Wedding Day

The Springfield Metropolis

Ceremony

Reception

Our Wedding

Our story begins on Wednesday, August 14, 2024. My (Payton) housemate, Landon, was a freshman orientation director at my college, and I decided to get dinner for him. Little did I know, Allie was also a freshman orientation director, and so Landon introduced the two of us, and I got dinner for both of them. After he left, I (Allie) said to Landon, "Who is that?" Landon then told me who he was and that he was single, and I tucked that into the back of my mind. A week or two later, I (Allie) had my second interaction with Payton, after I figured out that I had biology with his sister, Jules, all the way back in 2020! After that, we didn't talk much. One day, I (Payton) mentioned something in passing to Landon about Allie, and he immediately started saying I needed to ask her out and telling me how cool she was. After some further persuasion and some scheming, we ended up at a group dinner, and about a week later, I (Payton) asked Allie out for coffee at Vinyl Coffee. Our first date was amazing. We talked from the beginning to the end of the date, and we even got kicked out of Vinyl Coffee because they had closed. Pretty successful date if you ask us. The next day, I (Payton) was feeling so good about the date that I asked her out again. I didn't know where I wanted to go, but I knew I wanted to go on another date. After procrastinating in my homework, I discovered that Candlelight Concerts was coming to Springfield, OH, so like any overly-confident guy, I asked if she wanted to go. She said yes, and so went our second, even more successful date. We got dinner and discussed different spiritual encounters we've had with the Lord in our lives, and then we enjoyed listening to a quartet play some of Adele's songs by candlelight. At this point, I (Allie) was pretty confident that I wanted to date Payton. However, I (Payton) was balking at the thought of making a commitment to a relationship. I had felt nothing but good moments with Allie, but I was just unsure. However, after a couple more dates and a hard conversation, I was feeling a bit more ready. I had a friend tell me that I'll never feel 100% ready, and that if I felt like I wanted to, I just needed to ask, and so on October 2, 2024, after having eaten pizza at a lake, I asked her to be my girlfriend. A month and a few dates later, we were getting ready to say goodbye for Thanksgiving. I (Allie) had been hoping that Payton would kiss me for a while, and he finally did it on November 25 as he walked me to my car. It was like a movie. It was misty and dark outside, we were saying goodnight, and he finally asked if he could kiss me. Of course, I said "yes," and it was magical. I then proceeded to freak out and giggle like a little girl all the way home. Afterwards, I (Payton) went inside my house and silently smiled and walked through the kitchen. One of my housemates, Robbie, looked at me, I nodded, and he ran over and picked me off my feet as we celebrated together. It was a happy night in my house. A few months later, I finally got to take Allie on the date that I got her for Christmas, an interactive Monet museum! (she's a big fan) It was on that date that I told her I loved her for the first time... and boy did I mean it. That day was really special for me (Allie), because I had been feeling the same way. It was just so amazing to actually voice it, instead of saying it in my head. February rolls around, and I (Allie) moved into my apartment in Cedarville, just down the road from Payton! That day felt like a dream for the future, because as much as I was moving in with my roommate, Kezia, as Payton helped me move in all my things, I couldn't help but envision doing that with him. The very next day, I (Payton) felt the same way about our future, and I could tell Allie did too. So, at lunch after church, we discussed the idea of getting married! It was scary to think about, but I felt confident enough to at least discuss it with her. She seemed pretty excited about it, considering the fact that she repeatedly asked me that day: "You want to marry me?!?!" I (Allie) did say that a lot that day. At that point, we talked about getting engaged in the fall and getting married next summer. At least one of those things is true. Soon after this day, I (Payton) planned a romantic Valentine's Day date, which consisted of a multi-course meal, prepared by yours truly, and we shared the meal over candlelight, vintage records, and of course cheesecake for dessert. My (Allie) parents gifted us with a date, and so over Easter, we went out and talked more seriously about engagement, marriage, and family. I was pretty adamant that I wanted our engagement to be a surprise. I was hesitant to even provide guidance on rings or anything like that. However, Payton looked panicked, so I gave him a few pointers. At that point, I had also given him my dad's number, so that it wouldn't be obvious when he needed to talk to him. During the date, Payton mentioned something about getting engaged in the summer, and I told him that maybe it would be good to wait until the fall. However, it didn't take long before I realized that I wanted to be engaged earlier than the fall. I didn't quite know how to tell Payton that though, so I'm glad he decided to propose sooner. At this point, I (Payton) was on my own in the engagement process. I had to somehow talk to her dad, purchase a ring, retrieve said ring, and plan a proposal, all without her finding out. It felt like a Mission: Impossible movie, but I was up for the task. I managed to talk to her dad, Mark, at the Troy Strawberry Festival. It was a spur-of-the-moment conversation, but he was very kind and gave me his blessing to marry Allie. From there, I needed to buy a ring. At this point, I was still planning on proposing in the fall, and when I purchased the ring, I expected it to take up to three months to ship. However, my jeweler, Michelle, told me it would only take about two weeks! So I said, "Why not propose sooner?" Thank goodness I did, because I had no idea that Allie had wanted to get engaged sooner than the fall. The ring came in, and I managed to throw Allie off a lot. She was confused as to why my location wasn't working, and I told her my phone must have been acting up. I must have looked at that ring a hundred times before I proposed to her, because I thought it was so pretty, and I couldn't wait to get to give it to her. I discussed the idea of proposing on vacation to Jules and Grant, and they loved the idea, so that was my plan. Fast forward to vacation, Allie and I drove down to Massanutten Resort in Virginia, where my extended family was. I had told her I wanted to take her to an overlook that my parents had taken a picture in front of on their honeymoon (true story), and she was on board, with zero suspicions. I could not relax or eat my dinner, so I sat there, checking the clock every five minutes, anticipating the moment I would propose. Kayla, my sister, and Kalia, my aunt, sneaked away and went to the spot to set up their cameras, while Allie and I drove up a few minutes after them. Getting out of the car, I (Allie) was oblivious to everything that was going on. I thought we were just going to look at the mountains and take a quick picture. It was not until he mentioned the fact that he didn't want to lose me that I realized what was going on, and before I knew it, he was on one knee. In shock, all I could say, other than "yes," was "NO WAY!" I must have said it fifteen to twenty times that night. I really just couldn't believe it was happening. Afterwards, Payton and I drove back to his family's condo, where we all jumped, screamed, and celebrated the joyous event. We are now planning our future together, and couldn't be more excited about it. We hope you can be a part of it.

Our Story

Photos

Grace Barnhart

Julia Peterson

Bethany Wightman

Halley Stone

Leah Harless

Morgan Yates

Ben Walls

Azarian Bennett

Zach Kruse

Eli Nord

Kade Rowley

Grant Deaton

Wedding Party

Q + A

If you’re planning to stay in one of the rooms under this hotel block, those need to be booked by April 6 to secure the discounted rate. After that, rooms may still be available but not guaranteed at the same price.

Hampton Inn Springfield

Travel

We’re so excited to celebrate with you, and we hope you’ll have some time to explore while you’re here! Whether you’re looking for a cozy coffee shop, a spot to grab a great meal, or something fun to do between wedding events, we’ve rounded up a few of our favorite local places.

We LOVE our church! If you are looking for a place to attend Sunday morning, we can recommend no better place. Services are at 8:30am, 10:00am, and 11:30am.

Home Church

A must have visit for the Snyders!

Dunkin'

This coffee shop is right down the street from our venue. It's a great stop for a quick coffee and breakfast or lunch!

Un Mundo Café

This is a sweet bakery and cafe with the best waffles!! 10/10 recommend a visit!

Torte & Iron Cafe

The COhatch is just across the street from our venue and where we had dinner on our second date:) They have various food options inside, but we recommend the burger vendor tucked in the back corner!

COhatch Springfield

This acai bar is next to Winans, just a short walk away. It's relatively new and delicious, so if you're looking for a healthy bite, this is the place to go to!

Blended By J

We both love a good antique find, so we had to include this place! It's one of our favorite places to walk around, and we have found so many things here. There are hundreds of booths, all with different items and themes. If you don't find anything here (which we doubt will happen), there is another similar shop just down the road!

Springfield Antique Center

Cedarville University is where we both attended. It's honestly just a great place to walk around and tour if you want to see where we spent our college years!

Cedarville University

We love shopping for records! This shop is in a quirky town in between Springfield and Cedarville. Walking around the town is a great way to spend a few hours in the morning or afternoon, and this record shop is a must visit if you go!

Toxic Beauty Records

This restaurant is known for their pancakes being bigger than their plates! Their menu is home cooking themed, and it's just a cozy place to grab a meal.

Historic Clifton Mill

The Greene is an outdoor shopping center a town away in Beavercreek, OH. They have tons of shops to peruse, and it's always just fun to walk around!

The Greene

A great specialty coffee shop and roastery in Beavercreek, OH. We recommend trying one of their pourovers!

Payton & Allie