From Friendship to Forever: Stephanie and Ben’s Wedding Journey

March 2024 | Celebration Stories, Planning Insights

Love at the Magnificent Meadows of Andover Barn | 6.25.22

Love Story

The road to Stephanie and Ben’s wedding was an adventure in every sense of the word! You could say it started in 2010, when Stephanie moved to Massachusetts and joined an ultimate frisbee team from Worcester, befriending Ben and other recent Clark University alumni. Friendships that lasted even after she moved to Sweden a few months later.

Or it could have started in 2012, when Stephanie moved back to Massachusetts, and after rekindling their friendship, both she and Ben realized that their feelings ran a little deeper.

Their relationship only continued to grow through the years. Individual friends became mutual friends. Memories were made in the White Mountains, New York, New Orleans, Ireland, Vietnam, and beyond. Steph learned more about curling than she ever thought possible, Ben learned that chemical engineering really is just as boring as he thought. Both learned how difficult it can be to truly share a home with another person; especially when you throw a global pandemic and two spoiled cats into the mix.

It’s hard to say when it all started. But almost ten years later, the two couldn’t imagine spending the rest of the adventure with anyone else.

Engagement

Once COVID travel restrictions began loosening, the weather started turning, and they got their vaccines, Ben and Stephanie were eager to get back out in the world. Stephanie couldn’t wait to explore the outdoors, while Ben had some bigger ideas in mind. Ideas that involved a quick call to Stephanie’s father in Delaware.

May 2021, they booked a long weekend in Vermont at a small lake cabin that was near one of their favorite breweries. There, they cooked over a charcoal grill, read books on the dock, kayaked on the lake, and celebrated the chance to escape the isolation of COVID lockdown. While watching the sun set over the lake, Ben asked Stephanie to marry him. She didn’t even have to think about her response. It was time to start wedding planning!

Wedding Planning

While planning a wedding is never easy, it’s even more difficult when three years worth of weddings are condensed into a single year. While this clearly made it more challenging to find vendors available for the wedding date, by forcing the couple to book vendors earlier than usual, they were able to have a bit more bandwidth later in the process to deal with the inevitable surprises.

The Wedding Venue

As members of two large families, Ben and Steph both wanted a venue that could handle a large guest list (with a variety of mobility accommodations) while still reflecting their mutual love for the outdoors. They ultimately fell in love with the Andover Barn for its relative proximity to the Manchester airport and rustic elegance and character.

An Unforgettable Moment

Some memorable parts of their wedding day included parent dances and the first look. It’s hard to beat sharing a special moment with a parent, or seeing each other and feeling nothing but excitement for your life together! But there was one that beat those out. The best part of the wedding day, according to Stephanie and Ben, was:

“that moment when you first look into each other’s eyes after your first kiss as a married couple!”