Little Flower Barn

Wedding Day

Ceremony

Cocktail Hour

Reception

Our Wedding

When I had to start looking for a job while attending college, there was nothing in my mind telling me that it would fun to work at a gas station. Despite my best efforts, I ended up at EZ Mart in Big Rapids with a part time job &amp; a bright red shirt. The air smelled of spilled gas &amp; three hour old pizza, however, there was one thing in particular that held my attention; the assistant manager. When Josh worked, it felt as though the environment of the gas station was lighter, more fun &amp; energetic (don't worry, he made sure we got out work done too)! I specifically remember one day in particular where I was watching him spread toppings on a pizza. It was the kind of movement that was effortless, as if he had done it a hundred times. As he moved, he held a conversation with me &amp; shared details from his personal life, but not in a direct sort of way, more like he was speaking passively, in a comfortable "we've known each other for a lifetime" sort of way. He spoke about his love for animals, experiences that were hard, &amp; relationships with people in his life. As we worked alongside each other, we shared things with one another that most of our friends probably didn't know. It was in this moment, that I thought in my head, "I'm going to marry this man someday." Unfortunately, at that time, we remained strictly co-workers. One year after I quit at EZ Mart, I was just returning home from a summer vacation. I was freshly tan &amp; posted the vacation memories on social media. The man who I hadn't talked to in over a year (we lost touch after we stopped working together) had sent me a direct message. Meme's were our style of communication &amp; I made every excuse to keep the conversation going (I even googled memes to make him think I was funny). Our first date was filled with poorly executed rounds of Mortal Combat (mainly on my part). Despite my less than impressive video game skills, he asked for a second date, a third &amp; a fourth. Before we knew it, we were inseparable &amp; on our way to becoming the biggest part of each others lives. Over the last four years, we have merged our lives, our friendships &amp; our families. We have three beautiful fur babies &amp; a home in Greenville. We have supported each other in building professional careers &amp; have built a beautiful life together in vulnerability, laughter &amp; commitment. We look forward to celebrating our union with you on our special day!

The Love - Sara's Version

Going to college at Ferris &amp; moving to a new city, I never knew what kind of experiences it would bring. The only plans I had were; finish college, live with a buddy from my hometown, &amp; find a job to get me through college. My roommate was working at EZ Mart &amp; within two days had gotten me job there as well. Who knew that decision &amp; a place like that would set my life on a new path? When Sara got hired, my first impression was that she was bossy, sassy &amp; cute with a personality that caught me off guard, it was attractive. We remained friends &amp; inevitably as time passed, she neared ending her employment to focus on school. I knew at that point, she liked me, but wasn't in a position to take on a relationship at that point in my life. Over the next year, I remember hoping that she would walk back into EZ Mart &amp; we could chat like we used to &amp; reconnect. I admired her as I continued to keep up with her life over social media &amp; found myself looking through her recently uploaded summer vacation pictures one day. I thought "fuck it, i'll take the risk looking creepy" &amp; reached out to ask if she wanted to hangout. Ironically, following our first date, she was set to leave the country for 10 days &amp; would not have internet connection. That was the first time I remember feeling hopeful that she would make it back to me. Thankfully, she returned home, which led to more dates &amp; us eventually falling in love with each other. I fell for the way that she spent her time intentionally with me, her personality, her heart, her compassion, &amp; her kindness. I knew that a person with this combination of traits was the someone that I wanted to spend time with &amp; someone that I wanted in a life partner. She never hesitated to learn about things that interested me (nerdy stuff) &amp; would even read books about how to have discussions that she had never had (Dungeons &amp; Dragons). Sara has an ability to make you feel seen for ways that make you special &amp; that character trait went beyond me. I saw her speak for people that could not speak for themselves, show empathy towards others &amp; become passionate about her life's work. So many moments led to the ultimate feeling of knowing that this was going to be the woman I married. We eventually moved in together (yes, she insisted on re-arranging), adopted two dogs &amp; bought a home together. If you know anything about Sara, you know it's hard to keep anything hidden from her so when she suggested that we take fall pictures at a location in the UP, I knew that was my chance. She had a slight suspicion, but she would have never guessed that I had bought a ring &amp; had been holding onto it since 2020. As we hiked a mountain &amp; set up a blanket to watch the sunrise, I got down on one knee &amp; asked her to marry me. Spoiler... she said yes &amp; since then, we began dreaming of what our life's together will hold. There are so many non-conventional elements to our love story &amp; I hope that even in a small way, you were able to get a glimpse into the journey of finding the love of my life.

Sara & Joshua

Sara & Joshua

S&J

Wedding Day

4:30 PM–5:00 PM

Ceremony

5:00 PM–6:00 PM

Cocktail Hour

6:00 PM–12:00 AM

Reception