Fairytale Miami South Beach Wedding

Tiandra and Glenn met at a Shell gas station on a beautiful Saturday evening at the end of October 2014. Glenn was putting air in his tire when while Tiandra pulled up behind him. After he finished, he walked over to her car and asked if it would be ok for him to put air in her tires. She said, “Yes,” of course. As he was putting air her my tires, Glenn noticed that a few of her rims were scuffed and said he could connect Tiandra with a vendor that could fix them, so she gave him her number. They made small talk and went their separate ways. About a week later, they went on a first date to Bone Fish Grill. It was as if they were old friends. The icing on the cake was when we realized their birthdays are only a day apart (#TeamGemini). They have been completely inseparable since then. Four years later, and they married with a fairytale beach wedding at the Hilton Bentley Miami. Check out how they effortlessly mixed these themes together and captured them with the help of Elizabeth Ashley & Co.

Bride’s full name, age, and occupation: Tiandra Chantelle Rice, 33, Registered Nurse

Groom’s full name, age, and occupation: Glenn Edward Rice II, 34, Auto Industry Management

Place of residence: Durham, North Carolina

Wedding date: April 28, 2018

Wedding location: Hilton Bentley Miami, South Beach, Miami, Florida

Wedding theme: Happily Ever After – Cinderella Meets Prince Charming on the Beach

Honeymoon Destination: Negril, Jamaica

Engagement story:

It was all a big surprise to me. I had no clue that Glenn had coordinated and orchestrated such a thoughtful proposal. My friend from Georgia was in town and I was under the impression that we were going out to celebrate her birthday. It was February 25, 2017, when my friends and I were headed to Downtown Durham’s American Tobacco Campus for dinner.

The waiter walked us out to the patio and I could hear someone singing Jamie Foxx’s “When I First Saw,” then I saw my Glenn. Both of our families and close friends were all there. It was completely breathtaking. I was so overwhelmed with joy.

What makes your love special?

I think the fact that neither one of us were looking for love at the time that we met. It was all in God’s perfect timing. We became best friends and felt comfortable enough to let down our guard. We share the same values and make sure to keep God as the foundation of our relationship.

From the Bride:

I could not sleep the night before the wedding. I could not believe this day was finally happening. I cried the night before because I was just so overwhelmed with so many emotions and joy. The day of the wedding, my bridesmaids were angels and shielded me from anything that wasn’t going as planned. It was definitely the best day of my life. The outpouring of love from friends and family was astounding in addition to knowing the sacrifices they made to be there on our special day.

From the Groom:

Well, for me it was a very emotional experience. Starting from the night before the wedding, my groomsmen and a couple other really good friends did an awesome job of helping me keep my nerves together. Other than the fact of being nervous and extremely excited, I could barely get any sleep. The morning of the wedding I was emotional after realizing I was only a few hours away from marrying the love of my life.

After sitting down and talking with my spiritual brother who helped me pull my emotions together, I was ready to go. As my groomsmen had done everything they could to make sure I was fine, I could feel the love everywhere as well as the anticipated excitement. Realizing the distances, time, and other things our friends and families sacrificed to make it to our big day in beautiful South Beach, Miami, Florida was a very wonderful heartwarming feeling. You could feel the love all over!

Your most memorable moment:

Bride: My most memorable moment was being picked up from the hotel in a golf cart (not planned) and taken to the wedding platform. Strangers were congratulating me and taking pictures. Then when I stepped onto the platform and locked eyes with my husband, all my nervousness and worries were washed away. I felt the warmth and love in his eyes and knew that I had found my happily ever after.

Groom: My most memorable moment was after getting dressed, sitting and waiting to walk out to the ceremony as the photographer handed me a box and piece of paper. After I opened the paper to read it, I noticed it was a letter from my wife-to-be! Overwhelmed with emotion from the beautiful letter along with a watch that had engraving on the inside that stated “I will love you until the end of time – 4/28/2018,” I was ready to r
un down the aisle.

Walking out to the wedding ceremony there were tons of people taking photos and streaming us live on social media, which drove my excitement up more and more. Once I saw my gorgeous wife coming down the aisle, all of my nervousness went out the window. It was then I realized that my dreams were coming true and I was officially marrying my best friend!

Wedding song:

“Best Part” by Daniel Caesar and H.E.R. We were having a hard time deciding what our wedding song would be and one day while riding in the car this song came on and we both started singing. We looked at each other and said this is the one. From the moment we first met it felt like we were created for each other. He is the best part of me as I am of him.

Favorite wedding detail:

The sparkler send-off. We originally were not going to have a send-off since we were staying in the same hotel with the wedding activities. My photographer suggested we have one and it turned out beautifully. It sealed the deal. A fairytale ending to a beautiful beginning of our lives together.

What are you most looking forward to as a married couple?

Experiencing life’s adventures together. Reaching our goals and manifesting our dreams. Starting a family and growing old together.

Advice for a Bride and Groom on their wedding day:

Enjoy every moment. The good and the bad. Do not sweat the small or big things. The only thing that truly matters is you and your spouse becoming one, all of the other details are an added bonus. Have fun and dance the night away.

Congratulations to the happy couple! We wish you many years of wedded bliss!