Kristal and Ben met completely by chance at a Starbucks. Ben mistakenly took Kristal’s beverage but he was able to keep the conversation going long enough to get an email address from her. They exchanged a few emails and agreed to a date. Ben had to cancel the first time, because he was out in LA producing a TV spot that ran over budget and behind schedule. The next time Kristal canceled because of work related issues. Finally the two got together.

Since Kristal lived in San Antonio, the two met there for their first date at Massimo’s in Alamo Heights. “It was absolutely the best first date I have ever been on,” said Ben. “I drove back to Austin that night wondering if I might possibly have been on the last “first date” of my life.”

That was August 2005 and they have been together ever since.

On the night of December 5, 2006, the couple was in Dallas having dinner at romantic restaurant before attending the Dixie Chicks concert. Ben had been thinking about the perfect time to ask Kristal to marry him, and before he knew it, it just popped out! Kristal of course said “yes” and they set the date. This was a difficult thing to do because of their busy schedules. Ben is a partner in a regional full-service advertising agency and Kristal is currently pursuing a career in real estate.

Ben and Kristal had such busy lives that they decided right away to hire Michelle Thompson as their wedding coordinator, and together the three put together an amazingly beautiful wedding.
The wedding ceremony was held outdoors at Green Pastures in South Austin. The entire ceremony was held near sundown and was lighted to give it that sunset atmosphere. Kristal wore a beautiful Lazaro gown and Ben wore the same navy blue Dupioni silk suit that his father wore 50 years ago at Ben’s parents’ 1957 wedding. The ceremony began with two flower girls leading Ben and Kristal’s two Shetland sheepdogs, Nipper and Bambi, down the aisle. The two dogs were the honorary ring bearers. For the wedding ceremony the couple wrote their own vows and worked with their officiant, the reverend Sarah de la Fuente, to compose a custom-made wedding message that reflected the couple’s spiritual views and commitment to each other. Included within the vows and reverend de la Fuente’s message were quotes from various rock and roll lyrics that were meaningful to Ben and Kristal. The couple then exchanged very special wedding rings during the ceremony. Kristal’s wedding ring was an art deco platinum ring with two sapphires on either side of a one caret diamond; the diamond that had been set into an engagement ring that belonged to Ben’s mother. For Kristal’s “something blue,” she wore Ben’s mother’s aquamarine ring on her right hand. Ben’s ring was palladium with a thin band of rose gold. The rose gold in Ben’s ring was symbolic of Kristal’s copper-red hair color.

Once the ceremony was over, it was less than a 100-yard walk for the guests and wedding party to the reception at the main house of Green Pastures. Ben and Kristal brought custom lighting into Green Pastures to capture the ambience of a 1940’s era nightclub for the reception. Will Taylor and Strings Attached provided the reception music of all custom arranged versions of a diverse mix of music from Sting’s “Fields of Gold” to Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll.’ The first dance for the newlyweds was “Moon River” and the father-daughter dance was the Beatles “In My Life.”

During band breaks Ben and Kristal’s Trash Disco was open for business and the party goers got a chance to get down to old favorites such as Dancing Queen and YMCA. Ben acting as the MC for the entire evening, even did an impromptu contest whereby the best YMCA dance contest winner got a color TV from Ben and Kristal’s public storage as a prize. One of the big hits of the evening was Kristal’s Kandy Bar, a mix of everything from lavender and teal M&Ms to malted milk balls, all day suckers, and lavender icing cupcakes. Throughout the reception as well as the ceremony, exquisite flower designs by Coby Neal’s Flower Studio adorned tables and place settings. Most flowers followed Kristal’s color theme of lavender, teal and wine colors. “It was a spectacular, magical night of fun!” said Ben.

“While the wedding was awesome, the honeymoon may have been even better,” said Ben. After spending a couple of days and nights at the Four Seasons in Austin, Ben and Kristal departed on an eight day honeymoon up and down the California Coast. Starting out at the San Ysidro Ranch, where Vivian Leigh married Sir Laurence Olivier in 1940 and John and Jackie Kennedy honeymooned in 1953. The newlyweds went up the California coast through Big Sur to San Francisco where they spent two days in the city and then move on to Napa and the wine country. The honeymoon culminated in LA with a chance to see The Eagles and The Dixie Chicks live in concert at the grand opening of the new Nokia Theater. This was an especially amazing opportunity for Ben and Kristal since their first concert together was The Eagles in Las Vegas in 2005 and they got engaged the night of the Dixie Chicks Concert in Dallas in December 2006. Ben and Kristal’s whirlwind romance had come full circle and Ben had his answer. It truly was his last “first date” of his life.

Austin Resources

Wedding Cake:
Green Pastures

Venue:
Green Pastures

Flowers:
Coby Neal’s Flower Studio

Wedding Jewelry:
Designed by Anthony Nak

Caterer:
Green Pastures

Music:
Will Taylor and Strings Attached

Photography:
Dianna M. Lott Photography

Videography:
Ashley Chiles of Ladyflash

Invitations:
Designed by Dick Reeves