Crazy in Love | Southern Illinois Wedding

THE COUPLE

Erin Glodich of West Frankfort, IL.
George (Bill) Kuhn of West Frankfort, IL.

HOW THEY MET

We actually had known each other as acquaintances for some time. Bill used to volunteer at our church’s local Columbian Club to sell pull tabs at Bingo. I would go occasionally with my uncle to just have something to do. I would always see him there and thought he was kind of arrogant to be honest. Never ever would I have thought, “Four years from now, I am going to marry him.”  Fast forward three years, I was out having drinks and dinner with girlfriends and we pulled up next to Bill, who was on his way home from work. I politely waved and said, “Hey, I know you!” About three weeks later, we became Facebook friends. About three weeks after that we went on our first date, and then five days later our first Cardinals game!

Falling in Love

We fell in love pretty quickly. We both knew after our first date that this was something real. There were never a lot of dating jitters. Bill worked second shift at the time, and he would always swing by my house even if it was just for 30 or 45 minutes after work. He would meet me during lunch if we hadn’t seen each other for a day or two.  We just instantly meshed well together. Our friends kept having doubts, because let’s be honest, we are both very headstrong and opinionated. But then, everyone was taken aback because our love was REAL.

The Proposal

Well, that was an amazing, crazy and fun day. We got engaged August 27. Bill’s birthday is the 26th, and it was his 40th. So, we rented a party bus with all of our friends and family. We had this big day of winery fun planned. Slowly all of our family and friends started filtering down to the bottom deck at the first winery stop, where Bill was so nervous he was about to walk a hole into their decking from pacing so much. All of a sudden, all of our friends and family were around. Bill was thanking everyone for coming and started talking about how much he loved me. I looked to my right, and my sister and best friend had their phones out snapping pictures and videoing. I looked down, and he was on one knee with his grandma’s diamond ring. He asked me to be his wife.  It was absolutely perfect. Having our family and friends around made it an amazing day. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Wedding Venue

Our wedding was at St. John’s Catholic Church in West Frankfort; our reception was held at the STJ school gymnasium. St. John’s is our home Catholic Church.  STJ has been a big part of both our lives, and it’s where all my family has gotten married at. With that being said, all of my family also had their receptions in STJ gymnasium.  I had lost both my grandmothers when I was very young, and I wanted nothing more than for them to be a part of my day. So, I knew I wanted to get married in April. My maternal grandmother’s birthday was in April, and my paternal grandparents’ wedding anniversary was April 14, which happened to fall on a Saturday in 2018. So, we knew it was the perfect day to get married!  The reality was we also needed somewhere we could fit 500-600 people for a reception. We worked LONG LONG hours to make sure everyone would fit inside. We knew our reception was going to be big and a party!

Wedding Inspiration

Our wedding inspiration really was just to celebrate life. We both have had a crazy few years of life. Bill is a combat war veteran, and I had a very rare form of cancer. Neither of us had ever been married or had any little ones, and we were both just so happy to finally be seeing this phase of life. It was a big milestone for both of us and our families!  Somedays not only did we question if we would ever meet someone we would want to marry, but so did our families!

From the time I was a little girl, I always knew I wanted a navy and blush wedding with lots of gold sparkles. I wanted to make sure our fur-babies were somehow a part of our day, and we incorporated them in several different ways. Along with that, I wanted somehow to coordinate our love for STL Cardinals baseball and our Jeep! I would find ideas on Pinterest, Etsy and blogs.  My mom and I made almost all of the decorations, and family and close family friends set everything up. It took us two weeks to transform a gymnasium into a beautiful reception. Let me say a lot of blood, sweat, tears, tornado sirens, arguing and a group of 20 amazing people made sure it was perfect for our day! They say it takes an army to raise a child, and it doesn’t matter how old a person is that army will always be helping that child.

Favorite Part

The favorite part of the wedding was seeing everyone we love come together to celebrate with us. Getting ready was a blast. We had separate houses that day, and it was crazy. It was busy and it flew by, but we enjoyed every minute. When those church doors opened and my dad and I took our first steps, I remember taking in a large breath, because I couldn’t believe this was finally our day. After always being the bridesmaid, I was finally the bride. My husband said the same thing; it was such a weird feeling after being the groomsman and usher so many times to finally be the groom!  We were finally about to become husband and wife.  I also loved our first dance. Up until our wedding day, we had never danced together. Neither of us have rhythm, but sharing that moment was something I had dreamed of since I was a little girl.  I bawled all the way down the aisle. Our wedding was a unique wedding, so I loved that aspect too. We had your traditional bridesmaids and groomsmen, but we also had bridesmen and groomswomen along with a junior bridesmaid and junior groomswomen.

Memorable Moment

Favorite moment has to be when our flower girl decided she wanted to kiss the ring bearer and her dress flipped up as she was trying to chase him on the altar. As we went to hug our parents, my mom told me this, at that moment all the waterworks ended with my dad and her because the kids were putting a second show on for everyone! Everything ran so smoothly. Granted a lot of that was because my family made sure that any hiccups were taken care of. I didn’t have to make any decisions that day, and we both just got to enjoy the day.

Advice

My best advice is to have a plan of action for everything.  We had a “wedding general,” and it made the whole day run so much smoother. Don’t be afraid to delegate jobs to people. I had different people set up to make decisions just like I would. I knew my sister and best friend could make a decision in a split second like I would, so I just didn’t worry.  We also had pre-wedding food which I think really helped everyone in the wedding party and who was helping the day of not get hangry and be able to enjoy the day more. We had a hometown food shop, cater breakfast to each house and had lunch waiting at the church/gym.  Enjoy the day. You spend months planning every little detail, and in the blink of an eye it is all over. When you are getting ready to walk down the aisle, take a minute to take a deep breath and take the moment in, because that is the fastest and probably the longest walk of your life! Before you know it, you and your husband are on your way home as Husband and Wife. I will also never regret the decision to spend money on having a videographer.

Vendors

Photographer: Jason Hill Photography // Venue: St. John’s Catholic Church in West Frankfort, IL // Hair: Brittany Meadows // Makeup: Nikki Willis // Dress & All Attire: A Special Occasion Bridal Salon // Caterer: T-Street // Cake: Vickie Bernard (Sweet Time Treats) // Videographer: Martin Videography // Decorations: Thursday’s Princesses (Susan Glodich) and Tim Muprhy (Candy Cane Lane) // Flowers: Sandy’s Flowers //  Day-of Caterer: Heights Market & Deli