Summer Love - Nikki & Jared
Nikki Blazey and Jared Nobbe spent many summer evenings falling in love on the Missouri River. When they married, they knew the river had to be part of their celebration. The couple married at Delta Hotels by Marriot South Sioux City Riverfront, formerly the Marina Inn. The shaded garden terrace, in full view of the river where Nikki and Jared’s romance began, set the stage for the couple’s lovely summertime wedding.
Nikki, an attorney, and Jared, a probation officer, met through friends Todd and Karrie Hruska two
years earlier. “They set us up and we’ve been together ever since. Todd and Karrie are still our
great friends. They were the host couple at our wedding,” Nikki said.
Nikki and Jared share an affinity for boating. They spent much of their courtship on the Missouri River. “We boated a lot that first summer we were dating. It’s a special place for us,” Nikki explained.
Jared surprised Nikki with a nautical proposal. “I thought it was just a normal Friday night. He picked
me up from work and he had the boat ready to go.
He had made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We ate the sandwiches out on a sandbar,” Nikki recalled.
“I was in the back singing Garth Brooks songs. I was clueless,” she chuckled. “We were floating down the Missouri River and he came up and was saying all these nice things. He got down on one knee on the boat. I remember screaming and realizing I’d never actually said yes.”
Jared told Nikki’s parents his plans, and Nikki’s father was decidedly nervous. “I’m klutzy. My dad said, ‘Oh please tie a string on it,’ so I wouldn’t drop the ring off the boat,” she said, laughing.
Nikki said yes, and two summers after they started dating, the couple married. Nikki credits Simply Devine Wedding and Events in Huron with helping her achieve the celebration of her dreams
without being overwhelmed.
“I knew from the beginning I wanted it to be bright and cheery and happy. We picked coral as our wedding color and added bright pink accents. I think that reflected me as a bride,” Nikki described. “I was surprised Jared really liked all the pink.”
“Simply Devine was the florist. They also did all the centerpieces, decor and invitations,” Nikki said. “I wanted someone that could take what I thought I wanted and run with it. That’s what they did, plus way more. Whatever we asked, they made it happen.” Friends, family and lots of personal touches made the day everything Nikki and Jared hoped for. “Just having our wedding party and our friends around, it was special. … The bridesmaids were with me all day. For them to come for the entire weekend was really special,” Nikki said.
Nikki included the couple’s five young nieces and nephews in the ceremony, as well. “We had two ring bearers, one junior groomsman, one junior bridesmaid and one flower girl. It was cute,” Nikki said. “One of ring bearers carried a sign that said, ‘Uncle Jared here comes your bride.’”
Nikki vividly remembers seeing Jared for the first time that day. “We were so anxious to see each other. Jared said he kept pacing. I was nervous until I saw him, for him to finally see my dress,” Nikki recalled.
Nikki’s father walked her down the aisle to a tree draped in pink. There, surrounded by 220 guests, Nikki and Jared married.
“We had a super short ceremony, about 12 minutes. Tony (the officiant) did a good job of finding vows that were memorable and unique. One phrase I’ll remember is, ‘I’ll love you each day more than I did the day before.’ The vows seemed to really reflect us,” Nikki said.
The elegant, family-friendly reception began after the 5 p.m. wedding. The bride, groom and guests celebrated with a catered dinner, a dozen flavors of cupcakes, dancing, a 10 p.m. round of cheeseburger sliders, and kid-friendly fun.
“Our wedding party did a great job with speeches that were the perfect mix of funny and slightly embarrassing. My maid of honor saved Skype messages from when I first started telling her about Jared, so she was able to read those to everybody,” Nikki said, giggling. A six-piece band and a DJ kept the party going until close to midnight.
“Lionel Richie’s ‘Stuck on You’ was our first dance. It was special to us even though it wasn’t traditional,” she said.
“Jared and I were both nervous about being the center of attention all day. We thought the band would take some of that pressure off,” Nikki said. “The live band was awesome. One of the guitar players came out and was singing in between tables. At one point, they had everybody form a circle around us and sing ‘Piano Man’ and we danced in the middle.”
The topper on the couple’s two-layer cake was a nod to Jared’s love of boating and fishing. It displayed a groom kissing his bride, with the couple’s initials in a nearby fishing pole. The river theme continued with a sweet sign, made by one of Nikki’s high school classmates, that proclaimed, “I’ll love you until the river runs dry.” The wedding she spent a year planning truly was perfect, Nikki said. “The day goes crazy fast. I don’t think I ever expected it to go that fast,” she said. “It was everything we dreamed of.”
