A Modern New Years Eve Wedding At Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas

Kelsey Hughes and Grant Wilson were childhood sweethearts, both attending St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Austin, Texas. Unfortunately, after a relationship that lasted all of Kelsey’s seventh grade, Grant broke her heart when he transitioned to St. Andrew’s Upper School and discovered new dating opportunities.

Although they didn’t date during high school, the two remained good friends. After seeing each other again during Kelsey’s high school graduation, however, the former lovebirds ended up going on a double date.

“Several days after our date, I found out that Grant had been in a terrible jet ski accident,” Kelsey describes. “He was in the ICU in a coma at the trauma hospital in Austin, and was not expected to live. Miraculously, after 13 days, Grant awoke from his coma and started a long journey of rehabilitation.”

During his year of rehab, Grant interned and earned his Series 7 at a securities firm in Austin – a feat no doctor believed was possible. He then returned to college at the University of Alabama, graduating in finance and earning a spot on the Dean’s List. Having recently lost his father to cancer, Grant then moved back to Austin to be closer to his mother.

“That’s where our story continues,” explains Kelsey. “We had always been supportive and friendly to each other. All his friends had graduated college and were living in different cities; so, I invited Grant to a party I was hosting at my house, and that was the night I knew I was going to marry him.”

After dating for a year and a half, the couple was spending Christmas in Aspen with Grant’s family. Due to her work schedule, Kelsey flew out on Christmas Eve after Grant confirmed he had brought the gifts along with him. During the Christmas gift exchange, Kelsey was confused when her then-boyfriend said he had left her present in Austin. Since it was her first Christmas away from her family, she was upset that Grant had seemingly lied about her present, and mentioned that a simple card would have sufficed. Wearing colorful macaroon print PJs, Kelsey couldn’t hold back the tears.

“To my surprise, Grant came downstairs with a little box and proposed right then and there – the two of us in our pajamas,” she says. “He told me he couldn’t stand to see my cry, but he had made reservations months in advance at Hotel Jerome for the following night, and he was planning on proposing there. Even though it wasn’t what he had planned, I love our proposal and wouldn’t want it any other way.”

The bride and groom were married surrounded by friends, family, and a wedding décor scheme that combined traditional wedding aspects with a modern and edgy touch. After a sparkler exit, the newlyweds got into a Rolls Royce for a little joyride.