John & Nikki // Summer Wedding in Verona, PA

John had made up his mind that he would never fall in love. (I think that might very well be my absolute favorite way for a love story to begin!)

Almost a full decade ago, John was working at Giant Eagle, stocking shelves. Around the same time, a sweet girl named Nikki was hired as a bagger at the same Giant Eagle. After some time went by, both John & Nikki were promoted to be cashiers & they found themselves regularly working the nightshift together.

As you can imagine – Giant Eagle gets to be pretty slow as the night wears on. As the evening gets later & later – the cashiers would find themselves spending more time hanging out & chatting with one another more than actually working. You probably already guessed: Nikki & John became pretty good friends during those late nights at Giant Eagle.

As time passed, John left Giant Eagle to pursue a better job. But that doesn’t mean that his friendship with Nikki diminished. They continued to talk & hang out, meanwhile Nikki had a huge crush on John. But she knew him well enough that she knew his stance on “love” – and crush or not – she was content to continue to remain his friend.

Of course, you know that when there is a beautiful young lady in the story – a “just friends” status is never going to cut it. And so a few years later, John relented & they finally began to officially date.

They dated for a few years & as time rolled on by, John began to tease Nikki about getting proposing & getting married. It was a running joke that “someday”, “sometime”, he was going to have to sit down with her parents to get their permission to marry their daughter (something John knew was extremely important to Nikki). It was always a “joke” though, so Nikki never got her hopes up for a proposal any time soon.

Then, one week, John told Nikki: “I’m going to see your parents on Friday & I’m going to ask their permission to marry you then.” Nikki smiled at the running joke & laughed back, “You aren’t supposed to tell the girl you’re going to propose – it’s supposed to be a surprise.” He smiled – a teasing twinkle in his eye, “I’m just letting you know.”

The week rolled by & on Thursday – John had the day off while Nikki had to work. All day long, he worked to carry out the biggest surprise ever & boy, did he pull it off! As Nikki walked in the door from work, she found John, all dressed up & waiting for her. He had moved the furniture around & set a romantic table for two. On the table, he had 3 roses: one for Nikki, one for John, and one to represent the two of them. He had filet mignon & potatoes cooking & the house smelled delicious. He even had Nikki’s favorite country song, Tennessee Whiskey, playing – along with a display of Tennessee Whiskey, Strawberry Wine, and Brandy all set up with little signs that quoted the song: “You’re as smooth as..” “You’re as sweet as..” “You’re as warm as..”

Nikki stopped dead in her tracks in the doorway. She was utterly confused – what in the world was going on? John brought his stunned girlfriend in & began to say all sorts of sweet things to her. She didn’t hear any of them because she was so surprised.

As the fog began to slowly lift – Nikki’s mind screamed only one thing: it was Thursday & John wasn’t supposed to talk to her parents until Friday – the following day – what was he doing?!

And that’s when John said, “I’ve talked to your parents..” and suddenly everything became crystal clear. John had actually gotten Nikki’s parents’ 100% wholehearted permission weeks prior & his telling her about “Friday” was just a ploy to throw her off. The moment became completely real & Nikki realized that John was proposing – a moment only solidified moments later as he pulled out a diamond ring. Still a little bit shell-shocked – Nikki happily said YES!

Of course, how were they to know that planning a Labor Day weekend wedding in 2020 was going to be anything but normal? Even through having to change their reception venue & caterer just weeks before their big day, they rolled with all the changes & still had the most incredible wedding day ever! I’m telling you – these brides & grooms who get married in 2020 are going to turn out to be the most resilient & incredibly strong relationships because of all they’ve had to work thru to get to the point of getting married!!

John & Nikki: you guys are incredible. I literally could have just stood & watched the two of you stare heart-eyes at one another all day long on Saturday. After being friends for a decade – there is a level of friendship, commitment, respect, and love that just isn’t present in every wedding I photograph! Don’t get me wrong: every couple is deeply in love with one another on their wedding day, but you could just feel the history & the depth of your relationship in the way you looked at one another, how you talked to one another, and how your friends & family celebrated with you on Saturday! It was an absolute joy to witness & I was so blessed to be a part of celebrating your marriage!!

Nikki has the sweetest relationship with her parents – they are obviously very close. It was so precious to watch her Mom & Dad quietly, emotionally looking on as their only daughter got ready for her wedding day.

Nikki wanted to do a special First Look with her Dad – it was such a special, emotional moment! And I won’t lie: I love that her sweet Mama was in the background, taking it all in!

As we were setting up for portraits after the ceremony, I just happened to grab this image of Nikki & her bridesmaids & I’m obsessed with it!

Look at this bridal party! They were so much fun!

I don’t usually suggest to my couples that we do “silly” or “staged” photos, but Nikki’s bridesmaids & groomsmen had these ideas & we just had to play them out!

As I mentioned above – a lot of details surrounding Nikki & John’s wedding day changed in the month leading up to their wedding. One of those unfortunate changes was that John’s Grandma would not be able to attend their wedding ceremony as they’d originally planned. This simply was not good enough for John & Nikki, so they made sure we carved out some time in their wedding day to stop & visit John’s Grandma.

Isn’t she gorgeous? I am so thankful we were able to stop & visit with this sweet lady!

John & Nikki obviously have a great group of cheerleaders in their lives – but the title for “Number 1 Fan” is obviously a tie between their Mamas! I love this photo of Nikki & John being introduced into their reception & their sweet Mamas standing side by side, cheering louder than anyone else!

I love sneaking my couples out of their reception for just a few moments during sunset. It not only gives me a few extra minutes of portraits, but it gives my bride & groom a chance to catch their breath & enjoy a few quiet moments alone.

Since Nikki was wearing such a stunning ball gown, I suggested John give her a twirl. After a few, slow practice twirls, he bumped it up a notch & gave her a good hard spin. Her dress flowed out & John’s reaction is priceless!

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

Ceremony Venue: St. Joseph Catholic Church in Verona, PA
Reception Venue: The Pittsburgh Shrine Center in Cheswick, PA
Transportation: Futules Harmar House
Catering: Stratwood Catering in White Oak, PA
Cake: Moio’s Italian Pastry Shop in Monroeville, PA
Makeup Artist: Nikki Becker from Blinc Bronze Beauty in Pittsburgh, PA
Hair Stylist: Julie Woods
Bridal Gown Retailer: MB Bride in Greensburg, PA
Bridesmaids Gowns Retailer: David’s Bridal in Monroeville, PA
Groom & Groomsmen Attire: Jack’s Tuxedo in Pittsburgh, PA
Florals: Rosebud Floral & Giftware in Murrysville, PA
Invitations: Etsy
DJ: Ed Konop from Rabbit Entertainment
Videographer: Francis Rocks Productions in Pittsburgh, PA
Photographer: Kara Abbey Photography in Irwin, PA