Early Summer Red Lodge Wedding | Bethany + Lewi

Don't let a rainy forecast derail your wedding plans. Read on for the sweet story of Bethany and Lewi and to see more of their beautiful western wedding day in Red Lodge, Montana, captured by Montana Bride Vendor Macy Spencer Photography.

"Even though we attended the University of Arkansas at the same time, our story actually started in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, while on spring break our senior year. We hit it off, and despite both of us having our post-graduation plans already figured out – I (Bethany) had accepted a job in Dallas and Lewi was headed to graduate school in Laramie, WY – we did not want to part ways.

After two years of long-distance and lots of flights, driving and planning, Covid hit! But the good news was that I was able to work remotely so I packed a suitcase and headed to Laramie to be with Lewi as he completed his graduate degree at the University of Wyoming.

It was a whirlwind ride of adventure since then, getting to explore the beautiful state of Wyoming together. We loved the adventurous western lifestyle and wanted to experience the mountains a little more, so we were thrilled when Lewi got a job in Billings. We packed up and moved to Montana together at the beginning of 2021 to start this new chapter in our lives.

Lewi was adamant that the proposal had to be a surprise. After a stressful Monday, he suggested we go to his favorite spot on Rock Creek in Red Lodge to fish and relax. While enjoying the beautiful scenery and great conversation, he got down on one knee and popped the question. My response was, "Are you serious?" followed by a "YES!"

WEDDING DAY

"Living in Billings, we loved any opportunity to go to Red Lodge for the fishing, skiing, or just enjoying the mountains and downtown. After getting engaged in Red Lodge, we decided it was also the perfect place for our wedding, and we couldn't wait to share our special place with our guests. We only toured one venue, Montana Wildflower Weddings, and instantly knew it was where we wanted to get married. Between the beautiful scenery, open barn and wonderful staff, it couldn't get any better, and we decided on June 24th since thats when the flowers are suppose to be in full bloom.

When the weekend was finally here, the forecast was calling for 90% rain on both the rehearsal and wedding day. Of course this was not ideal for the outdoor wedding I was envisioning. We did the rehearsal indoors thinking we would have to have a backup plan and it poured all throughout the rehearsal dinner – although I ended up finding this relaxing and it was still a fun night at Red Lodge Ales. We had several guests suggest we try to "bury the bourbon" a tradition that, if done correctly, is supposed to ward off rain the day of the wedding so after the rehearsal dinner, we decided to give it a try.

The morning of the wedding day, it continued to rain all morning but then the sun came out around noon. While constantly checking the radar while getting ready, it looked like roughly a 50% chance of rain when the wedding started at 4pm, and we needed to make a decison soon on wether this was going to be an indoor or outdoor ceremony. My mom decided to check with Keri, the owner of the venue to get her thoughts. Since Keri was from the area, she felt confident that we could do the ceremony outside at 4pm if I wanted. She warned there might be a rain cloud right before, but she believed it would clear up just in time. And sure enough, that is exactly what happened.

We had just enough time to do our first look and get some photos in before the rain (and guests) started to show up. At around 3:30 a rain cloud came in and it started to pour. We hid out in the bridal suite and I was able to watch our guests come in and wait in the bar for the rain to clear. After about 15 minutes we could see the sun trying to come back out and the rain started to lighten up and eventually stop. The rain stopped just a few minutes before the ceremony started and the staff and a few guests helped wipe off the seats and we were ready to get started.

The sun came out and a beautiful rainbow appeared over the Beartooth Mountains while we walked down the aisle and there was not a dry eye there. After we said our vows we had the best time celebrating into the night with our friends and family. It was truly a dream wedding." –Bethany, the bride