Wedding Day

Oak Hollow Farm Inc

Ceremony

Little Point Clear suites & space    Fairhope, Alabama

Reception

Our Wedding

It's Kind of a Funny Story...

JJ grew up in Daphne, AL and graduated high school in 2007. His dad was a food vendor, and his mom had a fried chicken restaurant. JJ went to school at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD for a few years, but his heart just wasn’t in the military. In 2010, he moved home and struggled to choose his next move. He traveled around Italy and Egypt, then worked as a 2nd Assistant Director in Hollywood. Here and there, he took courses and worked as a server, bartender, cook, and barista. He spent a lot of time working for Matt &amp; Jana Poirier, who own The Hound and The Depot in Auburn. After a while, he started managing kitchens and restaurants. He also spent a year in Daphne as a hospice caretaker for his grandpa. He wrote poetry and went to 4 Bonnaroo Music Festivals (mainly to see Mumford &amp; Sons). In 2015, JJ lost his grandpa and moved to Auburn to complete the final year of his undergraduate degree and to manage the kitchen at Moe’s Original BBQ. He rescued a German Shephard mix named Scarlett, and they got a 2-bedroom apartment with a shared balcony. One day, JJ and Scarlett met their downstairs neighbor, Daniel Robinson. Daniel was also pushing 30, and he was a Marine combat veteran. JJ and Daniel became fast friends. A couple of weeks later, they moved all of Daniel’s things upstairs into JJ’s spare bedroom. Their balcony-mate, Colin, became their 3rd musketeer and basically moved onto their couch. It was like a fraternity house for 27 year-olds. JJ was thrilled to have a roommate to split bills with, but Daniel was really worried about finding a sub-leaser to cover his lease. One day, Daniel finally announced he’d found one. “Dude, she’s… pretty hot.” JJ and Colin both perked up on the couch. They mystery of “Hot Neighbor Girl” began to grow. A few days later, Daniel called from the kitchen. “Dude! There she is!” JJ and Colin sprinted from the couch to the kitchen window. Sure enough, the rumors were true. Better yet, Hot Neighbor Girl was walking her dog. JJ called to Scarlett, “Wanna go for a walk?” Scarlett was the perfect wingman. As soon as JJ opened the door, she sprinted right up to her new playmate. The girl's name was Mariah, and she was a 20 year-old prodigy on track to graduate Hotel &amp; Restaurant Management a year early. Her favorite band was Mumford &amp; Sons. Her mom was an artist. Her dad had a fried chicken restaurant. She worked as a server for Matt &amp; Jana Poirier at The Depot. It all was overwhelming. JJ sat down on a stump to watch their dogs play and said to himself, “She was meant for me.” That’s when Mariah mentioned that she lived with her cat, Steve, but the dog was actually her boyfriend’s… “On to Plan B.”&nbsp; For months after that, JJ had to invite Mariah on group outings with Daniel, Colin, and other friends. She became the 4th musketeer. Every night when JJ got off work at Moe’s, Mariah and the crew would be there waiting for him. JJ would be so exhausted from work, but he would stay out and party so Mariah wouldn’t think he was old and boring. Then they’d all go home and eat Taco Bell and listen to music on the balcony until 2-3 in the morning. Mariah and JJ became best friends. They talked all day and night. He tried to impress her by changing her oil.&nbsp; JJ fell deeper and deeper in love, but they never spoke of it. Sometimes Mariah would withdraw and talk about her boyfriend when she felt a line was being crossed. One night when she did that at a bar, JJ got sick of it, hopped behind the bar, and kissed the bartender. He looked over to see the look on Mariah’s face, and that’s when he knew it was really mutual.&nbsp; She yelled at him. He pointed out that she wasn’t supposed to care. Words came pouring out of both of them. “I can’t, I have a boyfriend.” JJ answered, “Who could blame you if you happened to be dating somebody when you met the person you were supposed to spend the rest of your life with?” The next day, she broke up with the other scrub.&nbsp; Their first date was a Mumford &amp; Sons concert on the “Wilder Minds” tour. Every day together, they both felt more alive than they ever had. There was only one problem: it was suddenly April, and big changes were set for May. JJ would graduate, and Mariah was set to do a summer internship in Montana. JJ had been planning to go to grad school in New York. Their futures no longer meant much to them if they didn’t include each other. JJ’s family loved Mariah, and they sensed the dilemma. JJ’s mom suggested, “What if you just rented a house in Montana together? You can find a temporary job and write while she does her internship.” So they booked a house in Montana for June and July. Mariah moved in May (JJ’s mom watched Steve), but that month apart was too much for the young lovers to bear. She called and begged him to come sooner and crash in her cabin until their lease started. So he did… only they never made it to June.&nbsp; Surprise! Mariah and JJ suddenly had the best reassurance that their futures would remain tied together. His name was Wilder Cooke Nelson. Mariah’s internship was miserable anyway, so they packed up and drove back to Auburn. Poor Daniel had to move out to make way for a new nursery. Mariah crammed in 32 credit hours a semester so she could graduate early, and JJ managed Moe’s BBQ 50 hours a week to keep everybody fed. Everyone was always tired, but happy. Halfway through Mariah’s final semester, Wilder was born, and their family was complete. JJ’s mom bought them a house in Daphne, and they moved to his hometown to take over his mom’s restaurant. Mariah's mom also moved down from Pennsylvania to be with them. Mariah stays home to care for Wilder and JJ’s grandma, and she adopted a St. Bernard named Moses. JJ grew the restaurant into the “#1 Buffet in Alabama.” They have since purchased their dream home on the property adjoining JJ’s dad’s, and they have put a lot of work into fixing it up. They still like to go to Bonnaroo music festivals, and they still visit their stump when they're in Auburn to see the spot where they met. Wilder is a child prodigy just like mom, and he’s very excited for Mommy and Daddy’s “big party.” Scarlett, Steve, and Moses are pumped too. Everybody says “get the show on the road so we can have a little sister.”&nbsp;

Mariah & JJ

Mariah & JJ

M&J

Wedding Day

4:00 PM

Ceremony

Reception