Authentically Flawed

This year has been a roller coaster; hence my extended break from writing. It seemed fitting for my return to the keyboard to be about the happiest day of my life! This is part one of my wedding story; follow along for part two!

In March, I received an email from our Chief Revenue Officer: Congratulations on qualifying for FY24 President’s Club! Your hard work and dedication have truly paid off. President’s Club is Smartsheet’s most prestigious Worldwide Sales reward and represents the pinnacle of achievement. I knew I’d been nominated for the award, yet it was still an unexpected honor to win, especially in my category: MVP of Solutions Engineering. My journey at Smartsheet has not been easy, but I take great pride in winning this award because I had to be nominated by my peers. President’s Club is a very common award in my industry, awarded to the top performers in Sales, so to be nominated even though I’m not quota-carrying was very special. It includes a company paid trip for the winner and a guest; this year’s trip was to Westin Hapuna Beach Resort in Waimea, Hawai’i. As I was looking at photos of the resort, I had a thought: Jeremy and I were planning to elope anyway…what if…

One day after work, as Jeremy was walking up the stairs, I casually threw out “wouldn’t it be hilarious if we used this trip for our wedding?” I was only slightly serious; it was March after all, and even eloping seemed like it would be tough to pull off in 90 days but I am nothing if not an expert planner. Jeremy’s initial reaction was similar to mine – sounds great but we probably didn’t have enough time to plan, especially since my now stepdaughter’s high school graduation in Tacoma, WA overlapped the dates of the trip. Alas, he gave me the thread I needed…”are you serious?” and with that, I started to weave the tapestry of our future.

After finding that Westin Hapuna Beach Resort had a very steep food and beverage minimum, a thorough consultation with The Google led me to Weddings of Hawaii. I reached out to their coordinators and within a few hours, they responded with their packages, pricing, locations, and availability. I was ecstatic that they had a beach location available on somewhat short notice, and after combing through their website and Google reviews, I knew we were in great hands. Once we paid the deposit, the reality set in; we were getting MARRIED. Having only been engaged since December, I wondered briefly if we were rushing into it but as Jeremy pointed out, we’ve been together almost five years. With a date locked in, I leaned in to the joy of everything that comes with one’s wedding day. My mother-in-love and I went dress shopping and in a moment I couldn’t have scripted, the dress was delivered during a last minute trip that my mom made to Austin. Both ladies went with me to pick it up and because Amour Bridal is the absolute best, they let me put the dress on and take pictures with my moms. Next I had a work trip to Boston, where I stayed with my sister. While I was there, we went through her wedding mementos and landed on my borrowing the same necklace she wore on her wedding day. I was so excited that I’d have that connection to my sister on my wedding day. Once I got home from Boston, I made a checklist and in classic Alexis fashion, moved down the list methodically until every detail was cared for. Jeremy and I had a great time ring shopping and taking care of all the little details while our wedding coordinators in Hawaii took care of the big stuff. I did get a bit of writer’s block when it came time to pen my vows but once I landed on a concept, the words flowed freely (as did my tears when I finished the last draft; I immediately purchased a handkerchief from Etsy and put it in my must-have bag for the ceremony).

Leading up to our trip, there was a small part of me that thought “this can’t be happening…whose life is this?? Getting married on the beach in Hawai’i??” I kept waiting for some catastrophe to happen – weather, a layoff, something that would prevent this day from coming to fruition (anyone remember my 40th birthday?). Alas, we boarded our flight to Kona in matching t-shirts on June 5, and arrived on the island as expected. Pictures don’t do Big Island justice; the resort was breathtaking with its turquoise water and lush Hawaiian landscaping. Thankfully, we had a full day before the wedding to settle in and explore the island. In my next post, I’ll share some of that adventure (including a visit from some very hungry ninjasquitos). For this post, let’s just revel in the fact that your girl parlayed a free work trip into a dream wedding! Fam, if you have a dream that you think is even remotely possible, go for it! Join me next week for part two of this story.