Barb & Bob

Barb and Bob were married Saturday at the charming Country Bluff Wedding Chapel just outside of Baraboo, a refurbished 1882 church now used exclusively for weddings.

I shot their engagement photos in July and knew they would be a fun, relaxed couple – and that their marriage was one not only of two people who love and respect each other, but a marriage of two families.

Barb is a strong and creative mother who orchestrated every little detail of the wedding herself, from tying the ribbons on the programs to the making the cakes. Yes, the cakes. She pulled it off with grace and made it look effortless.

Here she is tying Bob’s parents’ own delicate wedding bands onto her bouquet, for her “something old.” Such a neat idea.

Barb is tall and has an amazing figure, and she pulled off these shoes like nobody’s business.

This little guy, by comparison, was considerably less happy to have his shoes put on – even though they were Chuck Taylors!

Barb was so busy getting everything else ready for the big day that she forgot to buy the veil she had picked out. An hour before the wedding she rushed down to Specially Hers in downtown Baraboo, where she had bought her stunning dress, and they hooked her up. While having her dress laced up, Barb looked in the mirror and said, “I kinda feel pretty.” So sweet.

They packed every pew with people who loved and supported them through their journey to this day. The ceremony was intimate and beautiful.

The mothers and grandmas were having way too much fun pelting the newlyweds with rice.

I snapped this one quickly and without flash while Barb was being bustled at the reception. The exposure wasn’t perfect… the subject was. She looks so old Hollywood.

The party was at the Baraboo Arts Banquet Hall, a refurbished Ringling Brothers building along the Baraboo River. Barb and her family decorated the entire space and it was gorgeous.

Barb surprised Bob with a groom’s cake decorated like the Jeep he’s had since high school. That woman was a SuperBride.

Barb’s dad gave an emotional toast honoring not only the newlyweds, but all three of his children and their spouses and reminding them that marriage takes work, and they are nothing without each other.

The couple hired Universal Sound, a Madison-area band, to play live music at the wedding reception. They rocked everything from Bob Seger to Johnny Cash and got the little kids, the teenagers and the grandparents out on the dance floor – and kept them there. Here Bob takes a turn with his spunky mother.

In the matron of honor’s speech about the depth of love between a husband and wife, she said, “Everyone deserves to be with someone who thinks you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to them.”

Barb and Bob, thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of your day, and congratulations on finding the person who knows you’re the best thing that ever happened to them.