In an effort to take you through my planning process, I will attempt to narrate in the order in which things actually occurred.  After getting engaged and determining that the wedding would take place in Atlanta, we knew we had to start by choosing the ceremony and reception locations.  Neither Ryan nor I was currently a member of any church, but we knew that we wanted a Catholic ceremony.  Therefore we did what other lazy couples do on Saturday night – map out the closest Catholic church!  And the first church in our search, amazingly enough, was the Cathedral of Christ the King.

CTK

Needless to say, after sitting through mass here we knew the search was over.  The Cathedral is breathtaking, easy to find, and close by!  They assigned us our date, and now all we had to do was find a reception location.

Now I am going to have to come clean about this part of the process.  Like many other girls, I had been daydreaming about getting married for quite some time.  And also like many other girls, I suspect, I tried to plan much of the wedding before I was even engaged!  Before moving to Atlanta, I was secretly researching reception locations one day, and came across Magnolia Hall in Piedmont Park.  I was immediately drawn to the relaxed feel of the historic brick building, located in the beautiful park’s natural setting.

Magnolia Hall

After getting engaged I quickly admitted the truth to Ryan, who agreed to go look at it with me.  Walking inside, we knew that it was right for us.  The ceremony at the Cathedral would be elegant and breathtaking, and the reception at Magnolia Hall would be relaxed and warm.  So I hate to say, but I can’t offer knowledge of any other locations in Atlanta!  We had perfect luck with our first choices.

All photography by Blue World Studios.