An International Love Story

We’re obsessed with this Utah civil ceremony that started outside of Utah. Urim and Sam’s love story began in the most modern of ways—swiping on Mutual during a global pandemic. The only problem was that Urim was in New Zealand and Sam was in Boston.

They navigated a long-distance relationship filled with video calls, messages, and a shared history that tied them to Korea, where they had both served as LDS missionaries—in different missions at the same time.

After five months of virtual dating, the borders opened, allowing Urim and Sam to travel to meet for a first official date in Korea, kicking off their romance. Who wouldn’t want a romantic international first date?

Luckily, Urim had already applied and gotten into law school at Georgetown, and Sam was pursuing his MBA at U Penn—they continued long-distance while in graduate school, though the distance was considerably shorter this time.

Wedding Weekend in Utah

While visiting Sam’s family in Utah, a photoshoot in the snow turned into a surprise engagement, which led to a gorgeous wedding on a spring day in the very same state.

Their wedding weekend kicked off the night before with a stunning Utah civil ceremony in the Provo canyon, at an intimate rehearsal dinner at their family cabin. They were legally married by Sam’s mom, and it was the first time both of their parents had officially met each other.

They were sealed the next morning in the LDS temple by Urim’s mission president—and then Sam’s mission president officiated their ring ceremony shortly after. It was a full-circle moment for their love story that started in Korea.

Looking back, Urim’s favorite moment was their temple sealing. “I was just so happy and radiant and it was the best feeling coming out of the temple and coming out to meet our people.”

Traditional Korean Paebaek

But the day didn’t stop there! Urim and Sam honored her Korean heritage and their shared experiences in the country with a traditional Paebaek ceremony—another full-circle moment for them on their wedding day. And we’re obsessed with her traditional Korean hanbok, the colors perfectly complement her radiant smile.

“It’s traditional to address your parents on both sides and let them know that you’re going to be married. And there’s a fun ritual that you do where you hold a cloth and they throw dried juju beans and chestnuts.”

“They throw it and you’re supposed to catch them in the cloth—so the dried juju represents boys and the chestnuts represent girls. And depending on how many you catch is how many kids you’re going to have.”

Every photo from their Paebaek ceremony has us fangirling!

Celebrating Your Love With Family

At every celebration that they had, between the Utah civil ceremony, temple sealing, ring ceremony, and the Paebaek ceremony, Urim and Sam loved the opportunity to show their love for each other in front of their friends and family.

“It was something special to have everybody witness the love that we had for each other. Up until that point, it was kind of private, it was long distance. We felt good about each other and our parents gave us their blessings on each side, but it was just nice to be able to declare that in front of everyone, and make promises and make it public and official. It was like coming out into the public and letting people know. I really enjoyed that part.”

And we’re enjoying every moment of it too!

“I look back on videos, and every time I listen to it, I just kind of fall in love again.”

Between the two of them, they had a few priorities when they were in the process of planning their wedding. For Sam, it was having a big open reception, where they could include as many of their friends and family as possible.

Bringing Cultures Together for a Utah Civil Ceremony and More

“I think culturally we had different expectations of weddings at the start. In New Zealand, it’s traditional in the sense that you have a sit-down meal, and it’s more of a formal wedding. But here, you have more of an open kind of reception, which is new for me. And I think his priority was to be as inclusive as possible. I was fine with that.”

For Urim, her priority was the flowers. “I wanted fresh, nice flowers and decor. Just making sure that it looked nice, and that the atmosphere was nice.” And her florist absolutely delivered! Not only were her florals stunning beyond compare, but they perfectly matched the beautiful venue at Wadley Farms where they held their reception and ceremonies.

Urim’s advice for brides who are in the midst of wedding planning is to just enjoy the moment! “The planning can be stressful, but I think you’re going to look back at that and hopefully you enjoy the moment, enjoy the planning. And leave time and space to change your mind. Because we did that a few times.”

There’s nothing wrong with changing your mind every now and then when it comes to planning a Utah civil ceremony and more!

“Plan it in advance and look at different things and give yourself time to change your mind and be flexible.”

For Urim and Sam, at the end of the day, it was all about the celebration of the love they share.

“It’s just going to all come together at the end and you’re going to see your hard work pay off. Even if little things don’t perfectly line up, it’s about the people that are there, and the love that you feel is going to make it a perfect day.”

We couldn’t agree more! Urim and Sam’s wedding day, from the Utah civil ceremony to the Paebaek, was the perfect combination of love, joy, and gorgeous scenery to bring it all together. We will be looking at these photos—and the stunning smiles on their faces—for the foreseeable future.