EMILY & TIM | Lake Geneva Wisconsin Wedding

Geneva National Resort Wedding in Lake Geneva Wisconsin

Emily and Tim are two of the funniest people we’ve photographed, this leads to nonstop smiles all day! This was the 2nd wedding of our weekend that was a freaking blast to be a part of. Our faces were stuck smiling for days afterward! Their families too were a lot a hoot to be around! We even got stopped by Emily’s Mom to give us both a huge hug as before we left the dance floor. When we leave feeling so much love around our couples we just know that their marriage is going to last!

We couldn’t have asked for better weather on Emily and Tim’s wedding day in Lake Geneva! We first started the day hanging out with the wedding party before heading to their beautiful church ceremony. Then heading to their reception at Geneva National Resort, where they had a classic dinner ending with one of the fullest dance floors we’ve seen!

Now let’s hear the story of the couple!

How did you two meet?

During our first month at Loyola University, we bumped into each other in the stairwell at our dorm and became fast friends. The weekend before our fateful meeting, Emily’s roommate had some friends over for a movie night. Emily was out of town at the time, and Tim kept trying to start a conversation with her roommate over the books, movies, and band posters he liked around their dorm room. At every comment and question he had, he received the same answer: “Oh, that’s Emily’s. You’ll have to talk to her when she gets back.” And so he did. A few months later we had our first date over tea and a chai latte at The Heartland Café, still one of our most treasured Chicago establishments. Almost eight years later, we are married!

Emily, how did Tim pop the question?

After six years of whirlwind adventures together, Tim decided to propose in Ireland. He was spending a month there before he started grad school, and Emily met him for a ten-day road trip along the west coast’s Wild Atlantic Way. Tim tried to propose several times, but seasickness and inclement weather thwarted his plans. Halfway through the trip, we visited the Lake Isle of Innisfree immortalized in W. B. Yeats’s poem of the same name. We planned our hike and arose and went from Sligo, only to find the Slishwood Trail was closed following a forest fire.

Not easily discouraged, we stepped over the caution tape and continued on the secluded trail along the banks of Lough Gill. Three miles into the hike, we came across a clearing with a wooden bench overlooking Innisfree and stopped to take a rest. Tim said, “I have something for you,” and handed Emily a copy of “The Princess Bride.” She flipped open the pages to find a hole had been cut in the center and the ring was inside. On the facing page, the words “Will you marry me?” were underlined. Tim did the whole getting down on one knee thing and asked Emily if he could be her husband so they could keep hanging out forever.

Emily, what do you love most about Tim?

Tim listens to all my crazy ideas and encourages them.

Tim, What do you love most about Emily?

That she’s the only person with whom I can be myself.

What would your perfect Sunday together look like?

Coffee, a record on, making breakfast together, and taking our dog on a hike, followed by a stop at a brewery, preferably with a patio. Ooh, and live music.

What memory stands out most from your wedding day?

Singing our favorite song, “The Weight,” with our wedding band as the finale.

What was the best part of planning your wedding day?

The families coming together and us all getting along (kind of?)

In your own words, describe your day from the night before your wedding to waking up on your first day as MR & MRS!

We had a lovely rehearsal followed by dinner and drinks aboard the Duchess steamboat on Lake Geneva. All our friends and family were waiting for us at the bar back at the hotel, and we cheersed our way til the wee hours, forgetting we had a whole second day to save partying for. We didn’t see each other til Emily was walking down the aisle.

What was the greatest challenge in planning your wedding day? Feel least prepared for? What could you have done without?

The greatest challenge was taking on designing/printing/cutting all of the collateral ourselves, from save the dates to invitations to place cards, menus, Snapchat filters, website, welcome bags, and all the rest. Thanks to my parents and sisters for all the assembly line help!

What personal touches did you add to make your wedding day your own?

We brewed a farmhouse ale for the wedding! It was our first homebrew together. Emily made the labels for that, too. We have a lot of friends who play music, so our groomsman Tom played and sang our first dance, and we joined the band onstage for the big finale. My mom also gave me a clutch made from her wedding dress, with a handkerchief made from her mom’s wedding dress inside!

What are you looking forward to most in your future together?

Traveling; making our home anywhere, and adopting 100 dogs.

What advice do you have for couples planning their wedding day!?

Have your ice cream, and eat it too!

If you could have any superpower what would it be?

Warp-speed thank-you note writing

How do you feel about your decision to go with NATURAL INTUITION PHOTOGRAPHY?

We loved working with Christine and Justin. They are so fun and easy to get along with! Christine and Justin put us at ease and captured us perfectly. They take the most beautiful photos and we are so grateful we have these awesome memories to look back on from the best party ever.

Christine went above and beyond on our wedding day getting ready with the girls, offering to sew a bridesmaid into a dress when the zipper stuck and helping us keep our cool and stay on schedule! True pros!

OTHERS WHO HELPED MAKE THE DAY SO AWESOME!

WEDDING DRESS | Kenneth Winston from Kathryns Bridal

BRIDES SHOES | Kelly & Katie from DSW and KEDS from Rifle Paper Co

GROOMS & GROOMSMAN BOWS | Rifle Paper Co

GROOMS & GROOMSMAN SUITS | Generation Tux

LAKE GENEVA WEDDING FLORIST | Trellis

FATHER DAUGHTER SONG | Brown Eyed Girl & If I had a Million Dollars

FIRST DANCE SONG | Into the Mystic

WEDDING BAND | Bluewater Kings Band,

WEDDING FAVORS | The Cake Lady cookies

WEDDING RECEPTION VENUE IN LAKE GEVENA | Geneva National Resort

ICE CREAM | Purple Door Ice Cream

WEDDING COORDINATOR | Katy Cook from Geneva National Resort

LAKE GENEVA WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER | Natural Intuition Photography