Kelsey and Dustin Traxel Wedding Story
Wedding Date
Friday, April 12, 2019
Our big day took place on a snowy day in mid April, 2019. We took a gamble on the North Dakota weather and the ND weather won; but it made for beautiful pictures and we wouldn't change a thing. We wanted a more intimate feel for our wedding day; so we had a 6:30 pm ceremony at Evangel in Bismarck. Immediately following our ceremony we headed to the Burleigh County 4H Building where we had a variety of appetizers; including Nardello's pizza, desserts, a photobooth, and we danced the night away with our nearly 400 guests who braved the snow to celebrate with us!
photos by Ben Gumeringer Photography
How We Met
One day I got a random facebook friend request and message from a guy who I had several mutual friends with, but didn't remember meeting. I accepted since I figured we probably met at one point and I just didn't remember. He sent me a message stating how he was adding people because his dirtbike recently got stolen (which it did) and he was looking for people that might know something about it. I was completely offended as I didn't know anything about dirtbikes, let alone would I ever steal one. Once he kept talking to me the real story came out; one of our mutual friends had told him about me and he wanted to get together for coffee. After several declines; I finally accepted the offer to go to coffee and the rest is history.
Planning for Our Day
We got engaged on October 6th, 2018 and immediately after got to work on planning our big day. We knew we wanted a short engagement and I am hear to tell you planning a wedding in 6 months is totally possible. The first thing we did was decide where we wanted our recpetion and cordinated the avaliable dates with what our church also had avaliable. Once those two things were locked in; we hired a photographer and had our engagement pictures taken very shortly after. Nearly every vendor I wanted to book had our date avaliable and it all worked out very easily; almost too easily. I attended the Bisman Bridal show shortly after we got engaged where I got a lot of good ideas; and after being apart of several weddings in the past, I had a pretty good idea of what I did and did not want.
Hint for Brides
My best advice for brides to be is to not get caught up in everything at once. Make a list of all the things you want and focus on one task per day. Also don't be afraid to ask for help! Your friends and family want to help you. I had a friend that is a stay at home mom, who offered to call places and get price estimates and vendor avalibilty for me; that was HUGE! Planning a wedding isn't as glamourous as it's portrayed to be. Remember that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and that you need to remember to soak it all up. Don't get so caught up in the "busy" that you forget to take in all the greatness that is also happening. Remember at the end of the day only you knew every single detail, so if something doesn't go or look quite right; only you know. Focus on enjoying the day and don't get caught up in the details.