David and Michaelas McCall Idaho Wedding Story…..
Last winter was particularly snowy in the northwest. There were still piles of snow lingering around the Airbnb David & Michaela rented for their wedding in late May. The snow piles seemed fitting because snow had been an element they wanted to include in their engagement photos. I met Michaela and David for the first time last winter for their engagement photos in McCall. There had been a record snowfall the day before Super Bowl Sunday and instead of watching the game we went snowshoeing in Ponderosa State Park.
Getting married outside in May can be a gamble. The week leading up to David and Michaela’s wedding was rainy but their wedding day dawned with a beautiful overcast sky. One of the biggest questions I get from couples is ‘what do we do if it rains? – my response is…. It’s your wedding day! Embrace what it has to offer and don’t stress about it. Besides, rain on your wedding day is supposed to mean good luck!
I arrived at Moonridge Cabin in McCall in the morning and helped with some last minute setup for the ceremony location. The house they rented sat next to a stand of pine trees and they decorated the area with dreamcatchers Michaela had made over the winter. After finishing setup David and Michaela headed inside to get ready.
The Moonridge Cabin Airbnb was perfect for getting ready in because it had a large master suite for the girls and several smaller rooms upstairs for the guys. David made a crystal necklace to give Michaela during their ‘first look’. David and his son had matching blue suits and watching them get ready together was one of the sweetest things I have witnessed during a wedding day. David and Michaela opted to not see each other before their ceremony, so the ‘first look’ was done through a door off the master suite.
The Guys
The Gals
Their Moonridge Cabin Wedding Details
Every detail of Michaela and David’s intimate wedding in McCall was intentional and a representation of their love and what was important to them. They only included traditions in their wedding that they valued. They didn’t do a first dance because it wasn’t them. They didn’t cut a cake or throw flowers because they didn’t care about these traditions. Instead, they incorporated vows to David’s son in their ceremony, burnt sage to purify the energy around them before promising to love and honor each other, performed an AcroYoga routine for their first dance and ate milk n’ cookies in place of a cake.
Their first Dance
The AcroYoga routine David and Michaela performed in place of a traditional first dance was amazing. They spent over a year practicing it and kept it a secret from their friends and family because they wanted to surplice them.
Their Adventure
An hour before sunset the lightning becomes long and even with soft backlighting. This is the ideal time to take couple portraits, so we headed to the pine trees to take a few where they were married. We didn’t linger long with couple photos because David and Michaela had opted for an after wedding adventure session on Payette Lake the next day. Even if you are doing a wedding ‘after session’ it’s still important to grab a few couples pictures the day of your wedding.
Vendors
Venue: Moonridge Cabin Florals: Farm to Market Floral Design Rings: Precious Metal Arts Catering: Incahoots BBQ & Catoring Officiant: Reverend Teeoka
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