Rehearsal Dinner

Craftwood Peak by Wedgewood Weddings

Wedding Day

Our Wedding

It all started with...

Now, I know what you’re thinking, why on earth does this story start at a liquor store? Well, on a cold December night in 2020, that’s exactly where Jake and Val bumped into each other making that the beginning of their great adventure.That evening sparked what Jake would later describe as “a long game of chase.” Val was home from college for Christmas break, and soon she’d be heading back to Grand Junction. Still, from that night on, Jake and Val talked every single day. Val remembers telling her best friend Hailey (yes, the same Hailey who’s now one of her bridesmaids) that she really liked Jake but wasn’t sure if it would actually work out. Spoiler alert: she couldn’t have been more wrong. As soon as Val graduated and moved back to Colorado Springs, Jake knew it was time to make his move. He asked her to hang out, and from that moment on, they were practically inseparable.Then came a twist...Jake accepted a job in Chicago. They both agreed that long distance “just wasn’t going to work,” and decided to stay just friends.Yeah… right.Despite the distance, they still talked every single day, andthe feelings between them only grew stronger. Until one night, Val couldn’t hold it in anymore. She told Jake she loved him. Yep, before they were even officially dating.Jake was shocked, not because he didn’t feel the same, but because he had this grand plan to come home from Chicago and profess his love first. Val, unintentionally, beat him to it.When Jake finally came home, he asked Val to be his girlfriend. And she said… no. (We know. We’re all confused, too.) Val swears it made sense at the time. Jake was heading back to Chicago for ten days, and she didn’t think a long-distance relationship for ten whole days would work. She admits now how ridiculous that was. Thankfully, she came to her senses. The day before Jake left, she asked him to be her boyfriend, just three days after turning him down. And, of course, he said yes.The rest, as they say, is history.After moving in together just eight months in, adopting their sweet cat Milk a year later, and then adding the final piece to their family puzzle, Millie, two and a half years down the road, Jake and Val’s story has been anything but ordinary, but every step has been full of laughter, love, and a little bit of chaos.They’ve always said they were two crazy kids in love, and now, they’re two soulmates who can’t wait to spend forever together. Because truly, marrying your best friend is the greatest dream come true.

Valerie & Jacob

Valerie & Jacob

V&J