Katie + Joe | A Atkinson Farms Wedding

A Atkinson Farms Wedding – Danville, Virginia

Katie and Joe were married on July 7th, 2018 at one of my favvvvvvvv venues ever ever, Atkinson Farms in Danville, Virginia.

I want to start this blog post off with a bible verse in memory note of Joe’s late father, Chris Martin. Romans 8:18 The pain that you’ve been feeling, cannot compare the the joy that is to come.

Okay you guys. I have known Katie for quite a long time, so I was extra excited when she asked me to be her wedding photographer!!! Actually, I am pretty sure I *squealed* audibly when I got the message. It’s just always extra fun when you get asked to photograph a wedding of someone you know personally. Just SO cool, but, I actually didn’t *really* know Joe at all. Haha! Which is unusual for a small town. I mean, everyone truly knows everyone in our town, so that was kind of crazy, but I did know of him and saw him at our gym several times.

Fast forward to their engagement session , I finally got to meet him for real, and to see him and Katie together for the first time was like…woah. I mean, it just clicked in my head how perfect they are for each other! We laughed so much, and was seriously such a fun time, but it was even more fun just getting to see these two interact with each other. I mean, they really truly make so much sense together.

Before we knew it, the wedding day was here and everything came together SO beautifully. Fun quick fact: I actually saw Katie and her mom, Cathy, at several local weddings prior to Katie’s, and I would poke fun asking them if they were taking notes for Katie’s wedding! Haha, but in all honesty, these two didn’t need any tips, they had it together! Everything was so beautiful you guys. From the 16 FOOT hand-chiseled, to the beautifully placed florals, the 80 degree weather in JULY, and every small and big detail in between. SUCH A GOOD DAY!!!

Their Love Story

When and where did you both meet?

We met in high school (HCHS) our senior year; 2012.

When did you know he was the one and vice versa?

Katie: I knew when he went to Longwood with me after we had only been dating a few months. That first summer we were dating he also stayed with me when I had eye surgery and couldn’t leave my dark bedroom for a week! There were a million other fun, summer things he could be doing but he choose to stay with me while I recovered from PRK surgery.

Joe: I knew Katie was the one when after just a few months dating I decided to not pursue playing football in college and instead I pursued her love. I didn’t want to chance losing what we had over a long distance relationship so I put in a super late application to Longwood University and got in then the rest is history.

What is the one thing you both love each other the most for?

Katie: I love that Joe will never give up on me!

Joe: For her love and compassion towards me and my family during the passing of my sister and now my father.

How did he propose?

I went to 4-H Camp in June 2017 as an adult volunteer and apparently he asked my dad for permission and picked out the ring all in that same week. Two weeks later we were at the big 4th of July party his parents throw every year and I was actually inside changing his nephew’s diaper (our ring bearer!) and I came out the house and he was in the back yard down on one knee with his friends standing behind him holding signs that said, “Katie Elizabeth Crews, Will you marry me?” I was so confused and in shock that everyone was staring and recording videos on their phone that I could barely speak. And Joe, the loudest and most talkative person in the world, couldn’t be heard by anyone around us when he finally got out the words, “Will you marry me?” I said YES and before he could take the ring out of the box, I did it and put it on my own finger because I just couldn’t wait.