- thanks for letting Sweet Life Photography be a part of your wedding day! To check out their slideshow, click here.