David's Bridal

Good Morning DB Readers! Happy Wednesday!! Today we are featuring one of our “real brides” who decided to get married on the most iconic date in 2012…. 12-12-12! Here is her story as to why she got married on this interesting date, and what it meant to her and her husband, Tommy! We also included some photos from her wedding… ENJOY!

Our 12-12-12 wedding was a million times more amazing that I dreamed. We planned a wedding of 26 in Costa Rica, including ourselves, at a private property we rented for 7 days.

Wedding Stress Extreme
Tommy and I got there to check-in before the rest of our group, as we traveled separately, to find out that all our guests from Denver (our hometown) has their flight cancelled. That group of people included almost all of our bridal party, my parents and most of our friends. Tommy’s family, my brother, and some of our friends from around the country met us as scheduled on Saturday, which helped ease the stress. I was finally able to email with my sister and we found out they were put on a flight that night. 6 hours later we found out they cancelled that flight. It was chaos! My dad bought 7 tickets for him, my mom, my sister and our bridal party on a different airline to leave within 8 hours. The rest of our group was scheduled to leave on that same airline the next day. We had to reschedule scuba diving, the airport shuttle (4 hour drive from the airport to the villa) and our activities… but luckily, nothing really was impacting the wedding.

No Photographer for a Photographer’s Wedding?
Well due to all that flight cancelling, something happened to our photographer’s flight. He and his wife are family friends and were planning to be our photographer. They emailed us saying due to all the issues, they would have to re-book at 5x the cost, so they weren’t coming. WHAT?! Tommy, being a wedding photographer himself, was extremely stressed. We thought to try to hire a local, but were at our max budget. Tommy’s dad was planning to be the second camera (he’s a former wedding photographer), but we wanted him to be the groom’s dad during the wedding. He arrived Sunday afternoon and accepted the challenge and helped calm us both down. Our pastor was also a photographer, so he volunteered to be the second camera. Still stressful and not plan A, but PHEW!

Finally, We Can Breathe!
The other half of our guests arrived in 2 waves and we could finally breathe! We rescheduled all our activities, but nothing would impact the wedding. Monday – the ladies did a spa day and Monday Night, the guys drove into town and watched Monday Night Football and we were able to finally relax! Tuesday- was the rehearsal. We could really narrow down all the details because we hadn’t seen the venue prior to arriving in Costa Rica. We went through the rehearsal of the ceremony, and then I went through the re-organization of everything at the villa with my family/friends/guests who were the designated delegates. We re-arranged and moved furniture and got everything ready. We had a great dinner, played “The Shoe Game” (great one from Pinterest), and then drove to the beach where each person had a Floating Lantern to send into the sky. It was amazing! A great way to remember our last night as an engaged couple, and to be surrounded by our friends and family and see their lights shining in honor of us. Just after I thought I could breathe, this beautiful moment took our breath away!

We went back to the villa for an amazingly hilarious and ridiculously organized game of Family Feud. Hargroves vs. Cowans. Our friends Marissa and Steve coordinated and hosted this game. It was so funny seeing my dad against Tommy’s aunt. For the record, Tommy’s family won, but my family wanted to protest. HA!

Wedding Day

I kicked Tommy out of our room at 8:30am and a few of my girls came in. My friend, Alyssa, who is a hairstylist and make-up artist started on one of my bridesmaids, while my sister, who is a Massage Therapist, gave me a relaxing massage. The “boys” were finishing moving furniture, etc and Tommy’s sister Sara (our caterer) and his mom, Kathryn (our pastry chef) were busy working in the kitchen! My mom and Laura were creating our bouquets and boutonnieres, as the flowers were picked up that morning. Things were coming together! Tommy’s dad, Tom, came in to take some shots of us getting ready. We had people bringing us food, drinks, etc. I didn’t leave the air-conditioned room until I put on my dress! We also found out it was the hottest day since we’d been in Costa Rica. Later, we realized it was the only day it didn’t rain the whole time we were there. Thank you, Lord!

The whole day went by so quickly. The next thing I know I was taking photos with my side and we were minutes from the wedding! My brother walked my mom down the aisle, my bridesmaid Anna left, my sister and maid of honor, Robyn, left and then it was just me and my dad. They closed the doors and I walked in front, ready for my grand entrance. The music started up again and the doors opened and I could see Tommy. I was beaming! My dad grabbed my arm and we walked safely down the aisle. It was amazing! The ceremony was beautiful and has some amazing impromptus and references to our trip. Eric, our pastor, is so gifted. It was amazing. Finally I was putting on his ring and reading our vows! We each had 12 things we loved about each other that Eric had us prepare earlier that week to keep with the 12-12-12 theme. That, I hadn’t planned before the wedding! We promised our lives to each other in front of God and this beautiful scenery with our family and friends as our witnesses. It was truly amazing!

The Reception
All the planning came together. We had a photo scavenger hunt going on while we Tommy and I took photos with Tom & Eric. We planned that “last minute” and it was a highlight for everyone! Dinner was amazing. As soon as it went dark we moved upstairs to eat. Sara, our caterer, exceeded our expectations. The food and decoration and everything she worked on was amazing! She and her husband Jeff, were married in Spain in 2007 and really the inspiration for our destination wedding. I wish I could have saved all the food because I was just floating the whole time!  The band showed up right at dinner and started setting up. Our friend Jared sang our first dance with the band – the same one Tommy used to propose to me on 11-11-11. (I’m a former TV Producer, so I am working on editing all of our video. Here’s the first dance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccf6RFP8-UQ&feature=share&list=UUOGfGMMVeEXZCkvL8zhg6qQ

The band was so much fun. We then had dessert… Oh MY! Kathryn, Tommy’s mom, recently graduated from Pastry School. The cake was amazing. Super small, yet so beautiful! Two tier, chocolate! She also made 4 different desserts, so you could have whatever you wanted. The toasts and speeches made me cry, only second to seeing Tommy during the ceremony. Eventually the band had to leave, the guests started going to bed and it became an “after-party.” But it was the best night of our lives!

It was a million times better than we could have ever imagined. Truly a dream come true!

Good Morning! Today is our last post about one of our “Real Brides” who decided to get married on the last iconic date of the century… none other than 12-12-12! Ella and her husband Randy! Ella sent us some fabulous photos from her gorgeous wedding, and we are sharing her touching story as well!! Read more about why Ella and Randy decided on 12-12-12!

“Our 5 year dating anniversary is coming up on New Years Eve so we were looking at a way to celebrate big…and were tossing around the idea of getting engaged this anniversary and having a wedding or eloping next year. We started looking for unique dates that would be easy to remember and special like our holiday dating anniversary. We set our sites on 12/12/12 and everything started falling into place! We are going to Savannah and getting married in the quintessential Savannah Square, Forsyth Park. The officiant and photographer will pick us up in a classic cadillac and take us to the park for the whole deal. We plan on using photos from a recent shoot and our wedding photographer to create a video to send to our family and friends as an announcement for Christmas.”

Good Afternoon! As 12-12-12 was one of the most iconic dates of the century, we had a plethora of brides who decided to marry on this interesting date! Monica, one of our “real brides” from Houston, TX shared her lovely story with us and some pictures of her gorgeous wedding! Read more below about her fairy tale romance!

“My fiancee’ and I met online on October 12, 2009. I added him as a friend, and he messaged me asking if we knew each other. I replied, “Nope. My name is Monica, what’s your name?”. Ever since, we were in constant contact via e-mail, myspace, facebook, text, and phone. A month and a half later, he decided he liked me as more than a friend, so he decided to travel to Houston and have Thanksgiving with me: since he was living in Seguin TX at the time.

Two weeks after we met, he moved to Houston for good, because I refused to be in a long distance relationship. On December 12, 2009 I asked him if he was planning on making it official, and he responded with “Sure, since you beat me to it”. I’m not sure who asked who out, but since that day almost three years have passed and I am happier than I have ever been! December 12th will be our three year anniversary, and what better way to celebrate than with a wedding? Also, 12-12-12- is a once in a lifetime event. It only happens once every hundred years! The next time that dates will have triple digits will be 1-1-2111, and I don’t think we could have waited that long.

When we started planning our wedding, the date was already set, but little did we know how much it would save us. We are having a $25,000 wedding for half the price. Getting married on a Wednesday is not very common, but John (my fiancee’) and I wouldn’t change it for the world! The number twelve was symbolic to us from the beginning of our relationship, and it will continue to be important in our marriage. We have both agreed that every third anniversary we will do something extravagant since on our third anniversary we’re getting married, and every twelfth anniversary we plan to renew our vows.”

Good Afternoon! Today we are recounting our “real brides” who decided to get married on the iconic 12-12-12 date that just passed! Tadia Whitner has a very touching story about how “if it’s meant to be, it will be!” Read more about her story below, and see the gorgeous pictures from her wedding!

“I tried to think about why we chose 12/12/12 …I guess sometime in late 2010, I thought it would be neat (and lucky) to get married on 12/12/12 because it would be the last recurring date until 3001.  I figured if I were going to get married that would be the day I wanted to do it. I wasn’t even dating anyone at that point.  In June 2011, a friend of mine wanted to get in touch with someone in the video game industry.  Brian, who works in the video game industry, and I had dated in college and kept in touch on social media.  I sent him a message on Facebook and we started to talking.  A few months later, Brian told me he always felt that I was “the one that got away”.  He told me that he wanted to date seriously with the goal of getting married.  I told him I wanted to get married on 12/12/12, he said that was not a problem for him and basically he made it happen.  He courted me long distance from Baton Rouge, LA.  In December 2011, he took me home to Pennsylvania to meet his parents.  In July 2012, he moved from Baton Rouge to Lawrenceville, GA because my newly formed law firm was doing so well.   The rest is history.  I asked Brian why we picked 12/12/12 and he said because I had my heart set on that date and it was his job in life to give me whatever my heart desired.  I figure there was not a better reason than that!”

TGIF! We are starting off our weekend by posting about one of our “Real Brides” who got married on the most iconic date of the year…. 12-12-12!! Julia Hintze from Phoenix, Arizona got married in a beautiful chapel in Yosemite National Park, as she grew up camping there and decided it would be the perfect place for her wedding! Julia had an intimate family gathering and decided that 12-12-12 would be a date she could never forget!  December is always a great month for the couple, making it even more special!  Here are a few pictures from Julia’s big day!

Good Morning and Happy Thursday! As you all know, 12-12-12 was the last iconic date of the century and thousands of brides all over the globe wed on this special day! Stephanie Alvira from Orlando, FL was one of our “iconic brides”, and originally wanted to get married on 3/30/2013, but wanted a date sooner than that, and said why not 12-12-12 since it was the last cool repetitive date!

Check out a few pictures from Stephanie’s wedding!

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Good Morning and Happy Monday! Just in case you missed it last week, 12-12-12 was the last sequential iconic date of the century, and thousands of brides across the globe decided to get married on the memorable date! CupidsPulse featured an article about the date and why 12-12-12 was a fabulous day to marry on! Here are the top five reasons:

1. Couples got engaged on 11/11/11 or 10/10/10.

2. The triple number sequence is good luck to people interested in numerology.

3. Because the date is iconic – the last consecutive number sequence of the century.

4. It is easy to remember; husbands will have no excuse if they forget their anniversary.

5. In the Chinese culture, even numbers are lucky.

Click here to visit Cupid’s Pulse and read the entire article here!

Thinking of playing the lottery on this big day? Maybe you should, since 12-12-12 is considered to be the luckiest date of the century! It is also one of the most popular iconic dates of the century to get married on! David’s Bridal’s statistics that 7500 brides would be marrying on this date is featured in the article!  Read an article from The New York Daily News on the Brides marrying on this date!

Good Morning DB Readers! Tomorrow is one of the most celebrated days of the year… 12-12-12!! Brides near and far planned some pretty serious nuptials and are wedding in exotic places like Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Punta Cana to name a few and their big day is fast approaching! Yahoo! Shine recently posted an article about the iconic date and that David’s Bridal estimates that 7,500 brides will be getting married on this big day! Congratulations to the brides who are marrying on this special day! Read more about 12-12-12 here!

Good Morning and happy 12-12-12! As you all know, brides around the world and getting married today, and David’s Bridal made front page news in USA Today! Our Chief Marketing Officer, Brian Beitler said ”Iconic dates have become a wedding trend in the United States, reaching new heights when over 65,000 couples tied the knot on 7-7-’07.” Well, today is the last day of the century to marry on an iconic date, and over 9,000 brides are planning on tying the knot today in wedding chapels, churches, and city halls all over! Enjoy the day as its the last one you’ll see for a while! Read the entire story here!