“Seize the moment” has been the motto for Brittany’s and Pat’s relationship. When they met in 2007 working at the West Reno Home Depot, it was Brittany who made the first move. “I asked Pat, ‘So, when are you taking me out?’ The rest is history,” she says.
Five years later, they left Reno together for Brittany to pursue her dream of becoming a nurse. “I told her, ‘anywhere but the Midwest or Sacramento.’ Of course, I moved to Sacramento with her. And it ended up being the best decision,” he said.
Brittany graduated and started working as a registered nurse. “Pat has been the most supportive partner through this journey,” she says. “He is my love, my rock, my partner in crime, and my fixer-of-all-things-broken.”
Of course, after some time of Brittany calling the shots, it was Pat’s turn to take charge during a trip to Lake Tahoe. “I had the ring and had plans to propose, but things kept falling through with those plans,” he says. “We both work jobs with odd hours, so it was difficult to find a day together. I seized the moment out on the dock at Gar Woods, and she said, ‘Yes.’”
Deciding on a theme and overall vision for their wedding took some time. Once they decided to use Brittany’s mom’s property in Alta as the venue, everything else started to come together.
Brittany loved getting to check tasks off her to-do list. “The highs of wedding planning were making decisions and not having to think about them anymore,” she says.
The lows? “The week before the wedding mini-meltdown after looking at my ‘to-do list!’ But don’t worry, I pulled myself back together pretty quickly after realizing that it is just another day, and the most important things were all already in place—marrying the man I love, and my friends and family being there to celebrate with us.”
As the last minute details came together, the stress turned into pure joy. “My support system was amazing. Everyone took such great care of me,” she says. “Pat and I did a ‘first look,’ and from then on, nerves and stress melted away, and I was just so happy to see our friends and family and celebrate!”
For this couple, it was a magical day filled with special moments. “Pat and I went back down to the ceremony site at sunset to snap a few more photos with our photographer Courtney,” she says. “It was a special moment, we were both more relaxed than earlier in the day, and the lighting was perfect filtering through the trees.”
—Kourtney Jason
