Until the End of Time

by Michelle Drewek

 

Lauren and Michael were professional friends for a few years before dating. As athletic trainers, Lauren for Marquette University and Michael for the Green Bay Packers, they remained in contact to bounce ideas off one another. This ultimately led to them planning to go back to Physical Therapy schooling together. After finally asking Lauren on a date, they knew that what they had in front of them was so much more than a friendship.

 

Michael originally planned to propose in May, but as soon as he got the ring he couldn’t wait and proposed a month earlier instead. He picked up Lauren from work and on their front door was an envelope. Inside was a note that prompted her to open the door. On their floor were individual roses with a card at each one with quotes from their favorite songs. The last rose was in a vase, and when she turned around Michael was on one knee.

“Growing up you always think that choosing who you are going to marry and deciding to get married is supposed to be the biggest decision of your life,” Michael reflects. “You’re supposed to sit there and debate it, and weigh all the pros and the cons. I discovered it’s actually the opposite. It was the easiest decision because there was no debate. I was 100% sure that if this wasn’t it then I don’t know what would be.”

Not wanting to wait long to become husband and wife, the couple planned their wedding day for just over a year from the day of the proposal. With how busy they both were, they knew they needed to enlist the help of an expert. Once they found David Caruso and his team at Dynamic Events, they knew they were in the best hands.

“David Caruso and his team were incredible!” Lauren elates. “There was no way we could have pulled off something like what David did. It was such a seamless process and he did an amazing job of selecting vendors and putting together a wedding that was a true representation of who we were.”

Their wedding theme was modern vintage, an experience that David captured by envisioning an evening in a garden. Beautiful, full flowers were placed throughout the space at the Historic Pritzlaff, with tea light candles hung from the chandelier over the head table.

“For the room, we went with a variety of neutral palettes and used texture to add depth to it,” Lauren describes. “I feel that the flowers truly pulled it all together, and they did a beautiful job building on the neutrals theme with the highlight of these lovely apricot and varying hues of pink peonies. The room came together exquisitely.”

The design also took a cue from the dress Lauren donned. Her Matthew Christopher gown from Zita’s Bridal Salon was lace, but with a modern approach to how it was utilized. It was unique, with just the right amount of elegance for her taste. She complemented the stunning gown with a fingertip length veil that a seamstress added some lace from her dress to, and framed her face with chandelier drop earrings. When Michael saw her at their first look, he was taken away.

One of the most important details for their wedding day was the vow they were going to make to one another. They each made a list of things that were important to them in a marriage and brought them together to come up with their vows together based on those aspects they wrote down. It was the foundation of their relationship that they wanted to promise to each other now and forever.

Following their beautiful union, the newlyweds had their loved ones joined together for good food and music. “We wanted a caterer that could accommodate food allergies, as funny as that sounds,” Lauren laughs. “Lee John did an astounding job making sure everyone would be taken care of. The food was fabulous and full of flavor, which is not always common when you have food allergies! And the music was worth every penny. The Larry King Orchestra are incredible musicians. People are still talking about their performance over a year later.”

Michael and Lauren are also grateful to have had the breathtaking camerawork of Front Room Photography capturing all that went into that day. The couple describes them as “true artists who you really get the feeling of a personalized experience from.” Together, they look back over their photos and videos together with the same twinkle in their eye for each other as the moment they said, “I do.”

“So much went into that day and it all represented us as a couple.” Lauren says. “That’s my biggest piece of advice. Make your wedding what you and your fiancé want it to be. The more genuine the wedding is, the more enjoyable the experience is for both you and your guests. They will know that they were a part of something special.”