Trinity Reformed United Church of Christ

Wedding Day

Wedding

Reception

Our Wedding

Her Side: 
Read and I initially met online in October of 2015.  Our first conversation was about song lyrics in his online profile- he was very proud of them! LOL After some time, we moved from talking online to texting/talking on the phone.  I was involved in the HUB's production of Guys and Dolls (playing Sarah Brown) at the time and I remember asking Read to come see the show.  He said, " I don't want the first time I see you in real life to watch you be someone else!"-- I thought that was really thoughtful.  He waited over a month to finally meet me- the first free/no rehearsal day I had. I was so nervous to meet him for the first time- I went out and bought a new outfit and everything! Our first date was mining for gem stones at the Hiddenite Gem Mine.  I was SO nervous on the drive over to Hiddenite that I contemplated canceling!! (Glad I didn't let my nerves get the best of me)   Finally, after getting lost a few times, I made it there and saw a white GMC truck waiting- I knew that was him!  I watched him get out of his truck from my rear-view mirror and I remember thinking "Okay, good! He looks like a normal person!" (you know, because of the whole online thing... you just never know!)
Anyway, I could tell he was pretty nervous too so that made me feel better. Conversation was pretty easy with him initially and we probably spent over three hours mining for gem stones. Read asked a lot of questions to the gem people and I remember thinking, "Well, if this doesn't end up working out at least we both learned a lot about gem stones...and got to see the dude lick the gem stones on the spot (yeah, you read that right...) yuck.
After we left gem mining we both drove to a restaurant Read picked for us to eat supper at...I felt relieved because I actually wanted to continue the date and could tell Read did as well! We ended up at some Japanese Restaurant and I remember that Tangled was playing on the TV so I thought that was a good sign! (I LOVE disney)  We spent three hours there talking, watching 90's country music videos on Read's phone, and getting to know each other.  As we left, Read got a little awkward and I couldn't tell if he wanted to kiss me or not, so we hugged it out and Read asked if he could see me again. I left the date a little unsure of what I thought, but after thinking/continuing to talk to Read/and prayer...
I said yes... and our second date was dinner and go-cart racing at The Pit in Mooresville.  It was at dinner that night that I truly realized that I was starting to like Read, and I'll never forget that feeling.  We were both much more relaxed on the second date and it was so much fun! Especially when I beat him racing! LOL Later that night, when he dropped me off at my car, and after a lot of stalling and more talking about 90's country music, Read kissed me- our first kiss in the Walmart Parking Lot in Statesville.  It might not have been the most romantic location, but it was truly one of the most special moments ever.  I drove back home to Hickory that night knowing that Read was someone I liked a lot and couldn't wait to know more about.
Read asked me to be his girlfriend on our 4th date, December 1st, 2015 and the rest has been history.  Falling in love was so easy and fun and we have truly been blessed beyond measure. Our love story isn't perfect- but it has been beyond what I could have ever dreamed of for myself.  I have grown so much as a person and I truly believe that God brought Read and I together. 
So, there is my side of our story... What a ride it's been! I cannot wait to spend forever with you, Read Plott, loving each other and growing together as one! 
-Alyssa
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His Side:
For about 3 weeks before our first date, all along texting back and forth, I knew I wanted to meet Alyssa in person and that there was a potential for a relationship between us. I started thinking about places to go on a first date that would be different and not the normal, boring "dinner and a movie." I started looking at options between Mocksville and Hickory and noticed that there was a gem mine smack dab in the middle. I thought to myself: "this is definitely unusual, what girl doesn't like gemstones, it is equidistant to us, AND, best of all, we will leave with nice mementos that will be invaluable if we do have a relationship." So I finally got up the courage to ask, Alyssa finally made room in her busy schedule, and we had our first date, our first in-person conversation, on November 8, 2015. I remember being nervous, but in a good way. Alyssa was flirty and I could tell that she was enjoying herself; that helped ease the nerves, albeit only slightly. We found many gemstones and the employees at the mine were helpful and answered any question that we had about the gemstones. Alyssa told me stories about her childhood and how she would have pretend concerts in the woods behind her house. She would imagine that all of the animals would come out to listen to her while she sang and danced on a log. I thought that was such a great story and gave me a lot of insight into who she is; I should have known then that I needed to brush up on my fairy tale stories if I was going to continue seeing this real-life Disney princess!
Alyssa and I continued to talk after the first date. She is a great conversationalist! The next weekend, we had our second date. Again, I wanted to take her some place out of the ordinary for fear of coming off boring. After doing some research, I found The Pit Indoor Kart Racing in Mooresville. I had heard about it from of my friends, and remember that they had positive things to say about it. After all, what's better to bring out someone's true spirit than a little competition? We went to dinner first, which was a great time, and then to The Pit. Little did I know that Alyssa loved racing go-karts and grew up racing them with her family every year at the beach. Before ever getting in the go-kart, I decided to take it easy on her. She was a fierce racer though, and she ended up beating me. I didn't intend for her to actually beat me, but she did! I definitely underestimated her need for speed! I didn't know it at the time, but looking back, I don't think we could have had a better second date. Once I dropped her off at her car, I found enough gumption to kiss her. We were in the Statesville Wal-Mart parking lot and I had stalled for what seemed like an eternity before doing it. I remember thinking, in the moment, that it was awkward. But it couldn't have been better! The way she smiled afterward, I knew there was something special between us.
We had two more dates after that, before I asked her to be my girlfriend. That was the smartest decision of my life and led to the two greatest years of my life. I know, without a doubt, that our relationship will continue to make my life better and I can't wait to spend the rest of it with her! My only regret is that we didn't meet sooner!
-Read

Our Story

Details

Photos

David Plott

Kerrin Cox

David Strand

Brittnee Hinkle

Andrew Lowe

Brenna Chandler

Billy Sweat

Laura Dorsey

Jared Shrewsbury

Mara Walker

Andrew Darcy

Anna Beth Walker

Wedding Party

Q + A

Registry

<p>Mention "Lowe-Plott Wedding" to book rooms and take advantage of our group rate!</p>

Alyssa & Read

Alyssa & Read

Wedding Party