I do, I do and I do
It’s ‘everything wedding’ at Collette Fitness
There appears to be an epidemic at Collette Fitness Center. Some of the patrons have even commented there must be something in the water. Out of six employees at the center, two are already married. Three of the other four are preparing to walk down the aisle this spring and the chatter in the office is usually “everything wedding.”
Michelle Cameron, Holly Robinson and Brittany LaBonte now have a lot in common. The three part-time Collette Fitness employees are all knee deep in color swatches, invitation samples, menu plans and appointment books containing long lists of “things to do.” There is true camaraderie among the trio and having each other to bounce thoughts and ideas around with has made their wedding planning much easier.
Two of the three future brides are not just planning their weddings at the same time, they also became engaged within a month of each other, although Michelle was not working with Holly and Brittany at Collette when she got engaged.Michelle and Travis Craig became engaged quite unexpectedly on Christmas Day 2010. The couple was planning to take a cruise in February of 2011 and that is when Travis had planned to ask Michelle to be his wife. Instead, on Christmas Day he felt the moment was right to let her know she was the best thing that ever happened to him and slipped a ring on her finger. Michelle and Travis will be the first of the couples to say I do, when they exchange vows April 28, at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in East Grand Forks, Minn.
“Travis was so excited when he asked me to marry him and I said yes,” Michelle said. “He wanted to call our family and all of our friends right away and tell them we were engaged.”
Brittany and Chris Larson had been in a serious relationship for some time and had discussed marriage but he had yet to propose. They purchased a house together and when they moved into it in January of 2011, Brittany purchased an outdoor sign for Chris with “Larson” engraved on it.
“I told him, because we were not married yet, it wouldn’t be appropriate to hang the sign,” she said. “Later, I came home to find the sign hanging on the front of the house. When I walked in our favorite song was playing and he asked me to be his wife. I was very surprised.”
Chris and Brittany will be married June 16 at an outdoor ceremony on the north shore of Lake Superior.
It was a very romantic moment in December 2011 when John Kowalski asked Holly to be his bride. They were preparing to travel to Roseau, Minn., for Christmas when John came to Holly with a top from one of her perfume bottles and asked her if she would like a ring like that. When she responded to the negative, he came to her with a diamond ring and asked if it was more to her liking. . . she said yes.
Holly and John are planning a church wedding in Roseau on June 9.
Romance had filled the air. . . then it was time to get serious about wedding plans. Michelle and Holly are planning big weddings and, although Brittany and Chris’ wedding will be intimate with only family and close friends attending, they are planning a large reception at the Coliseum in Park River. With full-time jobs, as well as their part-time jobs at Collette, the three women also share schedules that often leave them with little time to concentrate on their wedding plans. That is when it is great to have someone else who is going through the same thing in their corner.
Of course, when the women are working together the conversation in the office usually has something to do with plans for their nuptials. Michelle has been in the planning mode longer than Brittany and Holly, so she has more advice to offer. They all agree when they discuss anything wedding, they are straightforward and offer their honest opinion whenever it is requested. Their regular patrons at Collette usually join in the conversation, commenting on what caused the wedding fever at the center and they often ask to take a look at the shiny diamond rings.
With each bride comes different wedding worries. Michelle had difficulty picking a wedding dress and said she went to seven boutiques before she found the dress of her dreams. Fortunately, the unseasonably warm and dry weather this winter has calmed her other fears concerning her April wedding date. That would be the raging Red River that often escapes its banks in the spring.
Although weather is also a concern for Brittany’s outdoor ceremony, she has dealt with bigger concerns – expanding waistlines. Two of her seven chosen bridesmaids announced pregnancies after she announced her wedding plans. One of her close friends is due a week after her wedding and will not be able to attend. The second will be close to her due date but is still able to fulfill her role in the wedding. Fortunately, the bridesmaids dresses Brittany had chosen before she knew of the pregnancies have an empire waist with a flowing skirt.
Holly’s biggest concern is the calendar – getting all the wedding plans together in six short months. Top the stress of her wedding planning off with the inability to find bridesmaids dresses she truly loves.
Whatever their worries, they all commented that their grooms have been wonderful at helping with the wedding plans. And when the stress seems to be overwhelming – they are in a great place to work it off.