Amanda and Brandon’s wedding day was one filled with joy, genuine excitement, and lots of laughter. Amanda’s girls had us laughing all day! We had the best time, and are so thankful for clients like these that make our job so fun!

“I don’t know that I had dreams of a wedding, but more of a plan for my wedding. Sixteen-year-old Amanda wanted a wedding at the church I grew up in, North Greenwood Baptist Church. She also wanted the reception to be at the Greenwood Country Club. Twenty-nine-year-old Amanda made those two things happen. The actual details of the wedding and all the things that surrounded it, including my Pinterest board, changed throughout the years.” – Amanda

“We really struggled to try to pick out our recessional music. I was trying to figure out something upbeat and nontraditional that would sound good on both the piano and the pipe organ. My mother and I were brainstorming with our organist (and long-time family friend) one day, and the organist mentions what about the Beatles. My mother, without missing a beat says, yeah, ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ would be perfect. At first, I said no, but then I remembered that when Brandon and I first started dating, he quoted the movie ‘Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist.’ The quote, to paraphrase and leave some expletives out, went something like this: ‘You know the reason The Beatles made it so big?…I Wanna Hold Your Hand. First single. Freaking brilliant. Perhaps the most freaking brilliant song ever written. Because they nailed it. That’s what everyone wants . . . They want to hold your hand. They have such a feeling that they can’t hide. Every single successful song of the past fifty years can be traced back to I Wanna Hold Your Hand And every single successful love story has those unbearable and unbearably exciting moments of hand-holding.’ So our recessional song was a pretty much perfect way to describe us and what we want our relationship to be.

Another funny story from the wedding itself was that the preacher, my former youth minister, young adult minister, and Sunday School teacher, made us swear on the Bible as if we were being sworn in to give testimony in court. We’re both lawyers, so we thought it was hilarious and had no idea it was coming. He also quoted from a court case and made lawyer references throughout his sermon, which made the ceremony as a whole truly unique and special.” – Amanda

“Brandon and I met when I interviewed for a job in Starkville. I know what you’re thinking, and no, he was not going to be my boss. He was helping interview for his replacement because he was going into private practice. I didn’t pay much attention to much besides getting hired, which I did a couple of weeks later. At first, I wasn’t sure how to take him because he never seemed to go away, and everyone loved him. I felt confident that they would never like me as much as him, but also that they’d never get a chance to like me if he wouldn’t stay away. I was desperate to make a friend in a town where the only people I knew were the ones that I worked with, so I somehow weaseled my way into an invite to play trivia with Brandon and several people from the District Attorney’s office. We got to a point where we were playing trivia two times a week, so we saw each other a lot both at work and outside. I even talked him into letting me run with him because it’s better to suffer together than alone. At least, that was my reasoning. One night he backed out of running with me to go on a date, but he didn’t tell me that. I overheard it from someone else. I felt so conflicted because I was mad because he didn’t tell me, and I guess a little jealous too. A couple of weeks later, I talk him into asking me to get drinks at this cool speakeasy in Starkville, but I had no idea that it was a date. Oops. He didn’t pay for my drinks, so I figured it was just a couple of bros hanging out. We went to Mugshots afterward, and he tried to pay for my food. I was so confused, but also adamant that he couldn’t do it because he was an attorney and I worked for the judges. After that, we went back to his office and watched Entourage to make sure that the couple of drinks that we had were out of our system.

About a month later, my friend Brantley came to Starkville to see the Mustache Band play. I invited Brandon and his friends to go with us. I also asked Brantley to watch Brandon to see if he liked-me-liked-me or liked me just as a friend. Ya know, the 25-year-old version of ‘Check Yes or No.’ Mustache played a Dixie Chicks song, and Brandon asked me to dance. During the song, he leaned down and kissed me. The rest, as they say, is history. I guess he really did like-me-like-me.” – Amanda

“Amanda and I met the way all great love stories begin. I was going through a stack of resumes. I picked Amanda because she looked like the most qualified of the group and called her to interview. The interview went well, and she was hired for the position. After Amanda was hired, I mainly saw her at the courthouse, and we didn’t hang out much outside of the office at first. Eventually, I started training for Warrior Dash, and Amanda started joining me on my runs. Honestly, I am not sure what attracted her to me at this point because I am a very ugly runner, but to each their own, I suppose. Eventually, she started coming to trivia when I went with the District Attorney’s office. It was always a great time, but I never considered that she liked me at this point either. Although I am much better at trivia than running, that brings us to the date that never was. I asked Amanda to join me at The Guest Room in Starkville one day because she had never been, and I really needed a drink. We were there for a while, and I didn’t consider it a date at the time. So we paid for our drinks and went across the street for dinner. While at dinner, I started to get some signals and suspected that she liked me. At that point, I offered to pay for dinner (shooters shoot) and was absolutely shot down. At that point, I decided we were just friends, and I guess that was okay. Several weeks later, Mustache the Band came to Starkville.

I was planning to go with my friends, and Amanda told me that her friend, Brantley, was coming to town to go with her. I invited them over to my house to pregame with us, thinking it would be like any other night out. At this point, the stories diverge a bit. Neither of us can actually remember the song that was playing. I strongly believe it was Strawberry Wine, but it could easily have been a Dixie Chicks song. Either way, while that 90’s Country cover band played, in that college bar, on that dance floor, she chose me.” – Brandon

“Picture it, Greenwood, Mississippi, February 14, 2019. (For my Golden Girls fans out there).

We had planned on doing dinner at my apartment because I make Brandon homemade spaghetti and meatballs every couple of holidays. I came home from work earlier than Brandon expected because he, unbeknownst to me, was going to propose when I got off work. I pull into the driveway, and he’s on his way to his car so that he could run to the store to get a Diet Coke. I told him that I could take him, and we could both go to my mom’s house to pick up Docket (our dog). Rather than leaving immediately, I decided that we should wait on my mother to get there so she can open her Valentine’s Day card.

While we’re waiting, Brandon mentions that since we both had work and couldn’t do anything super fancy for Valentine’s, we would do a type of trivia game for us to figure out where we’re going to go or what we’re going to do. For those of you who don’t know us, we do some form of trivia for different holidays or occasions because we both love trivia, and it’s a fun way to pick trips or restaurants without pressure. After several questions, he asks me how many I had gotten right, and he said that the number that I gave him was in the middle between two options, so he had to think of a tie-breaker question.

Just as he’s about to ask the tie-breaker, momma comes home, and I make her look at her card that I got her, among other things. I thought that I was giving him more time to think of a question. She acts like she knows nothing and even shows Brandon the card that I got her. She knew he was going to propose and had known for about a week and a half. She finally shoos us out of the house so that he and I can do Valentine’s dinner.

We get to my house, and I start getting everything ready for dinner. He tells me that he’s finally thought of a tie-breaker question. I was still oblivious to everything. I turn to put the pot of sauce on the stove, turn around, and he’s on one knee, asking if I will marry him. My initial response was, ‘Seriously?!’ I then moved on to, ‘Are you sure?!’ and finally, ‘It’s so PRETTY!!’ I also start crying. Not cute crying or just a couple of tears, I full-on ugly sob and start apologizing for crying. I sob so hard that Docket gets scared and runs in the hall, and Brandon starts to worry that someone is going to call the police. He also was a little worried that he had done something terribly wrong based on my initial facial reaction and the sobbing. He finally stops me and asks if it’s happy crying and if I’m saying yes. I start laughing/crying and say yes! I hit every highlight of every cheesy romantic comedy movie or tv show that ever existed.” – Amanda

“So many things made my wedding special that it’s hard to narrow them down, but I’ll try. I got to wear the same veil that my mother did 30+ years ago. She borrowed it from a friend back in the ’80s, so it was amazing that the lady still had it and that it matched my dress both in color and in style. We had so many friends offer help throughout the whole process, and they really took the pressure off my mom and me when it came to the wedding time. I think that something else that made it special was that both my mother and my father gave me away during the ceremony. I’m an only child, so it was fitting that they both do it. Honestly, from top to bottom, my vendors and friends who helped with the wedding itself made it truly special. Everything went pretty much according to how we planned it. When I forgot to follow up with the leave car person, a friend who was going to drive for us who also ran one of the cameras during the ceremony jumped in and took care of it for me. Brandon and I have some truly talented and loyal friends who loved on us throughout this process and made sure that we enjoyed everything from the planning to the wedding itself as much as we possibly could.

Other than the traditional vows, most everything about our wedding was nontraditional. I did introduce the Unity Cross (https://www.unitycross.com/ ) as part of our wedding instead of sand or a candle. I saw it at a friends’ wedding several years ago and swore that I would use it at my wedding, and I’m so glad that I did. It was something that I will cherish in our home forever.” – Amanda

“I had pretty traditional venues for the wedding and the reception, but I wanted to put my Amanda twist on it. I like to call what we did ‘romantic rustic,’ which I’m pretty sure is not a thing. I fell in love with these box type centerpieces on Pinterest when we first got engaged. I was determined to make them work despite what the venue was. After looking and looking for boxes, we had a family friend say that he could make them, and he did out of my mom’s old fence that she recently replaced. I’m not good at decorating. That was just not a gift that I was given, but since our wedding party was so obnoxiously large, I didn’t think that the church needed much decoration at all. So, we went hunting around the church for a cross that we could use as a centerpiece. We found one, but the proportions were off, and it was a little skinny to hold the flowers that the florist was planning to put on there. That same family friend had the idea to make a facade again out of my mother’s old fence to make it broader and more stable to withstand the weight of the flowers. He also used a burning technique on the wood to help make it look more weathered, which he also did on the box centerpieces. It really tied the decorations at the church and the country club together.” – Amanda

“My florist, Chesley, not only was my florist but also is a friend of mine who happens to work at a local law firm. She 100% exceeded my expectations, all while going through chemotherapy and juggling her boss’ multiple courts and multiple county caseload. My cake lady also killed the game with the bride’s cake, groom’s cake, and our “cake bar.” We wanted to find something kind of different to make our reception stand out, so she suggested doing the cake bar, and I’m so glad that she did. Al Paris and Peabody Rocket were fabulous as a band. I get compliments about them almost daily. Chef Anthony also made some super yummy food at the reception. He joined us about halfway through the planning process when the previous chef for the country club who had been there 20+ years retired and carried the torch beautifully. He made some onion souffle that was like a dip that I could eat with a spoon. Station 222 did our rehearsal dinner and did a fabulous job, as well. The food was tasty, and the service was excellent. The chef that retired from the club started consulting with 222, so sixteen-year-old Amanda’s plan still worked out just in a different way than initially planned. I can’t leave out It’s a Date in Starkville. They handled the tux measuring and fitting process with ease. All I had to do was pick the tux, the shirt, and the ties, etc. and give them the groomsmen’s phone numbers, and they handled the rest. They sent out reminders for payments, measurements, and fittings without me having to follow up with them. IT. WAS. WONDERFUL. They truly took something off my plate that I did not have to worry about, and I couldn’t ask for anything more from a wedding vendor.” – Amanda

“One of my childhood friends sent me a text message on the day before my wedding, and I’m going to quote it because it is also going to be my advice for other brides:

1. It’s OUT of your hands . . . Let it be. There are people in place to fix/do whatever goes on from here.

2. The day freaking flies by. Tomorrow, wake up, have a moment to yourself, pray over the day, and breathe! At some point in the night, you and the groom need to sit back and look out at all your loved ones having the time of their life and take a mental photo. Never forget that scene!

3. People are supposed to come to you. It’s your day! It’s so hard to be present and make the rounds to speak to everyone, and it’s too much, so make the peasants come to you! Ha!

4. If you are ready to dance and let loose, do it and don’t look back! (I definitely did this and even danced one of the “sleeves” off my dress because people kept trying to twirl me.)

5. Do not feel guilty for indulging in a crazy amount of hours lying in bed after the wedding because wedding weekend exhaustion is REAL!” – Amanda

“Here is some advice from the desk of Amanda Sturniolo Langford:

1. Get on the thank you notes ASAP, but at some point, take a break because you will get overwhelmed, and there are more important things to plan. Make sure you get them to the hosts, and the ladies who you know are going to be expecting them.

2. Even though you think your wedding shoes are comfortable, you need to be 1,000% sure. Mine were comfortable, but only for about 2 hours. When it was game-time, my feet were killing me, and I thought that I was going to fall walking down the aisle and during the ceremony. Reception shoes are a MUST!

3. Run through your ceremony order (including when you want your bridesmaids and groomsmen to walk down the aisle with your wedding directors) the week or so before the wedding so you have time to change it.

4. Definitely put fishing line and other sewing items in your emergency kit. Just. In. Case.” – Amanda

Lead Shooter: Ann-Marie Wyatt | Second Shooter: Mackenzie Rue | Dress: Alvina – Lace Bridal Boutique | Bridesmaids Dresses: Bella Bridesmaids | Tux: It’s a Date | Cakes: The Sweetery | Ceremony Venue: North Greenwood Baptist Church | Reception Venue: The Greenwood Country Club | Coordinator: A Pryor Engagement | Flowers: Danny’s Floral Studio | Invitations: Lawrence Printing Company | Band: Peabody Rocket | Rehearsal Venue: Station 222 | Caterer: Greenwood Country Club | Hair: Mane Tamers | Makeup: Meri Del Jones | Preparation Accommodations: The Alluvian Hotel and Spa |