We are so excited to share our real bride Maile and her husband Patrick’s fall wedding day at Holy Trinity and reception at Mildale Farm! You can tell how much they enjoyed their day by the smiles on their faces, but take a moment to read their sweet story and a little about their wedding day and we know you’ll be smiling as well!
From the bride:
We met exactly ONE time while in college. It was my freshman year and his junior year and we were in the student section of K-State’s Bill Snyder Family Stadium (GO CATS!) My Dad and I were Wabashing away together when all of a sudden we caught glimpse that a very cute (and intoxicated) guy behind us was wearing a Duck’s Unlimited logo on his purple polo shirt. DU is a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and upland habitats. We both came from avid hunting families and grew up deeply appreciating the outdoors. So upon seeing Patrick in his polo, my Dad and I immediately complimented him on it. He was quick to thank us and proudly told us he was K-State’s chairman for the collegiate chapter. From that point, we spent most of the remainder of the game swapping hunting stories and less time focused on the actual game in front of us. The Cats were clearly dominating, so it was worth it. By the end of the game, I was focused again on watching the Cats game and little did I know, my Dad gave out his phone number to Pat asking him to come join some Kansas City hunts if he needed some local connections being that we were both from KC. Patrick must have known from the very beginning we were meant to be because he held onto that phone number for 5 ½ years until we saw each other again.
We both finished the rest of college without meeting again (which is very surprising considering we had many mutual friends come to find out). While Patrick was moving around the country every few years with his company, Bartlett, but hoping to come back home to KC, I was in KC eagerly seeking jobs outside of the Midwest. Out of the clear blue sky, Pat Facebook messages me asking if I remember that one time we met in the stands of the football stadium many years ago. After I picked up my jaw off the floor and finished scratching my head, I responded with flooded memories “Yes! I do remember that day!”. From then on, very fun messages were exchanged until Pat mustered up the courage, “So how long do we have to Facebook message until I can ask for your phone number?” I foolishly chickened out and said I wasn’t ready to date but wanted to remain friends and gave the typical “it’s not you, it’s me” kind of line. *FACE PALM, MAILE* A few months pass and New Years rolls around. The other cliché line fills me and “new year, new me” never felt more real! I knew the ball was in my court, so I reached back out and with the help of a few friends, said “I think it’s been long enough… You still want that number?” To my surprise, he thankfully still did want the number and I’ll never forget I knew his sarcasm and confidence with his first text to me being “That wasn’t so hard now, was it?”
The following week we went on our first date immediately after work, closed down Ale House in Westport, KC until the manager told us we had to leave! (Wild Monday, right?) The next date we spent hunting together and from then on – my heart was already screaming at me that all the waiting was over!
We dated for 7 months and 7 days before Patrick asked me the best question I’ve ever been asked in a field of clovers beside red roses, our pup, and the beautiful property my family owns which holds many early memories of ours. While I would have been the first to say quick love stories are crazy, now I believe the crazy kind of love is what we all secretly dream of in our hearts! God used our unfolding story as a way of reminding me that time is just a constraint we create ourselves. True love knows no time and has no bounds. After many tears and hugs, we left the back field we had ventured to and headed back towards the entrance of the property where our bonfire pit and hangout area is for a quiet dinner we preplanned together. Little did I know all of our friends and family were there waiting for us when we turned the corner of the field! I sobbed all over again seeing all of our loved ones and basically squealed when I see my best friend who lived in Virginia at the time come running down the hill! It was a perfect night that I will never forget!
With over 200 of our closest friends and family, we celebrated the covenant of marriage we pledged on 10.20.2018 in my home church, Holy Trinity. October was an exceptionally rainy month last year and we were lucky to avoid all bad and cold weather that particular weekend! I have found it so ironically hilarious that the last few days leading up to the wedding, my anxiousness dropped off to nearly nothing! Waking up on the wedding day, it was PURE EXCITEMENT.
If you’re a bride-to-be, remember that something will go wrong. You always hope you’ve planned for every possible situation, but there will always be something – which you hope is small – that you can’t avoid. For me, most of the wedding day hiccups were pretty hilarious in hind-sight. We couldn’t find my hair florals which was honestly the biggest bummer of the day – so that’s saying something GREAT when it’s a small thing like that! All our vendors were total rockstars, which helped a ton. While setting up, our DJ accidentally went through the wrong door into the reception which we had blocked off with a light curtain and a wooden sign that was draped over it. When he came in, he accidentally broke the pvc pipe which held it together (an easy fix, thanks family for your sneaky, quick work!). When the pipe broke he thought he broke a water pipe or something more serious. He immediately called my aunt, my day-of coordinator, and she was so scared that there really was a pipe break, she zoomed in her car up to the barn from the Estate House where the cocktail hour was being prepared and she accidentally backed into our cocktail hour barn door sign and cracked it. We just say it gave it more character. SO – take the good, the bad, the funny, and the unplanned in on your big day – those are always the best moments!
Other big moments of the day were when my Maid of Honor snagged a few quick moments with me before we all walked into the ceremony to say some private, impromptu prayers together and during the reception, my now-husband picked me up and put me on his shoulders to keep the partying at an all-time-high.
Then, we did a private “last dance” while our guests prepared outside for our sparkler exit out of the barn. We began dancing to “Yours” by Russel Dickerson and immediately, the both of us pulled each other close, closed our eyes, and started bawling the happiest tears we’ve ever shed. It all just boiled over and we were truly alone for the first time after saying “I Do”. (Thankfully not completely alone, because now we have incredible photos and video of the moment.) Once we were done, we looked at each other and said “Ok, let’s do it. Let’s send this party off. WE’RE FREAKING MARRIED!” and we ran hand-in-hand through the sparklers and down the hill to the Estate House on the property. Before heading to the couples’ suite, we took one last look up to the barn where music was still playing, and people were starting to wrap up for the night, we watched it all unfold and Patrick said “we just threw one h*ll of a party.”
Maile and Patrick
October 20, 2018
Venue for Ceremony: Holy Trinity Catholic Church
Venue for Reception: Mildale Farm
Mikaella Bridal Style #2154
Veil was “something borrowed” from Maile’s sister-in-law Amy
Maile wore her grandmother’s opal and diamond ring and the diamonds in her wedding band are from her mother’s original engagement ring
Hair & Make-up:
Hair – Jordan Bentler (wife of best man)
Make-up – Ciera Lynn Beauty
Photography & Videography: Anecdotally Yours
Floral – Elizabeth McKenzie
DJ and Photobooth – Icon Event Group
Transportation – Showtime (party bus)
Here are a few other unique and thoughtful details that Maile and Patrick included in their wedding day – as shared by Maile!
- Our wedding hashtag was #MellardsFlyTogether because well… we hunt and Patrick’s last name is Mellard which is very similar to “Mallard” which is one of the most common types of waterfowl ducks.
- We used various feathers subtly throughout our floral arrangements, boutonnieres, and bouquets to show a hint of our outdoor passion.
- I had one pink carnation placed in my bouquet as a nod to my sorority’s flower and wrapped around the handle of my bouquet was my grandmother’s wedding dress lace.
- The door used for our table placement cards was taken off my parents’ Desoto property where Patrick and I got engaged!
- We had camo koozies that said “The hunt is over but the adventure is just beginning!” Cheesy and we know it!!
- The groom’s cake was 100% hunting themed, complete with a black silhouette of our hunting lab, Lexi, and my grandfather’s hand-painted Mallard decoy decoration.
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