1. Real Weddings

Angela & Sean: A Formal Wedding in Ridgeland, MS

Reunited after ten years, high school sweethearts Angela and Sean celebrated love anew with a traditional Catholic ceremony and waterfront reception i

Reunited after ten years, high school sweethearts Angela and Sean celebrated love anew with a traditional Catholic ceremony and waterfront reception in their hometown of Jackson. The couple couldn't help but laugh that they'd ended up together after all of these years. The Bride Angela Bria, 27, a graduate student in marketing The Groom Sean Maloney, 30, area manager for a car rental company The Date May 29 Angela and Sean first met and began dating as high schoolers way back in 1992. Shortly after Sean graduated, Angela (who was still a sophomore) moved with her family to Chicago while Sean stayed in Mississippi. The stress of a long distance relationship caused the young couple to call it quits. On a trip back to Mississippi a decade later, however, destiny had its way and Angela and Sean found themselves reunited at a party in Jackson. Soon enough, Angela decided to pack up her things in Chicago and move back to her home state! Having made her move, Angela says she knew Sean was going to propose soon and even picked out her dream ring. Even though she was anticipating the proposal, Sean still managed to catch her off guard. After celebrating her birthday at a bar with friends, Angela arrived home to find Frank Sinatra playing and a trail of rose petals from the front door to the bed. I started freaking out, Angela admits. What wasn't going to be a surprise totally surprised me! After reciting a poem he had written for her, Sean got down on his knee and asked her to be his wife. Of course, Angela says, I couldn't see a thing through those tears! But she did manage to say yes, and soon the couple began planning a hometown wedding.

The Couple
The Groom's Cake
Naturally, Angela and Sean kicked off the celebration, sharing a first dance to Come What May from Moulin Rouge.
At the end of the reception, Angela and Sean set sail, bidding their guests farewell from a specially decorated boat. It was wonderful, recalls Angela. I felt like part of the royal family.
Choosing a site for their traditional Catholic ceremony was a snap: Angela and Sean were married at the church where both had been baptized, and where both of their parents got married! Two soloists and the church organist provided traditional sacred music for the ceremony, which included a beautiful duet rendition of The Prayer.
The Couple
A four-tier Italian buttercream bride's cake and a three-tier chocolate ganache-covered groom's cake were the perfect after-dinner treats to satisfy everyone's sweet tooth. That cake was too fabulous to chance a year of freezer burn -- we ate our top tier on our three month anniversary! Angela says.