The doorbell rang. "What did I order?" I thought. My mind immediately tried to bring up a screenshot of my email inbox from memory. I tried to picture any "Your Amazon order has shipped" notifications as I walked to the front door. As the delivery man handed me the box, I quickly searched the label before signing and saw "The Knot New Jersey" was the shipper.

I knew this would be coming for a few months now, but I had no idea exactly when to expect it. I knew that inside the box would be a copy of the newest edition of The Knot NJ wedding magazine (Fall/Winter 2014 issue), and I frantically grabbed the scissors and ran to the couch. (Kids, don't run with scissors).

I turned the pages quickly at first, but reminded myself to slow down seeing as the feature of Donna & Oleg's wedding wouldn't just disappear if I took too long to find it. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait too long...there it was on page 77 (out of 496).

I can't explain it and I surprised myself, but I was overcome with emotion and I felt...proud. I just sat there alone in my living room staring at my photos and instead of picturing my inbox, I was remembering a time almost 4 years ago when I said "Maybe someday I'll have my photos in a magazine...maybe." In what felt like an hour (but was probably only 60 seconds), I relived flashes of my struggles, my first bookings, the laughter, the tears, and all that has brought me to this moment. And all I could do was cry. Not like ugly-cry-my-life-is-over kind of crying...just a few single tears rolled down my cheek. It was one of the most beautiful moments of my life. I know, I know, it's just a magazine. But, it symbolizes so much. So many dreams, so much hard work, so many sacrifices...

When I came back to reality, I laughed out loud at myself for crying, and patted myself on the back. Literally. Like, I actually patted my own back. Yup. #toosoonforthestraightjacket?

Obviously none of this would be possible without Donna and Oleg's AMAZING wedding planning skills! How stinkin' beautiful are all of their personal touches?!