Real Brides: Madison

It was the year of 2004 when we first laid eyes on each other, clearly both in our prime. Little did we know we would reconnect just 8 years later when I recruited (harassed) Jon to be in a fashion show. I know what you're thinking.... it was love ever since! But it wasn't, it only took about 3 more years for us to re-reconnect. October 2015 was Maddy's first trip to the sunshine state. This trip included, one kayaking trip with 2 water pugs (manatees), two custom deer costumes (Halloween), one Disney World trip, one lost iPhone (possibly stolen), too many bottles of Veuve and lots of tears when we had to say goodbye. "I remember sitting in the airport heading back to Portland, and a text message from Jon popping up on my phone saying "I miss you already", and just knowing in that moment that he was the one" - Maddy From October on there were countless trips, lots of sunflowers sent, red eye flights, one surprise birthday party & millions of nights where we stayed up late to talk on the phone. But for us, it was all worth it. Our families thought we were crazy Time flew by, but everyday felt like a thousand when we were apart. So we finally made the decision to squash the distance! Jon flew to Portland, we packed the car & the pug and we were off to Florida! It took 390575946 years to get there but we finally made it on August 31st 2016! Multiples hurricanes, dozens of trips to Disney, too many vet visits, a million beach days, 3 power rangers, one 25th birthday, endless nights fishing (never caught anything), one Flo Rida concert, one Gaspirilla festival, a Hawaiian wedding, so many new forever friends, and countless dollar beer nights. “Florida was the best thing that happened to us, it was hard, it was fun, it brought us even closer together and we'll never forget it. “ -Maddy How she knew her dress was the one: I had actually purchased another dress and it had turned into a huge disaster. I ended up returning my original dress and drove a few hours to Blush Bridal in Eugene, Oregon from Portland. With my sister in law and my two nieces by my side the Sedona dress was the first one I put on, I instantly fell in love. The cashmere underlay with the ivory lace, it had me at first glance. I continued to try on about 20 more dresses and couldn’t stop thinking about the Sedona dress. The fabric, it’s light, airy, so soft and flowy for being a a-line ball down. Everything about the dress I am still in love with and I couldn’t have pictured anything else. It was perfect. Photo by Apt. B Photography

Bride Madison wore a Simply Val Stefani style.