There was no fooling anyone—there was no lemon seed that she sucked up her straw, no too much water that went down the wrong pipe. Logan had simply choked up over Logan on their first date.

The man, Logan said, is worth a few coughs and tears.

During their Northview, Missouri, engagement session with photographer Katie Day, “Josh cuddled, kissed, played with my hair and told me how beautiful I looked,” Logan said. “I told him how impressed I was with his ability to just act natural in front of the camera and not feel awkward or uncomfortable. His reply was, ‘I know how much these mean to you. I want it to be everything you have ever wanted, and I am just showing the camera how I really feel about you.’”

“Did I have a small tear in my eye?” Logan said. “Why, yes! Yes I did. He’s good.”

Logan had some great advice for brides-to-be. Look over her gorgeous engagement session, then check out her advice below.

Logan shared this advice with Pretty Little Weddings readers: “There are always tons of things to cover when planning a wedding, but don’t leave your groom out in the process,” Logan said. “Even if your man doesn’t want to go with you to do all the girly bride things, he would love for you to at least ask him his opinion on things. The most fun I have had during this whole process was when I asked Josh to help me make our centerpieces, and he actually felt involved. Josh was eager to please, just like in our e-session. If they are that willing to get involved and make you happy, then they deserve for this to be equally as special for them.”

The couple wanted to throw a large party, a reception, Maeling said. They discussed the party for minutes until, Maeling said, “we decided to just do it and get married. Nothing glamorous.”

Eight months later, Maeling and Dzuy wed at Malibu’s Calamigos Ranch, “a place that felt away from Los Angeles’ hustle and bustle, but not too far away,” Maeling said. “We wanted to take advantage of the area and keep with same rustic feel, but also incorporate some elements from our Asian traditions. Colors were used to set the theme—red, white and teal as an accent to break it up. We decided each thing as it came and asked, ‘Did we want it Asian or rustic looking?’”

She said, “DIY was part of the feel and look of the wedding so tried to make as many things ourselves.”

The couple crafted their own invitations, using a friend’s letterpress to print their paper and “purchased walnut veneer for backing. The walnut was laser cut with four different logos—double happiness, a tree, wine bottle and rolling pin, then glued to the back of the letterpress and tied a ribbon to finish it off,” Maeling said. “The table numbers were made from two inch by six inch lumber from Home Depot, cut into blocks, sanded and stained. Images were printed from the computer, then cut out, and stenciled.”

Andrew piled their closest friends and families into a bus, whisking them away on the multi-axle vehicle for a day-trip to the wineries of St. Louis, Gina said. After they’d unloaded at one stop, Chandler Hill Vineyards, “he proposed in front of all of the people we love and care about,” Gina said. “It was an absolutely amazing, perfect day.”

For their engagement session with Michelle Huesgen of Untamed Heart Photography, the couple returned to Chandler Hill Vineyards—and added in Busch Wildlife Conservation Area—for photos that Gina described as a little “rustic and country. I wanted our photographs to have a country feel, but still be classic and romantic.”

Gina said the pair fought against a chill as Michelle snapped her photos. So when Michelle handed over a blanket as a prop, Gina instead wrapped the blanket around herself. “It was so cold,” she said, “and Michelle took some really cute, in-the-moment pictures then.”

It seemed like nothing could go right — after losing two florists, my mother was storing more than 200 white flowers in her hot basement, flowers that she herself would put together on our wedding day by filling containers we’d scurried around all week purchasing. A groomsmen was recovering from a serious surgery, and another had missed his flight into town. Construction cones and dirt piles littered our ceremony and reception venue, an unpleasant surprise we discovered just weeks ago. Our linens, purchased online, had arrived with massive stains. And with just three days before the day, I still didn’t have jewelry.

Then my fiance, finally allowed to begin his vacation, joined me in our hometown. And a bridesmaid, after seeing me embrace Michael, made a very astute, calming remark. “I’ve watched you all week,” she said, “and today, with him, you could finally relax. Everything melted away when you were with him.” It was all I needed to hear to remember that everything we were going through didn’t really matter.

So much went wrong, Pretty Little Weddings readers. But the day was so right. And as I sit here trying to recapture our wedding in a few paragraphs for you, that is the message that I want to get across: A wedding day, in and of itself, with or without details or the perfect bouquet or guests that misbehave or linens with grease marks, is special. I married the man I loved and we both, eyes brimming with tears and voices trembling, made promises to each other that mean more than any pretty paper product ever could. Three weeks ago, I needed that reminder — and if you’re reading this and in the throes of planning, perhaps you do, too.

You should also know that the wrongs were made right, through the ingeniousness of my mother or divine intervention or big day blissful ignorance. Our wedding exceeded any expectation I ever had, thanks to my mother and my sister and a slew of wonderful friends who dedicated their time and energy and advice to tackling each problem and crafting a beautiful, meaningful day. If you’d like a peek into what our day looked like, you can visit this blog post of our very talented photographer, Aruna B.

For now, I’m off to figure out what other gorgeous affairs to share with you this week. See you tomorrow!–Jillian