What is in Paducah, Kentucky? This is the question that we are getting the most. We love to tell the story so here we go! By now, you should have received the Save the Date invitation to our big day. Our Save the Date is featuring our venue. The 1857 Hotel in Paducah, Kentucky. Every year over Labor Day weekend, Eric and I go to Springfield, Illinois. We stay in our rooftop tent and watch American Flat Track races. This year we had planned to go to Chicago afterward. Those plans ended up falling through and it landed us looking for a hotel for the night. I was done with camping. I was ready for a bed and a fan :) I started searching the web for a hotel. My family is from Herrin, Illinois. I grew up stopping in Paducah for gas but had never spent any time there. It was the next big city on the way home so I started looking there to see what I could find. Originally we were planning to stay at the Holiday Inn Paducah Riverfront. It is right on the river and looked great. This is actually where most of our guests will be staying for the wedding. It is about a 10-minute walk to The 1857 hotel. While looking for places to eat, I stumbled across The 1857 Hotel. It is a quaint 10 room hotel. I immediately called them and booked a room. When we arrived, I fell in love with the place. It is so unique. The staff was so nice. Brick all over the place. I told Eric we were going to get married here and he looked at me like I was crazy. My birthday is September the 6th. Usually my birthday lands around Labor Day but this year it was on Labor Day. This is the day that we pulled into Paducah. Once we checked in, we went over to this resturant named Broussard’s Cajun Cuisine. It was delicious. They tried to bring me a cake for my birthday but I declined. I stepped outside and when I came back she had poured me a HUGE glass of wine instead. I looked at Eric again and said we are getting married here.

we strolled across the street to get a nightcap at the Johnson Bar. They were closing so we sat outside. We ended up in an animated conversation with a gentleman named Sir Kenn Gray. (You will see what I mean at the wedding :)) After a while, I told him that I was in LOVE with the town and wanted to get married here. He proceeded to tell me that he owned the wedding shop across the street and would love to be my coordinator. He also owns a shop in Downtown Paducah. The name of his lovely shop is Home. This is where we will be registered. The experience was all just too much. The next day I emailed the venue and the rest will be history as I become a RIFE! We are looking forward to spending time with each and every one of you. When making the decision we realized that Paducah is a good middle location for our family and friends. The majority of you are from Georgia, the Chicago area, and Columbus. It is about a 6-hour drive for almost everyone. There are hotel accommodations on the website. The 1857 Hotel does have 10 rooms but we assigned who would be staying in them. Those assignments have already been discussed. There are AirBNBs or we have a room block at the Holiday Inn Paducah Riverfront. I would want everybody to stay at the 1857 if able but there is not enough room. We tried to keep families and groups together which is how we made our decisions. The Holiday Inn is very close and on the river! This was another reason we picked this location. Can't wait to see you all! Love you!