Minnesota Renaissance Festival / Mid-America Festivals

Wedding Day

Ceremony

Cocktail Hour And Weapons Demonstation

Reception

Our Wedding

We were both young when I first saw you

<a href="https://www.theknot.com/us/shylie-burleson-and-drew-mares-aug-2024/love-story-shylie-s-version" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Love Story (Shylie's Version)</a>

<a href="https://www.theknot.com/us/shylie-burleson-and-drew-mares-aug-2024/love-story-drew-s-version" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Love Story (Drew's Version)</a>

Our Story

For our one year anniversary I made a playlist to tell our love story called "This Tornado Loves You" and Drew made me a website to tell me why they love me titled "Yellow Daydream". I think that can sum us up pretty quickly, but if you want the long version: We met in college. We hung out with a big group of friends every Monday night, we went on walks, piled into a car to go to taco bell, and drove around all night long. In the first year that I knew Drew I got to know a lot about them. Their drive for success, their love of problem solving, and their rather abhorrent taste in EDM. When 2019 rolled around, it was a hard year. This is a wedding website, so I won't say too much about all that; however, I will say I only came out of with hope because of Drew. I felt very isolated, far from my family and like no one really got what was going on. Drew noticed and they started to reach out. They helped me finish my homework, stayed up with me when we both couldn't sleep, walked with me to breakfast, and listened to me go on and on about the cultural significance of Taylor Swift. They came to my best ever 5k race and cheered me on every lap. Drew brought me to tour my first apartment when no one else could, they drove to a coffee shop just to give me someone to talk to after a person was mean to me. They helped me up the stairs after a particularly bad practice, pushed the elevator button so my grandmother could see my dorm, and bought me crunchy peanut butter with their Hamline DB. (Declining Balance, it's another way they took our money so we could only spend it on campus.) Then it was my 20th birthday, and as some of you know I lost a friend in 2019. Her birthday is the day before mine. I told Drew how hard her first birthday after she was gone would be. They invited me to their dorm on her birthday and when I arrived I found Drew and our friends decorating their dorm in my favorite color: Yellow. I'm not sure where in all of that I realised I loved them, and way more than just my best friend. They asked to go on a road trip with some friends, they said "I want to do /something/ this summer, have some kind of memories." So I started planning out routes, decided Portland and Seattle were our best bet, and booking camp sites. We chose to drive 24 hours straight, rotating drivers and we'd leave at night to hit the mountains during daylight. This trip proved to not only be an amazing memory, the most chaotic two weeks of my life, and the first time I hallucinated due to exhaustion; but also the moment we'd finally crash into each other. Our first real kiss was in Boring, OR. Our first dance was in Portland. Our first fight in Seattle, and by the time we got to Minneapolis we knew this was something special. Drew went to Florida, I texted them until 5 in the morning every day, and put their return date on my calendar in big red letters. To be honest with you, the day Drew was supposed to get into town I sat at a park they were going to drive past for four hours before giving up. I went home with a sunburn on my cheeks and a chest full of butterflies. They were late. Like five hours late. They called once they were settled and asked if I wanted to get food. I walked over, playing "Gorgeous" by Taylor Swift, and stood outside their door for another 20 minutes because I refused to knock. I couldn't imagine being anxious around Drew, my best friend who I told everything. But right now? I was outside the door of Drew, the person I kissed in Oregon. The person I can't stop thinking about. They finally let me in and we decided to go to Pizza Luce. When I tell you this was the most awkward first date I had ever been on, I truly mean that. We were sat in a corner booth and I chose to sit on the end and Drew? Drew chose to sit kiddy corner from me. I think I texted my mom and told her it was going horribly. She told me to calm down and have a mozzarella stick. Finally I started talking about drama at Caribou coffee, my boss thought I had quit when I went on vacation and it.. .well it was just a whole thing. By the end we were laughing and teasing each other and they asked to kiss me. They leaned over the table and spilled water all over us. Drew came to what would turn out to be my last cross country meets, we walked home from classes and went to parties. Drew and I both got new roommates, two lovely people who are now with us in our wedding party, and Drew was gifted a cat by my little sibling, Cas. (It was more foisted upon them). After graduation, we moved into an adorable apartment, where Drew's motorcycle and phone both got stolen. We also got another cat, making us a family of five, including my old man cat Sherlock. I accidentally became a housing advocate, I thought I was applying to be a home insurance worker. Drew got an impressive position right out of college that they've progressed in and still work at today. We started playing DnD with the most supportive, loving, funny and ridiculous group of people who are generously standing with us on our wedding day. We started hanging out until late at night on Mondays again. My childhood best friend and lifer was finally able to hang out with our favorite Minnesotans and we found a long lost friend at Doc Martens. Eventually we became a silly little family, celebrated lovely birthdays together and supported each other through heartache. Drew and I found that the most loving and caring people in your life are the ones who send pointless snapchats to a group chat for two hours straight, who wear costumes to parties just because we asked, and walk around the lake with us and discuss everything that sits heavy on our hearts. I'm proud to say that along with my little brother, this family we built will be standing with us on this important day. We moved again, I proposed in a night club and then again at home with candles and music and that episode of friends where Monica and Chandler get engaged. I got a new job, this time on purpose working with people to become housed, and we got a puppy. After two years of planning, hiccups, venue changes, and saving we are happy to share the next milestone with you. We go to the Renaissance Festival every summer, got our engagement photos there, and now this is where we will say forever. Every single one of you was with us for parts of our journey and I'm so glad you'll be here for this one too. Thank you.

This Tornado Loves You

Love Story (Shylie's Version)

Trying to put memories onto paper so bare with me on what I'm sure will be a rambly mess criss-crossing through time, stories, and events. But hey the beginning is as good a place to start as any right? The first time I saw Shylie we were supposed to be reading our 'common read' book. Part of Hamline's plan to give students and faculty something to discuss together. They were sitting at their desk in the corner of the room, legs criss cross applesauce on their chair, taking this book waaaaay too seriously. Our paths would cross seldomly that first semester of college but at one point I saw them in the dining hall and asked if I could give them a hug. Their abrupt 'No' shocked me. Who didn't want a hug from little ol' me? At the time I honestly thought they didn't like me, maybe I had offended them in some way, maybe I was too uncool, maybe I had cooties? Maybe they were just anxious and I was overthinking it. I got a job working at the little grocery store on campus and Monday night's were a regular part of my schedule. Soon I started seeing Shylie every week and one day that winter I made a joke about buying a scarf to walk back in the snow. They took off theirs and placed it around my neck, saying I had to come drop it off at their dorm once my shift was over. I wore it while I worked even though I was inside, when I went to drop it off I was met with a room full of people hanging out being hooligans. Turns out Monday nights were a regular thing for them and soon it became a regular thing for me too. I always thought Shylie was cute and I enjoyed talking to them but they had a boyfriend and I never thought to much about it. I remember at one point when FMK had come back in style again I purposely didn't choose them for anything so as not to give anything away (which they took great offense too). We talked more and more and our friendship continued to grow. At one point I was foolish enough to believe that my crush had passed but in hindsight there was dozens if not more of those little moments. I would do something a little out of the norm or skirt around answering a question. I wouldn't even realize I was doing it sometimes but somewhere deep down I knew that crush wasn't gone. It really should've hit me sooner, especially given the little bit of glee I would get every time I saw their name on my phone. But alas I maintained my obliviousness and never managed to put it together. I can't speak to what was going in Shylie's head through all of that, but they've told me stories of their own little moments. It seemed we were just orbiting around each other. Dancing around something we both felt but never really knew. I don't want to overlap with their story too much as my writing could never standup. And guess what it's my story so I'mma skip ahead and make you read theirs for the good part! But after the road trip I don't know, everything was just easy. Week after week it just made sense. Before I knew it we were moving in together. It seemed like no time had past at all and till this day it still kind of feels like that. My routine became theirs and theirs became mine. When I look back at individual moments that happened years ago, all of a sudden I realize just how long we've been together. Being in a friend group of anthropologists it was always a running joke that time was fake and I believe it. There's no way I could've made so many memories in this relationship if time passed the way it's supposed too. I already feel like I've had enough good moments to last a life time, and there is no one I would rather be with to make enough to fill 800 more. When I picture the rest of my life I only see them. I don't know where we're going, but I know that as long as we're together everything will work out alright.

Rêve Juane

Love Story (Drew's Version)

Photos

Wedding Fairies

We wanted to honor each individual in our wedding party with a title that reflects one of the many qualities they have brought to our lives. We also asked them to pick attire that reflected their individuality, which is what we love them for.

Eren Schnell

Stacy Tido

Kallie Baldwin

Lydia Johnson

Hannah Schatz

Ray Cannard

Vaughan Johnson

Tosh Allsop

Jacob Hartman

Gabriel King

Wedding Party

Q + A

How Do I get There?

If you enter `3525 145th St W Shakopee, MN 55379-8944` into the gps of your choice it should take you to the edge of the Festival grounds. From there there will be signs pointing you in the direction of the parking lot. Once in the parking lot you should be able to drive all the way up to the front of the King's Gate. If a gps isn't your vibe follow 169 South towards Mankato. The festival entrance is 3 mile south of Hwy 41

Shylie & Drew

Shylie & Drew

Wedding Party

Wedding Fairies