A St. Patrick's Day Celebration in the Chicago Suburbs: The Real Wedding of Samantha and John Nolan

After meeting at Eastern Illinois University, mutual friends kept Samantha and John in each other's circles. They were fast friends and began dating shortly after graduating. While they were living in Savannah, Georgia, John decided it was time to propose! He asked Samantha to marry him at a fountain where they spent a lot of time watching the world go by. "The place was and now will always be very special to us," Samantha shares.
 

Since both Samantha and John are very south side Irish, they knew a wedding around St. Patrick's day would be the perfect time to get married. They were able to get a venue and the rest of their vendors booked for March 16th, which they felt was right. Samantha explains, "We knew getting married on March 16th the day before the south side Irish parade was a decision that just made sense for us." With that perfect date set, Samantha and John set their theme as St. Patrick's Day with plenty of green!
 

When they first got engaged, Samantha and John imagined having a big wedding with all the bells and whistles two years from then. However, they quickly learned that planning a wedding back in Illinois while living in North Carolina was very difficult. So, they scrapped their few months of planning to change course. In three weeks, they planned an intimate ceremony in a chapel tucked away in the woods and got married with their closest friends and family.
 

Advice from the Couple

Samantha and John enjoyed their change in wedding planning direction and loved sharing their day with the people who are most special to them. They advise, "Our advice would be to keep it simple and don’t stress out. The day is only about you and your partner."
 

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