Michael and Lindsay's Wedding in Oak Brook, Illinois

The story of our wedding

Mike and I met online, nothing too exciting or romantic. But we instantly hit it off. I was a full-time law student working a part time job, and he was (and still is) a fireman. So neither one of us really had a ton of free time. The little free time we did have, though, we spent together.

After more than two years of dating, Mike and I (mutually) decided it was time to get engaged. We used the stone from my mom's engagement ring, and I designed a custom band to make it match my taste and personality. Ultimately, Mike wanted the proposal to be a surprise, so he waited a bit to propose, and eventually asked me to marry him at the Chriskindle Market in downtown Chicago, one of our annual traditional adventures.

I wanted to immediately start wedding planning. Mike wanted to enjoy the engagement a bit. I did not think that was practical because, as a fireman, Mike has to request his vacation days a year in advance, and it was about to be that time of year for him to request all his days off. I managed to sneak in a tour of The Drake Hotel Oak Brook, since it was not far from home. We actually never looked at any other venues. They had everything from table cloths, to food and alcohol, cake, ceremony and reception space, the hotel rooms, etc. We did not need a single outside vendor for the essentials. We saw no point in looking elsewhere. The convenience of having everything in one place was unique in and of itself.