Andy & Scott: A Puerto Vallarta Gay Wedding

Andy from New Orleans, Louisiana and Scott from Huntington, West Virginia first met on April 4th, 2017. “We’re a Tinder success story!” They proclaimed from the start. This is the story of  how they met, fell in love, and got married in romantic Puerto Vallarta. 

How did you meet?

“We weren't that excited to meet each other. He had semi-blurry pictures and wasn’t particularly funny or chatty over text. He thought I was overly eager. So, trying to manage expectations, put forth as little effort as possible, but also technically putting myself out there, I suggested a Tuesday night sushi dinner at one of my regular first date spots steps away from my apartment. I knew the drill. Get there first. Sit facing the door, so I have first glance and make a game time decision, as to how long I'd stay. Then, he walked in. Tall and gorgeous with a warm smile on his face. I smiled, waved, stood up and we hugged. It immediately felt right. It felt like home, as we would later both describe in our vows. We fit together. We both felt it. We had a really fun dinner with easy conversation. We walked to get some frozen yogurt afterwards, said goodbye, and that was it!”

When did you know you were in love?

“From the moment we met, we both felt a strong connection. We wanted to spend all our time together and couldn't stop thinking or talking about the other. For me (Andy), it was on a weekend wine tasting trip to Solvang, California a few months later when I just couldn't contain myself anymore. I turned to him and said, ‘I can't fall asleep one more night without telling you I love you.’ And, he said it back!”

Who Proposed?

“Andy proposed. We bought a home and took possession around our two year anniversary. I figured the night we moved in would be the perfect time to ask. I called his mom that day, and told her that I'd be proposing that night and she gave me her blessing. So, that night we went to dinner and when we got back to our new place, I put on a Pink Martini playlist (one of our favorite bands), opened a bottle of Dom that I'd saved for a special occasion, and told him I had a house warming present for him. He opened a box that had a custom made ID bracelet, one similar to his grandfather's that he cherished. On one side it had my initials + his initials and the other side it said, "will you marry me?" I got down on my knee and said some nice things that I can't really remember and cried. He said yes!”

What was most surprising about planning your wedding in Puerto Vallarta? 

“The most surprising thing about planning a wedding is just how fun it actually is. We absolutely loved the planning process. It didn't stress us out at all.  It's a privilege to marry your favorite person and to invite everyone you love to witness it, so we really enjoyed the process. That said, planning a wedding in another country is no joke. It can be very complicated. The biggest challenge was getting all the wedding supplies to Mexico. We didn’t realize when we started planning that the resort and town didn’t have many of the items we needed like signage, menus cards, party favors, table numbers, or even the stands to put the table numbers on.  We tried to ship everything to the resort, but the boxes were held up in customs and shipped back. So, we eventually just packed 3 extra suitcases and brought everything with us the week of the wedding. It wasn’t ideal, but it all worked out.”

What was your wedding day like?

“It rained last-minute before the ceremony, so we had to scramble to pull a new location together in 10- minutes. We turned what would have been a lovely beach wedding, into a bit of an adventure with people standing shoulder-to-shoulder, surrounding us with love, sharing tissues, and wiping each other’s eyes underneath a covered atrium off the hotel lobby. The feeling of community and love transcended the event, and friends and family felt touched not just by a wedding, but the kindness and openness of fellow guests that they didn’t necessarily know.

The second we turned the corner to walk down the aisle, our guests erupted in cheers and applause and I immediately started crying. It was such a surprise, as every wedding I'd ever been to was very quiet. That welcome from our loved ones set the tone for an incredibly emotional and uplifting ceremony. We all cried happy tears. We felt so much lover for each other and for our friends and family who flew down to Mexico to support us. It was truly the best day of our lives and we carry that feeling with us even now. We'll never forget how electric that night was.

We surprised our guests with a dance performance from a trio of professional dancers from Los Angeles, called The Kiss Boyz, who've appeared in videos for Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, and Sam Smith. They came out in red 7-inch heels, laced wedding dresses, and rocked an original dance to Bette Midler’s Going to the Chapel and then turned up the party to Britney Spears’ Work Bitch. Our guests freaked out! It was definitely a moment to remember and it got the party started.”

What were your favorite parts of your vows?

Andy’s vows said, “When you smiled at me for the first time. And, hugged me. I saw my future.  And, I flashed back to my past as a little boy, confused about life and love, and what that would ever mean for me. I dreamed then that one day it would all makes sense. And, here we are. It’s the privilege of my life to marry you today and tell you that... You put a smile on my face just by walking in a room. Your kiss gives me butterflies. Your belief in me, inspires me to be a better person. And you are a million dreams and a million prayers of a little boy come true.”

Scott’s vows said, ”When I think of our relationship it's the quieter, seemingly insignificant moments that no one sees and no one would understand that mean the most to me. They say you should spend your life not with the person you want to go home with, but the person you want to wake up next to. I get to spend mine with both."

What advice would you give to another couple getting married?

“The best advice we could give is just remember that no one knows all the details but you. At the end of the day, people just want to share in your love. They don’t care about every little detail, so if mistakes happen, just keep going and enjoy the experience. It's literally the only time in life that everyone you care about is in one place to celebrate love. Cherish the time and don't stress.”

Where did you go for your honeymoon?

“Our honeymoon was magical, to the point where four other couples we know booked their honeymoons based on our instagram stories. We started on a safari in South Africa's Kruger National Park and did four nights at Rhino Post Lodge which was incredible. We saw "The Big Five" and many other amazing wild animals. It was magical from start to finish. Having rosé every night in the bush as the sun set was breathtaking. From there, we went way out into the Indian Ocean to the gorgeous island of Mauritius, where we hiked, swam with wild dolphins in the ocean, and napped on the beach for a week. From there, we spent two nights in Dubai and one night in London visiting friends.”

Grooms’ Instagrams: @andystrauser & @1scottjones
Photographer: Andres Barria Photography Instagram: @andresbarriaphotography