When Rayna met Randall, which can we just say rolls off the tongue in an cute soulmate-y way, the Texans had some light hurdles to beat. For one, she was on her way out of the door when he was working up the courage to introduce himself, and well, he knew nothing of certainly one of her favorite TV characters with whom he just so happened to share a reputation.

“I used to be attending an Urban League Young Professionals event and Randall was on the town for a piece conference and had walked over to the hotel bar for a drink with some colleagues,” she says of the of the moment in 2019 on the South Congress Hotel in Austin. “I used to be about to depart and had called my Uber, and he got here as much as me and introduced himself, saying, ‘Hi, I’m Randall.’ I said, ‘Oh em gee, like This Is Us!’ and he told me that he didn’t watch the show. I told him that ‘Randall was one of the best ever, and I’m Rayna Reid, but my Uber is here. Gotta run!’”

In her rush to not miss her ride home, Rayna wasn’t in a position to trade numbers, social media profiles, business cards — anything with Randall. She thought she may need missed out, but little did she know, she made enough of an impact on him of their very transient introduction that he decided to look her up online. He would eventually find her after going through 11 search pages searching for the suitable “Rayna Reid.”

“Afterward that week, I got a message on LinkedIn from Randall where he told me that it was great meeting me and that he can be back on the town at the tip of the month for one more conference and desired to take me out to dinner,” she recalls. “After he looked for me through LinkedIn, I felt so special.”

His diligence to search out her paid off. The 2 ended up hitting it off. She had a sense very early, literally the night they met, that she could have found her person. His inkling got here a couple of weeks into their actual relationship.

“I knew she was The One after spending our first weekend together at her place in Austin,” he says. “It was fun, relaxing, and nervously exciting. I feel we discovered that we were excellent at hanging out together, and as I used to be driving home to Houston I remember considering how much I desired to proceed hanging out with Rayna.”

That feeling would proceed, culminating in Randall asking for Rayna’s hand in marriage in an excellent romantic way in 2021 (more on that shortly!). The 2, who reside in Houston now, would go on to plan their big day miles and miles away at Rayna’s parents’ home in Newport News, Va. It wasn’t the simplest process (when is doing anything long distance?), however the final result was the right microwedding in her parents’ backyard. The 2 said “I do” on June 11 in front of just nine guests in a ceremony and celebration that was all about embracing things special to the couple; from their love of books to Rayna wearing certainly one of the beloved dresses from her days competing in pageants as her wedding gown. It wasn’t the standard wedding of the supposed “post-COVID” era where it’s often go big or go home, but for Rayna, it was “a dream come true.”

Try photos from their very special occasion and learn more about the way it all got here together, below.

01

The Proposal

“I used to be resolved to ask Rayna to marry me before the tip of 2021. So after all I waited all the way in which until December 30, which can also be my parents’ anniversary,” Randall says. “The ring was overnighted to Houston and arrived around 8:30 p.m. the night of. I then rushed to Rayna’s apartment. I used to be planning to knock on the door and drop to a knee once she answered. She was out, so I went in, turned out the lights, and lit a bunch of candles to set the mood. As she walked in, I feel she knew what was happening. I quickly got down on one knee, told her how much she meant to me, and asked her to be my wife. She said yes, took a shower, and we went to dinner.
”

02

A Warm Welcome

The couple’s wedding sign signaled a latest adventure for them and their families.

03

Father-Son Moment

Randall gets gussied up for his big day with help from his dad.

04

The Final Touches

In one other room, Rayna got help zipping up her gown from her soon-to-be mother-in-law.

05

Here Comes the Bride

Rayna marched down the aisle in her parents’ spacious backyard with help from the primary man she ever loved — her dad.

06

A Sweet Ceremony

The couple stand on the altar, preparing to change into husband and wife.

07

Time to Party

The couple danced the night away throughout the reception. Rayna, specifically, partied in a re-assessment of the day.

08

The Planning Process

“We decided to have a small ceremony with just immediate family in Rayna’s parents’ backyard in Virginia,” Randall says. “We selected that venue since it was spacious and matched our plans, but most significantly, it was free.”
Rayna adds, “Although we only had 11 people, including us, it was still far more stressful than I assumed it could be. I’ve all the time desired to get married in my parents’ backyard in Virginia, so luckily the venue was available once we asked my family!”

09

The Groom’s Favorite Moment

“My favorite moment of the day was right after the ceremony but before the eating began when each families were hanging out on the patio, drinking, listening to music, and interacting. It demonstrated the joining of the 2 families, which was the explanation for the small ceremony,” Randall says.

10

We Are Family

“We each come from very competitive families, and provided that all of us live in numerous cities nowadays, we don’t get together as often as we would really like,” Rayna says. “We planned an epic game night after the reception, and everybody showed up with their A-game. We drew names to determine teams, and despite the fact that my team lost, it was a lot fun hanging out with everyone and playing together!”

11

Special Touches

Along with Randall wearing his favorite ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ socks and his dad’s Rolex, Rayna wore a favourite dress from her days as a pageant queen. “I competed in pageants back within the day, and had all the time desired to wear my evening gown as my wedding dress, so because of hot yoga, reformer pilates, and triathlon training I used to be in a position to fit into my old gown for the ceremony!” she says.

12

An Ode to Their Love of Books

“We each like to read and even have our own book club together, so my bouquet was made out of book pages and so was Randall’s boutonniere,” Rayna says.

13

The Cookie Cake

The couple had two cakes for the reception. “Randall’s mom made her famous chocolate cake, and my sister’s godfather made my favorite cookie cake I had at every birthday celebration growing up,” Rayna says.

14

The Chocolate Cake

The world famous chocolate cake from Randall’s mom. “I really like how we were in a position to incorporate plenty of little details about us into the day,” Rayna says.

15

Randall and Rayna within the Rain

The 2 share a kiss during a transient rain shower.

16

His Hopes for the Future

“I’m looking forward to many more trips together, settling into our eventual home, and limitless two-person game nights,” Randall says.

17

Her Hopes for the Future

“Watching TV shows and flicks together (that I’ll try not to go to sleep on), reading more books together, playing games, traveling the world and filling out the whole lot of our scratch-off map, exploring national parks, attending sporting events,” Rayna says. “In sum, just doing life together as R squared!”