A Storybook Ending to a Louisville Fairytale

Once upon a time …

AMC Stoneybrook 20 is the setting of the beginning of Brittany Gandia’s fairytale. She met Austin Meyer on March 30, 2012, when she agreed to go on a double date with her co-worker, Nickie Spencer. Nickie’s husband, Todd Spencer, happened to be Austin’s best friend.

Three years later, Austin decided it was time to start writing the next chapter of Brittany’s fairytale and began planning his grand proposal. In April of 2015, Austin took Brittany on a spring break trip to Disney World, one of Brittany’s favorite places. She knew it was going to be a fun-filled week, but little did she know, it would be better than she could have ever dreamed.

On Sunday, April 15, Austin took Brittany to Cinderella’s Castle at Magic Kingdom, where he got down on one knee and asked her to be his forever bride. Behind him stood his two nieces, Kennedy and Kadence, holding signs that read “Will you marry our uncle?” and “Brittany, will you be our aunt?” Of course Brittany said yes, and then Austin slid a beautiful diamond onto her finger. Austin’s sister Meggen and his brother-in-law John were also there to celebrate and surprise Brittany.

Storybook ending to a Louisville Fairytale — “Austin truly knocked it out of the park,” Brittany says. “I never picked out a ring, nor did I know his sister was going to be in Disney World. I was absolutely surprised and couldn’t imagine a more perfect engagement.”

Their love story needed a wedding venue fit for a fairytale. Brittany and Austin knew they wanted to exchange their vows outdoors, and the castle at Yew Dell Botanical Gardens fit the bill.

“I knew I wanted a wedding that was both magical and whimsical,” Brittany shares. “Yew Dell is a beautiful place, and the little touches we added made it the wedding I dreamed of since I was little.”

Brittany had a vision for the color scheme: champagne and blush. “I wanted the bridesmaids to be elegant, and the maxi dresses were perfect for an evening wedding,” Brittany says. “They got to choose the dress they wanted from the designer Bill Levkoff. I also knew I wanted the men in traditional black tuxes because it went well with the girls’ dresses.”

Brittany’s fairytale wedding was complete with all the traditions — something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. She wore her grandfather’s wedding band on a gold chain necklace with diamond heart her grandmother gave her. Inside her dress, her seamstress made a pocket next to her heart where she slipped the necklace in. She borrowed a handkerchief from Austin’s grandmother and she wore a University of Kentucky garter belt. Austin graduated from the University of Louisville and is a die-hard Cardinal fan, so needless to say, he was shocked to discover the Wildcat attire when he took the garter off at the reception.

Austin and Brittany exchanged traditional vows with one another, but the one thing they both wanted during the ceremony was to also say their own vows to one another. This way, standing in front of all their family and friends, they could share with them what they were promising to one another.

Austin’s vows:

“I thought the day I asked you to marry me, no matter how late we were, was the best day of my life. But standing here in front of you today and being able to share our love with our closest friends and family, there will never be anything that could compare to today. Today is the best day of my life, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. I love you Brittany Elizabeth, and these are a few of the many things that I promise for our life together: I promise to be your partner in all things. I promise to live in truth with you and to communicate fully with you. I promise to give you my heart. I promise to respect you, encourage you and cherish you. I promise to love who you are now and who you are yet to become. I promise to be your navigator through life regardless of what life throws our way. I promise to always hold your hand no matter how old we grow together and to never let us lose our spark. Most of all I see these promises as an honor: I get to call you my best friend, my wife and although not soon enough for some of my family members, I get to call you the mother of our children. I cannot wait to spend the rest of our lives together.”

Brittany’s vows:

“As I stand before you, I can’t help but think of the saying, ‘Once in a while, in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives us a fairytale.’ You are my fairytale, my prince charming that I have prayed for. My heart smiles to know that I get to conquer all life’s adventures with you by my side — now and forever. You are my inspiration, my motivator, my consoler, my best friend and my soulmate. Every day, you make me want to become a better person. Because of your kind heart, sweet smile, beautiful eyes, positive attitude and patient soul, I choose you today — and every day — for the rest of my life.

Austin, I can promise you many things, but there are some things I cannot promise. I cannot promise you that I will ever stop shopping or that I will spend only the money in my envelope. I cannot promise that I won’t get hangry and fuss at you when I haven’t eaten all day. What I can promise is very simple. I promise to hold your hand through every day of our lives. I promise to catch you when you fall and help you stand again. I promise to be your biggest cheerleader and support you in the pursuit of your dreams. I promise to keep you laughing. I promise to always give you the very best of myself and to not take you for granted. I promise to listen, even when what you say may be hard for me to hear. I promise to always try to make our home a place where laughter overcomes tears, where hope and trust outweigh anxieties, and where peace, joy and unconditional love are overflowing. I promise you we will grow old together and be the couple that still holds hands and dances in the kitchen long after we are gray and our steps are slow. Austin David Meyer, I choose you today and every day for as long as I live.”

“Of course Pinterest was a huge help,” Brittany says. “A lot of my visions came from bits and pieces of pictures from Pinterest.” But, in order to pull off a fairytale wedding, you have to enlist the help of some experts. Wayne Esterle of In Bloom Again helped make Brittany’s vision come to life — from the ceremony to the cocktail hour to the reception.

“We had a floral theme that we did throughout Yew Dell,” Brittany says. “We used an assortment of all kinds of flowers that complemented each other: white spray roses, fresh laurel, white hydrangeas, silk wisteria, mother of pearl roses, blush stock, seeds of eucalyptus, white lisianthus and sabara roses, white dendrobiu, orchids, etc.”

Devanny Boissvert from Essential Details along with Brittany and Brittany’s mom did a lot of the special touches themselves. But as far as all the wedding decisions, she made sure to include Austin. She wanted him to be as much a part of the decision-making process as he could be. Of course there were things that he left up to Brittany and let her run with, but she felt that it was important to let him have a say as well. That’s why there was a taco truck at the reception.