Five Wounds Portuguese National Church

Ceremony

Starlite Banquet

Reception

Our Wedding

Let's rewind 8 years. This stranger was at my house and I looked at him like, "who are you?" He was with my brother and I just ignored him, didn't say hi. SO RUDE. I didn’t know this person was my brothers close friend and not an acquaintance. Manny visited my brother frequently and I became familiar with him. A year after our first encounter, he became a close friend to me and my family. I started to feel a little crush coming on and I loved how mysterious his eyes were under his dark thick eyebrows. I crushed over his deep voice, his head tilt when he was interested in what you had to say, and his charming smile. Jose, my brother, didn’t like the idea of me being interested in his best friend.&nbsp;The night of August 17th is the night my life would change for the better.&nbsp;Manny asked me on a date…to the shooting range. HUH?&nbsp;I accepted to go, but it wasn’t somewhere I envisioned a romantic date. I only accepted because I wanted to spend time with him and get to know him more. The day our date was supposed happen, I told him I couldn’t anymore. I told him I was nervous because I wasn’t educated enough on firearms and I didn’t want to embarrass myself with not shooting the targets correctly. He didn’t mind this, but understood.He asked me if I wanted to go to dinner and a movie, and that, I happily accepted. Even though I was comfortable with him, I was nervous for our date. I think he was nervous too, because at Olive Garden, he drank all of the wine we were supposed to share. Now that I come to think of it, he always finishes my drinks and food. Maybe I should’ve taken that as a sign that left overs will never exist for me and a drop of water is what I'll find in my cup. I've learned to return the favor now 😂. During the movie that was extremely boring, but I chose, he extended his arm to find my hand to hold it. If you ask him today, he says it only felt right and he laughs about it. A dull moment will never exist in our relationship and I am not sorry for stealing my brothers best friend😂. I knew he was the one that summer night in August.&nbsp;I will remember that night forever like it was yesterday. -Irene C. ♡

I stole my brother's bestfriend...

I first met Irene through her brother, Jose. He and I became good friends, and I started visiting his house often, getting to know his family. Irene, however, was dating someone else at the time, so our paths didn't cross much. That changed when Irene became single. Suddenly, I started seeing her more often. I NEVER expected anything to come of it. I found myself noticing her more over time. On the night of August 17th, 2017, I was hanging out with Jose in the garage when Irene came home. She decided to join us, which wasn't unusual, as she had done so before. What I didn't know back then was that she already had a crush on me. Looking back now, probably explains why she would want to hang out with us and why she would record me singing… That night, I noticed Irene was posting videos on her Snapchat account, so before I left, I asked her if she would add me as a friend. I felt comfortable enough to ask her by then. Later that night, I saw she had posted a video of her brother’s music group, and I responded to it. My response wasn’t intended to start a romantic relationship, even though she believes it was. From that point, we started talking every single day. Before taking her out on our first date, I spoke with Jose. I wanted to make sure he was okay with me pursuing her. I told him I was looking for something serious, a life partner and didn't want to just date around anymore. I believe he saw that my true intensions were pure and honest and was ok with it. I was nervous on our first date. After work, I went straight to pick her up. We had dinner and watched a movie. During the movie, I felt unusually comfortable. Maybe it was because of how easy she made it to feel at ease around her. I reached over to grab her hand, not knowing if she would reject it, but it felt right at that moment… She didn’t reject 😂. By then, we had been talking every day and staying on the phone until 3-4 am. I immediately felt comfortable around her. As time passed and we got to know each other more deeply, my feelings for her grew stronger. People have asked me what made me realize she was the one. My answer is simple: I've never felt this comfortable around anyone in my life. She never judged my appearance and accepted me for who I was. At that time, I weighed 300 lbs, but it was more than that. We had become so close that she became my best friend, someone I could share my deepest insecurities with, someone I could vent to, and the person I looked for when I was stressed or down. She is my light, my ride-or-die, the person I want to grow old with and start a family with. There's so much more that made me realize she is the one I was destined to be with. I can't wait to share the rest of my life with her and start a family with the love of my life.

Irene & Lauro

Irene & Lauro

Q + A

Can I take pictures during the ceremony to post on social media?

Do you have a wedding registry?

Can I bring my kids?

Can I bring my gift to the wedding?

What happens after the ceremony?

Can I bring a plus one?

When is the RSVP deadline? Do I need to mail back my RSVP or can I do it online?

Will there be a money dance?