Mr. & Mrs. LeBlanc

Mr. & Mrs. LeBlanc

July 2, 2016

Samantha and Isaac

Poland Springs Resort

640 Maine St

Poland, Maine 04274

Maid of Honor: Jacque Festa
Best Man: Matt McKenna
Bridesmaids: Jessica Fortin, Amber Fortin, Amanda Irving, Keira King, Elizabeth LeBlanc, Vicki Nadeau
Groomsmen: Jacob Brown, RJ Cornelio, Kevin Gats, CJ Harney, Trevor McCourt
Flower Girl: Reese Gats
Ring Bearer: Liem Fortin
Bridal Party Hair done by: Victoria Geroux and Heather Oliver
Bridal Party Makeup done by: Amanda Irving
Cake and Cupcakes by: Grant’s Bakery
Floral Arrangements done by: The Bridal Party

In loving memory of Lucas Fortin

The drive to The Poland Spring Resort was beautiful. The weather forecast was nothing short of perfect: sunny and breezy. When we found ourselves atop the hill that housed the resort, we were in complete awe by the combination of the view and the weather. The sky was the bluest sky we have seen yet this year with perfectly plush white clouds to make for the best photographs! Samantha and her ladies were getting ready at the Campbell House, while Isaac and his gentlemen got ready in the Pro shop. The chairs were all set up in front of the gazebo, awaiting guests and the bride and groom.

    We made our way to the Pro shop to capture some photographs of Isaac and his Groomsmen. They had a little surprise for us! Underneath their button downs they each had a shirt representing a superhero! To make things even better, they also had cufflinks and socks with the superhero logos as well! Isaac was sporting Batman. We adored capturing this!! These guys went all out to celebrate Isaac’s love of all things superhero (and some silver and blue for the Cowboys of course!). All the men played along pretending to rip their shirts off and make their best ‘off to save the world’ faces. Once we finished photographing Isaac and his guys, we headed back down to the Campbell House to capture Samantha getting into her wedding dress.

    Parked outside the house was a trolley, Samantha and her girls would be arriving to the ceremony in it. All the bridesmaids and the flower girl were dressed and ready to go in the most beautiful turquoise colored dresses. Robyn took them onto the the victorian style porch where she was able to capture the bridesmaids all done up to perfection. Hannah stayed indoors and photographed Samantha getting into her dress with the assistance of her mom, dad, and Isaac’s parents. Hannah mentioned she loved how both sets of parents were present for the dress reveal! Everyone was smiling and some batting away a few tears. Samantha looked stunning in her dress. Soon the trolley driver rung the bell and they were off and headed to the ceremony atop the hill.

    Isaac was standing at the foot of the stairs in front of the gazebo awaiting Samantha’s arrival. As the trolley pulled in and her bridesmaids spilled out, and made their way towards the aisle, Isaac’s smile only grew. He knew who was coming next. The crowd rose and finally, Samantha made her way down the aisle. The breeze had gently picked up her veil and it seemingly floated behind her. Her dress was the talk of the entire day--it was so elegant! Isaac’s smile was so big and Samantha’s matched as they finally met at the bottom of the gazebo stairs. Samantha’s dad put her hand in Isaac’s and the bride and groom made their way up the stairs. The couple had chosen to exchange traditional vows. They slipped rings on one another’s fingers and were told that the rings were, “a symbol of their vows. The unending circle of the rings. With no beginning or ending was a journey of husband and wife, through laughter and tears.” Samantha and Isaac soon after, turned to face the crowd and descended the gazebo stairs as Mr. and Mrs. LeBlanc.

    The bridal party and the newlyweds climbed into the trolley to be taken for photos. They had opted to take photos in front of the All Souls Chapel on the resort’s property. It was built in 1912, was made out of stone and had white doors which made for a great backdrop. The bridal party did not stop laughing. They were quite good at setting off a chain of laughter. The groomsmen were able to bust out their superhero shirts for a few more group shots. However, the best photos came once everyone had left and it was just the Samantha & Isaac. They were so caught up in each other it was like they didn’t even notice the camera. It was wonderful to see two people so in love. Hannah mentioned later on that they nailed “the dip” shot! And as you’ll see in the photograph’s below they sure did! How romantic…

    After finishing photos it was time for everyone to be announced in. Isaac and Samantha had decided to personalize the announcements and had each pair of their bridal party dance in to a 30 second song clip. It was quite the sight to see everyone’s dance moves as they sauntered in. They were a creative and comical bunch. Samantha & Isaac were surrounded by their wedding party as they danced their first dance as husband and wife to Luke Bryan’s “To the Moon and Back.” They were caught up in each other and it seemed as though they were completely unaware of anyone else in the room. Their eyes stayed locked through the whole song and they shared many smiles and laughs as they danced together.

Following the first dance it was time for the toasts to be given. Jacque Festa, Samantha’s maid of honor and cousin gave her toast first. Jacque reminisced about their childhood adventures spent together and many laughs were had. She also thanked Isaac for making Samantha so happy. Isaac’s best man, Matt McKenna spoke about his fifteen years of friendship with Isaac. He mentioned a few embarrassing stories, which definitely had the crowd laughing. He also said, “Isaac is the most unselfish person I know. I have a son now and if he turns out to be half the man he is, I'll be proud.” There were a lot of “aww’s” after that. Isaac was quick to embrace his best friend.

Everyone broke for dinner and had fun tapping their glasses for the couple to share a kiss. The couple made their way around tables to greet all of their guests. After dinner was served, Samantha and her dad met on the dance floor to share their father-daughter dance. They danced to “Then They do” by Trace Atkins. They looked as though they were having a ball and as the song ended her dad scooped her up and twirled her around. We loved that!! It was adorable, they ended their dance floor rendezvous with a big hug. Shortly after, Isaac and his mom began dancing to Celine Dion’s “Because You Loved Me.” Isaac wrapped an arm around his mom and they swayed along, laughing and smiling as they moved to the beat. Isaac and his mom parted ways with a big hug and the dance floor opened to all those wanting to boogie. First on the floor was flower girl Reese Gats. She was eagerly swinging and swaying and pulling as many people on to the dance as she could -and no one could resist her sweet smile and beckoning little hands.

The dance floor paused for Samantha and Isaac to cut their cake. They had a delicate petite cake with a small topper symbolizing their first dance song. It was a black die cut that said, “Love you to the moon & back.” with a silhouette of a couple. They sliced the cake and carefully fed them to one another. Their guests however had a few different flavors of cupcakes to choose from. They even had a gluten free option! Once the cake was cut, there was more dancing! The dance floor was packed and full of moving limbs. Once Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” came on Isaac and his groomsmen rushed to the dance floor. They put their arms around one another’s shoulders and swayed while singing. However at one point Isaac broke free from the chain and gave quite the performance. He was certainly entertaining!

    There was a black cowboy hat that had been on the table in memory of Samantha’s brother-in-law, and her bridesmaid and sister Jessica Fortin’s husband, Lucas Fortin. Lucas is also father to ringbearer Liem and junior bridesmaid Amber Fortin. This significant loss in their family prompted Samantha and Isaac to find ways to tribute him on their special day. One was to have his hat on display with a small message written in chalk, “We know you would be here today if heaven wasn’t so far away.” Sam had his wedding ring strung around her bouquet as her something old and something borrowed. It looked beautiful with the white ribbon against her roses and calla lillies. However, one of the most sentimental moments of the day was when Samantha and her nephew, Liem Fortin stepped on the dance floor and shared a dance to “ Huntin’ Fishin’ and Lovin’ Every Day” by Luke Bryan. They shared a few smiles, and eventually the black cowboy hat that had been on the table was placed on Liem’s head by Sam’s mom. This caused a few tears among the guests. Isaac danced with Amber to “Your Daddy’s Boots” by Justin Lynch. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house. Samantha explained that she and Isaac decided to do the dances with Liem and Amber not only to show them how important they were to them, but how important their dad was to her as well. The special dances concluded the event, but the newlyweds and their wedding party were going to continue the celebration at the Campbell house that night.

Samantha and Isaac,

Thank you for sharing your special day with us.

We wish you a lifetime of happiness and superpowers!

Love,

Double H Photo

Hannah, Robyn and Tara