Chris & Chrissy // Elegant Burgundy Fall Wedding

Long distance relationships are rough.
And, when you’re in a long distance relationship with your best friend, you do crazy things to spend time together. After meeting in Pharmacy School, graduation arrived & jobs were landed. There was only one problem – Chris got a job in Albany and Chrissy got a job in Rochester.

Any time off was spent driving across the state to visit each other. And one particular weekend in February of 2016 was no different. Chrissy worked a 10-hour day and then hopped in the car to make the 3 1/2 hour drive to Albany to see Chris.

At the time, Chris was living with his parents and so their normal arrangement was that Chrissy would sleep in his bedroom, while he would crash on the couch. That Friday night, Chrissy rolled in and was past the point of exhaustion. She was beat. In a fog, she walked in the door, said a sleepy hello, and passed out in bed.

Saturday morning dawned and a bright & peppy Chris bounces into his room. Still foggy and not ready to be awake yet at all, Chrissy groaned and asked her unusually excited boyfriend to please leave her alone for at least another hour. There was just one problem: he wouldn’t leave.

“What do you want?” she moaned.
“It’s time to get up!” he chirped.
Chris’s little Westie had followed him into the room and was just as chipper as his owner. He bounced on the bed & attempted to lick Chrissy.

Finally, Chrissy gave in and pulled the blankets down from over her eyes. That’s when she noticed something large & plastic tied to the dog’s collar. Curious, she reached down to get a closer look. It was a cheesy plastic ring like you’d get in a gumball machine. The fog was dissipating and confused, Chrissy looked up at Chris: “What is this?” He simply smiled back at her.

Heart beating a little bit faster, Chrissy remembered: Chris had always joked that he would propose to Chrissy with a ring from a gumball machine. A moment passed as Chrissy was mentally connecting the dots, when Chris got down on his knee & pulled out a real, stunning (and not plastic) diamond ring. Grinning from ear to ear, Chris asked his lovely girlfriend of almost 5 years if she would spend the rest of her life with him.

This past Saturday, Chris & Chrissy, along with their friends & family, converged on Binghamton, NY to officially make it official. I told Chrissy that the weather was literally the most gorgeous October-wedding-weather I have ever had! Octobers are super tricky – there are stunning/breathtaking days – and then there are washout/freezing days. So, Octobers are a gamble. But Saturday was perfect: warm & sunny with a slight breeze, the smell of summer still floating in the air.

Chris & Chrissy – thank you so much for taking Jenny at the Holiday Inn up on her recommendation to look into me as your wedding photographer! I have loved getting to know y’all over the last 18 months & was incredibly blessed to celebrate on Saturday with y’all! Your friends & your family obviously love you both so so much and it’s always my highest pleasure to photograph such sweetly loved and sweetly in love people! I hope y’all are enjoying your honeymoon & time away!

Chrissy started off her day at The Spa at Traditions at the Glen.

And then – my favorite – Chrissy & her girls got ready at home. This is the house she grew up in and we just added a whole new set of sweet memories to this lovely house!

Taping a six pence to her shoe for good luck!

And of course, we had to snag a few photos with Sam – the family dog! Isn’t he so sweet?

As many memories as the house holds – this tree holds an equally large amount of memories. Chrissy talked about how they would always take “milestone” pictures under this tree – first day of school, prom, and now we can add “bridal portraits” to that list!

I could have photographed Chrissy in her front yard forever! So gorgeous!
And while we were there, Derrick was hanging out with Chris & his groomsmen back at the Holiday Inn.

This is Jack! Chris & Chrissy just adopted him a few weeks ago!

I can’t stop drooling over this big wide shot Derrick got of the church!

But, if you think the outside is amazing – the inside will simply blow your mind! They simply don’t build churches like this anymore!

I loved that Chris escorted his Mom & Dad into the wedding ceremony – such a sweet moment!

Chrissy’s Mom was so sweet the entire day – so helpful & happy for her daughter. Walking her down the aisle was just a bit too much though. As she walked her daughter down the aisle, her family reached out along the way & took her hand or patted her arm. It was such a touching moment!

As much as golden sunshine has my heart outside – columns are my love-language inside!

Check out this awesome bridal party! I can’t lie though: I’m a bit partial to the ring bearer in the bow-tie! So cute!

We made our way over to Cutler Botanical Gardens for formal portraits. I haven’t been there since Paige & Andrew’s wedding 3 years ago! I was so glad that Chris & Chrissy suggested it as a location because it was perfection.

We literally walked right into this photo! Chrissy & I passed under the arbor with no problem – Chris on the other hand, didn’t quite make it! Chrissy & I were laughing so hard!

And then after the gardens, we had to make a quick stop at the Washington Street Bridge & Confluence Park! It’s only 2 blocks from the Holiday Inn, so it almost feels like a necessity to stop there!

On the way into the reception – look who we found!

In lieu of a traditional bouquet & garter toss, Chris & Chrissy played the Newlywed Game! And instead of exchanging shoes – they had bride & groom rubber duckies!

All day long, all I heard was that Chris couldn’t wait for the cake. Their 3-tier cake was 3 separate flavors, and he had already requested a slice of each kind! Needless to say, I think the cake was Chris’s favorite part of the whole wedding!

We snuck outside for a few night portraits as the evening wore down and the “riverwalk” outside of the Holiday Inn was perfect!

On our way back into the reception though, I couldn’t resist stopping for one last quick shot with the moon! It wasn’t quite full, but was epic none-the-less!

Huge shout-out and thank you to the amazing team of vendors, as well as friends & family, who helped make Chris & Chrissy’s wedding day absolutely perfect!

Ceremony Venue: St. James Church in Binghamton, NY
Reception Venue: The Holiday Inn in Binghamton, NY
Formal Portrait Locations: Cutler Botanical Gardens & Confluence Park in Binghamton, NY
Reception Coordinator: Jenny Delgado
DJ & Photobooth: DJ Johnny Only in Endicott, NY
Catering: The Holiday Inn in Binghamton, NY
Bouquets: Angeline’s Flowers in Endicott, NY
Bridal & Bridesmaids Gowns: Alfred Angelo
Hair & Makeup: The Spa at Traditions at the Glen in Johnson City, NY
Groom & Groomsmen Attire: Joseph A Banks
Cake: Baked Euphoria in Endwell, NY
Cookies: Baked! by Camille in Endicott, NY
Favors: DIY by the bride
Invitations Suite: Etsy
Photographer: Kara Abbey Photography in Irwin, PA