Sophisticated & Traditional Raleigh Wedding

Courtney and Mario met back in May 2015 on the dating website Plenty of Fish. Courtney and Mario celebrated their nuptials with a sophisticated and traditional wedding and reception at the Watts Chapel Missionary Baptist Church and Marriott City Center in Raleigh, N.C. Check out their special day, captured by In His Image Photography.

Bride: Courtney Bradley-Mapson, 38, Human Resources Manager

Groom: Mario Mapson, 35, Service Advisor

Place of residence: Raleigh, North Carolina

Wedding date: October 29, 2016

Wedding location: Watts Chapel Missionary Baptist Church and

Marriott City Center

Wedding theme: Sophisticated Elegance, White and gold with black accents

Honeymoon Destination: Las Vegas, Nevada

Engagement story:

Mario proposed on my birthday while we were at dinner with friends. Looking back at it, I realize he was acting a little strange in the days leading up to the proposal, but I didn’t think anything of it then. We went to dinner with my sister, cousin and friends. It was supposed to be a normal birthday dinner at Olive Garden and then -boom! Mario was down one on knee! And just as quickly as he got down, he got up after saying those five magic words, “Will you marry me, baby?”

From the Bride:

Our wedding day went by so fast! I started started getting ready in the morning with my parents and sister. Then my bridesmaids and mother-in law came in to join for makeup. I would call our wedding day “awesomely blessed!” The weather was also perfect, the sun was shining and the skies were Carolina blue. It was stress-free and went by smoothly. I never felt nervous. I was definitely excited for all of our family and friends to see us become one.

From the Groom:

It was a long experience J with all of the planning, questions and decisions. But in the end I thought it was more than worth it and I would do it all again!

What makes your love special?

Laughter makes our love special. Every day we find ourselves laughing about something. Whether it’s about people we’ve encountered at work or anything else that happens during our day, or something we saw on TV. We just laugh together a lot.

Your most memorable moment:

We rented a party bus for our bridesmaids and groomsmen to join us after the ceremony to take pictures and head over to the reception venue. The kids in our wedding party wanted to ride in the “fancy bus.” After giving them a speech about not complaining and not asking to eat, I decided to let them join us. That was one of the best decisions of the day! They had a blast playing DJ with their phones, dancing and laughing. They are still talking about the experience.

Mario: My most memorable part of the day was taking pictures with my groomsmen and my mother. The laughter and fun leading up to the ceremony helped me to relax a since I was a little nervous.

Courtney: I’m not sure that I can pick one moment… there were so many awesome moments during the day, but I’ll give you two. First, when I joined Mario at the altar, he rubbed my hand and said “you look beautiful!”

What was your favorite wedding detail?

Everything was chosen with love and care so it’s hard to choose just one. But if I had to pick, I would say our favorite details were the cake and flowers. We had a clear vision for wanting an all-white cake and all-white flowers. Both were so breathtaking to look at when we walked into the reception space.

What was your wedding song?

We asked the minster of music from our church, Dr. Id
ella Johnson, to sing “The One He Kept For Me” by Maurette Brown Clark during our ceremony. Mario and I truly believe God intended us to be together, and the lyrics of the song conveyed that sentiment. For our reception’s first dance we chose John Legend “You and I (Nobody in the World).” John Legend was the first concert we attended together, so it holds a lot of meaning. We both love that song.

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

We’re looking forward to a lot of firsts together; buying our first homer, being first time parents and just living a long life as partners. Of course we’re also looking forward to lots of laughter!

Advice for a bride and groom?

Enjoy every moment! The day will go by fast. Try to take some time to absorb it all in. Look out at your family and friends who gather to support you and just soak up the love. Also try to take some time to enjoy your reception – dance, hug all of your guests, and don’t sweat the small stuff. No one knows what you have planned, so if something doesn’t go exactly as you expected- that’s ok. Most importantly, follow the Mapson’s motto and “laugh all day!”

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