Wedding Day

Our Wedding

Cade and I met when we were 14 years old during our freshman year at Davenport North High School. We never interacted much though we had many shared classes. I actually had a crush on his friend Anthony at the time though he had a girlfriend (I selflessly set them up) and he wanted to repay the favor by finding me a date. Clearly I could not tell him he was my crush so I pointed to a random blonde boy in our paws class (homeroom) and told him that is who I liked. Of course since Anthony is/was Mr. Popular he knew the kid. “That’s my friend Cade! I’ll hook you up”. It became a whole thing. Suddenly everyone I knew was talking about Cade and how he was going to ask me out. This had me very nervous and later that day I dropped a 45 pound weight on my toe in weight lifting class. Cade came up and asked if I was okay. I had never spoken to this guy before so I had assumed Anthony made him check on me. I kinda freaked out yelled at Anthony then got taken to the athletic trainer. Turns out Cade had no idea at that point I “had a crush on him” and I opened a big can of worms (at least it felt like a big deal at 14 or 15 years old). After all this commotion flash forward a little bit he asked me on our first date. We went to the movie theater to watch The Million Dollar Arm. It was a good movie we both enjoy baseball but he didn’t really make a move. I kinda made fun of him for it and then he asked me on a second date (again to the movie theater he was very creative). We were supposed to watch the Fault in Our Stars though it was sold out which resulted in us having to sit in the theater with my brother and mom to watch 22 Jump Street instead. After the movie we awkwardly stood under a tree on the east side of the theater and he asked me to be his girlfriend (June 21st, 2014). We always park on this side of the theater now just to reminisce and laugh at how silly this was. In college Cade and I took a mutual break to decide if this was really meant to be . After about 2 years we reconnected at our 5 year high school reunion at Rookies. Since Anthony is our class president and set up the reunion I guess you can say Anthony is responsible for setting us up twice. After many secret hang outs and long conversations on March 21st, 2023 we decided to officially give this another shot. And here we are.

From Ashley’s Perspective 

From Cade’s Perspective 

I first saw Ashley in our home room at North High School. I hit it off with our friend Katie immediately, but big surprise, Ashley was very quiet and nervous to be at a new school around new people. We finally started talking towards the end of our Freshman year, with her denying me a date in front of our whole class at first. We started dating after watching 22 Jump Street with Melissa and Austin, after The Fault in Our Stars was sold out. Our love only grew from there, dating all through high school and through two years of college. We reconnected at our 5 year high school reunion and felt the spark was still there. We started dating again, and realized we were having even more fun and falling deeper in love than we ever thought possible. Ashley moved in after graduating with her doctorate, and our house has truly felt like home since she came here. Every day with her is an adventure and I fall deeper in love with her every morning I get to wake up next to her. 

Our Story

Our Engagement Photos 

The Early Days

Our Photos

Lauren met Ashley in high school, but it wasn’t until after college that they became inseparable. Living in the same city meant countless hangouts that turned into a best-friend bond that stuck. Her favorite memories include a wild Chicago concert trip and countless late nights downtown, laughing way too hard and making memories that still crack them up years later. Watching Ashley find her person in Cade - who she (Lauren) has known since grade school - has been incredibly special, and she’s beyond honored to stand by them both as Matron of Honor on their special day.

Lauren McKittrick 

Travis and Cade met through mutual friends in high school.  His favorite memory with Cade is their camping shenanigans and almost running Cade over trying to get the car out of that ditch. His favorite memory with both Cade and Ashley together is having a few too many at Iowa  tailgating and having them feed Travis hotdog buns to sober up. 

Travis Hufford

Katie and Ashley met when they became college roommates in 2019, and they have been inseparable ever since. Core memories include countless nights out at Carriage Haus,  quarantining together in the early days of 2020, complaining about grad school together, exploring Kansas City, Katie testing positive for COVID while hanging out with Ashley (twice!), watching each other became doctors, and laying on the couch doing absolutely nothing together. Cade and Ashley are her favorite couple to third-wheel with!!

Katie McGinnis 

Austin Frantz

Ashley and Alex became close during their time at St. Ambrose and the rest is history! Alex loves that Ashley always knows how to bring the fun whether it’s cheering her on at one of her shows or hanging out by the beach in Mexico. Another perk to their friendship are the double dates they get to share with Ben & Cade! This led to even more fun memories together at baseball games or other fun adventures around the QC!

Alex Axup

Tyler and Cade have been good friends since  middle school. They played football together growing up. Tyler says his favorite memories with Cade include hanging out on a yacht on Lake Michigan and golfing at various courses around the quad cities.

Tyler Glover

My favorite memory with Ashley is our late night trips to get ice cream/Mcdonalds and being the sister I never had. My favorite memory with my brother cade would be growing up together and hanging out at the beach all day and turning into lobsters.

Maya Beasley

Jacob and Cade became close friends in high school playing football together before becoming roommates throughout all of college. Jacob’s favorite memory with Cade were their “family dinners” of Chinese food while living together. His favorite memories with both Cade and Ashley were high school hangouts and Iowa football tailgates.

Jacob Wells

Baleigh is the bride’s cousin and a built in best friend since childhood. Growing up, they spent just about every weekend together, causing harmless chaos, sharing laughs, and making memories that still get brought up today. What started as cousinhood quickly turned into a lifelong friendship, and Baleigh is beyond excited (and honored!) to stand by her side on the big day and celebrate a love this special.

Baleigh Fisher

Josh and Cade met through a mutual friend in high school. Josh’s favorite memories with Cade include spending countless cold nights freezing in a detached garage, where a lifelong friendship was built. Josh is grateful for how welcoming Ashley has been whenever he’s home and looks forward to many more memories together in the years ahead.

Josh Markle 

Leah is Ashley's cousin. Her favorite memory with Ashley is staying up all night in her living room playing Mario party 8 Specifically "King Of The Thrill" and after a whole night of playing once Ashley's dad went to bed for the night we would grab our snacks and turn on "The Hard Times of RJ Burger" and hope Mike didn’t wake up and walk out in the living room to get us in trouble.

Leah Ellis

Caleb LeBlanc

Mav met the bride and groom through being born . He is Baleigh's son. He has no favorite memories as he is not sentient/ self aware at this time. Maybe we will get lucky and this will be one of his first memories. 

Brooklyn and Kolton are Ashley’s little cousins, growing up very close. They spent every New Year’s Eve, and often weekends at their grandparents while their parents all played softball together. They were babysat and hung out with Ashley so often, and have become as much friend as family! They loved all of their cousin sleepovers and all the memories they made together growing up together.

Brooklyn & Kolton

Anthony met both Ashley and Cade in high school. On the very first day, Anthony shared a Pop-Tart with a distressed Ashley, which cemented their friendship forever. He and Cade met through mutual friends and classes, which eventually led to them becoming lifelong catch partners. His favorite memory of Ashley and Cade is when they surprised him and a few other friends with their rekindled relationship, in the winter of 2022/2023.

Anthony DeSalvo

Sean met Cade in middle school, playing football, baseball, and hanging out outside of school. His favorite memories with Cade and Ashley are playing Co-ed softball and getting together for the holidays!

Sean McKittrick

CJ and Cade have been good friends since middle school. They played baseball and football together in high school. His favorite memories with Cade are the good times they had during high school sports and playing golf around the quad cities in the summer time. 

Paul "CJ" Bakoylis 

Wedding Party

Dress Code

The closest lodging to our venue is Riverside Casino that we have listed below. This is our top choice as the entire wedding party and immediate family will be staying here.

Sophisticated interior design complements outstanding personal
service and modern amenities to envelop you in total luxury and
comfort. A look outside your hotel room window reveals a
panoramic view of our world-class Blue Top Ridge golf course.
Minutes from your room you will discover our spacious
indoor/outdoor pool - fine dining venues - a full service spa -
the area hottest gaming and top entertainment. Room options
include deluxe king - deluxe double queen - king suite - grand
master suite - king and double queen accessible and standard
double queen bathtub rooms.

Riverside Casino & Golf Resort

We have arranged for shuttles to run to and from Riverside Casino and Copper Creek Ridge. Additional information (shuttle schedule) will be provided closer to the event date.

If the Casino isn't your thing here are some other recommendations that are in Iowa city. We will not have shuttles arranged at these locations and transportation will be your responsibility.

Located in Iowa City, 1.1 miles from Kinnick Stadium, Hyatt Place Iowa City Downtown has accommodations with a fitness center, private parking, a shared lounge and a bar. This 3-star hotel offers a 24-hour front desk, an ATM and free WiFi. The hotel has an indoor pool and luggage storage space. At the hotel, the rooms come with a desk. Complete with a private bathroom equipped with a bath or shower and free toiletries, all rooms at Hyatt Place Iowa City Downtown have a flat-screen TV and air conditioning, and selected rooms also feature a seating area. All guest rooms will provide guests with a fridge. Buffet and American breakfast options are available at the accommodation. A business center and vending machines with snacks and drinks are available on site at Hyatt Place Iowa City Downtown. Paramount Theatre is 28 miles from the hotel. The Eastern Iowa Airport is 22 miles from the property.

Hyatt Place Iowa City Downtown

Conveniently located on the campus of the University of Iowa, this hotel is 5 minutes from Carver Hawkeye Arena. The hotel features a restaurant and rooms with a 37-inch flat-screen HDTV. The elegant rooms at the hotel are styled with wood furniture and warm colors. Each includes a coffee maker, a work desk and lounge chair. Guests have free access to the state-of-the-art gym. Free WiFi and a 24-hour front desk are available. Wilder Restaurant is located on-site. The concept offers a wide variety of food options for hotel guests. Englert Civic Theater and the University of Iowa Museum of Natural History are just a 10-minute walk from this hotel. Coral Ridge Mall is 10 minutes away by car.

Graduate by Hilton Iowa City

Located a 6-minute walk from Kinnick Stadium, Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights offers 3-star accommodations in Iowa City and has a shared lounge, a terrace and a bar. Providing a restaurant, the property also features free bikes, as well as an indoor pool and a fitness center. The property provides a 24-hour front desk, an ATM and luggage storage for guests. All rooms are equipped with a flat-screen TV, and some units at the hotel have a city view. There's an on-site snack bar and guests can also use the business area. Paramount Theatre is 26 miles from Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights. The Eastern Iowa Airport is 20 miles away.

Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights

Boasting an on-site indoor pool, this Iowa City hotel is across the river from the University of Iowa campus. Each guest room is equipped with free Wi-Fi and a 50-inch flat-screen TV. A microwave and fridge are offered in every room at Hampton Inn – Iowa City. For added convenience, tea and coffee-making facilities are also included. A daily continental breakfast is served, featuring waffles, cereal, coffee and more. Guests can take advantage of the fitness center and launderette facilities provided at the hotel. Kinnick Stadium, home of the Iowa Hawkeyes, is 1 mile from this hotel. Shopping at Coral Ridge Mall can be reached in 10 minutes’ drive.

Hampton Inn Iowa City/University Area

If you are joining us from out of state this is the nearest airport to our venue.

Ashley & Cade

Ashley & Cade

A&C