Welp! Back in Jan/Feb of 2025 (the year of our Lord), we started the journey of trying to plan a traditional wedding. We ventured to several locations, trying to find the vibe we wanted. During this time, the stress of undertaking this started to build and build. Then we found a location that offered all we wanted—and nothing we didn’t… with the exception of one TINY thing: the price tag… $$$$ (like, go off queen… but damn). We journeyed home feeling bummed, with our tails tucked between our legs. Having only a week to decide, we thought and we prayed (to the old and new gods). Remember that stress? It was still building and building. So, at 10 seconds to midnight, we chose to pass on what would have been our venue. There we were—no venue in sight and a mound of stress. Who here thinks 98% of the stress was coming from the Bride? Show of hands… all of you? …ok. We had just started this journey and were already overwhelmed and having no fun. At this point, the Bride was ready to say “screw it” and head straight to the courthouse. You, me, and the State of NC—am I right!? The Groom was having none of this, much to the Bride’s dismay. This story is getting a bit long… hang in there, it’s almost finished. On a dark and stormy night (cue dramatic music and Golden Retriever anxiety yawns), the Bride and Groom sat on their couch and a joke was made… “This whole traditional wedding is just too much… what if we just got married in *pulls random country out of brain*.... Iceland?” the Bride said to the Groom. They laughed and laughed. BUT the seed had been planted. “What if” turned into looking at wedding planning websites… then chatting with wedding planners… and then BOOM! Here you are, reading this, “this meeting should have been an email”-like intro on our wedding website. Going to Iceland truly started as a joke and has turned into this beautiful way to honor our love. This journey will encompass who we are as people and how we want to start our marriage. We cannot put into words how excited we are to share this experience with you—whether that be in Iceland or the U.S.