Knowing they couldn’t marry in the Catholic church, Hannah and Jordana opted to elope in the Colorado wilderness, just the two of them and some keepsakes.
Tell us about the proposal.
Jordana- I proposed to Hannah on Christmas morning, 2020. It was very intimate and my sister, Jacie, was the only other person there so she could take pictures. As we were exchanging gifts, I had Hannah open a special box with a note inside asking her to marry me. Afterward, we took cute pics by the Christmas tree with our doggies and drank mimosas.
Talk us through the decision to elope.
Jordana- I come from a very traditional Catholic family. After coming out, it took my family a while to come to terms with me being gay, much less marrying a woman. So knowing this and that I would be unable to get married in the Catholic church, Hannah and I decided it would be best to elope. This way, it would be more intimate with just us, and we wouldn’t have any outside noise to worry about. I am happy to say my family all love Hannah and are very accepting of our marriage now.
I do want to shout out our wedding photographers, The Drawhorns. We were a little sad not having any family/friends present at our wedding, but having Jess and Austin, there was such a blessing. They were so much more than our photographers; they filled a void for us and made our day so perfect. We had so much fun with them, and it honestly felt like we were there with our friends! I am so thankful for them and our continued friendship with them both.
Tell us about telling your loved ones that you’re now married.
Both of our families have taken us in with open arms. We feel loved and accepted by our immediate families and are thankful for this. We continue to struggle with our place as far as religion goes, especially with us fitting in with the Catholic faith. But we will continue to hold our heads high and are blessed to be where we are today.
I am genuinely grateful to be where we are in our lives; there was a long time when I thought I would never get married because of my family and religion. So to be married to the woman of my dreams and have my family’s love and support means the world to me.
Talk us through the actual elopement.
Our elopement consisted of Hannah, Jess, Austin, and myself. It was very small and intimate but so moving to us all. We started the day off with brunch and getting ready in our hotel. My sister, Jacie, wrote us a letter that she read over FaceTime to us (which made us both cry). After getting ready, we walked through downtown Vail, which was absolutely gorgeous! We grabbed a bite of lunch and a beer at the hotel bar in our wedding outfits, and a sweet older couple bought it for us and took a picture of us! Then, we drove our white Jeep we rented out to the Upper Piney Lake trail and hiked through the aspens. It was freezing and raining, but we still had the best time! Finally, we found the perfect spot for our ceremony, which Jess officiated for us. Jess did a beautiful job performing our ceremony. We each wrote our own vows, which we read out loud, and we both cried… a lot!
Next, we found another spot to sit and read some letters our family members had written us. I brought a blanket of my Grandmas, and we sat on this while reading these letters and drinking champagne.
After this, we hiked back down the trail and found a cool spot to share our “first dance.” We danced to the song “One Man Band” by Old Dominion and had a heck of a time doing it! We laughed a lot and then hiked back to our vehicles in the freezing rain!
Thank goodness Jess had packed an extra cardigan that I wore! Right before getting to the trail’s end, Jess turned around to take a few last pictures and gasped when she saw a perfect rainbow. It was the perfect ending to such a beautiful, joy-filled day. We are so thankful this is how we chose to spend our wedding day and will cherish these memories forever.
Photography and Officiant The Drawhorns
Dress Boutique Lulu’s
Engagement & Wedding Rings James Allen
Florist Evergreen Bridals
H&MU Kim J Beauty
Location Upper Piney Lake Trail
Shoes Thursday Boots
Stationery Minted
