How they met
Nicole and Matt’s story began in a small bar in Market Square in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh. It was St. Patrick’s Day and even in a sea of green, Matt’s 6’1″ stature and dark, handsome features caught Nicole’s eye from across the room. It wasn’t long before Matt took notice of Nicole, and it was later revealed that he thought she was cute the moment he laid eyes on her. It just so happened that Bryan, one of the friend’s Matt was with that day, was an acquaintance of Nicole’s. This coincidence created the perfect opportunity for Matt to meet Nicole, so Matt and his group of friends made their way over to where Nicole and her group of friends were seated. Immediately after being introduced, Matt and Nicole hit it off. They enjoyed each other’s company so much that they, along with their friends, ended up spending the rest of the day together. At the end of the night, Matt and his friends wanted to go to a different bar while Nicole’s friends wanted to grab a bite to eat. Even though Nicole told Matt that she and her friends would likely meet up with him again later, it never happened. Much to Nicole’s dismay, she and Matt hadn’t exchanged numbers before parting ways, but dating in the age of social media solved that problem. The next day Nicole was excited to find a Facebook friend request from Matt.
After a couple of weeks and a long exchange of messages, Matt finally mustered up the courage to ask Nicole out on a date. For their first date, Matt took Nicole to an Italian restaurant in his hometown of Murrysville. Not only was their attraction strong but their conversation was easy. Their first date led to many more dates and their deep conversations turned many nights into mornings. Unfortunately, Chaucer’s belief that “all good things come to an end” proved true too soon when Nicole and Matt’s budding relationship withered after only a couple of months for no good reason and no fault of their own.
That June, Nicole and Matt coincidentally ran into each other at a nightclub in Pittsburgh’s Strip District (Nicole was invited by a friend to a VIP party on a whim and Matt was reluctantly dragged there by Bryan.) Since their brief courtship didn’t necessarily end on a bad note, Nicole cordially approached Matt to say “hi,” and he appeared pleasantly surprised by her congeniality. After exchanging pleasantries, Nicole and Matt were forced to say goodbye being that it was closing time.
Three months later and out of the blue, Nicole received a message from someone she’d matched with on the dating app, Tinder. Her match turned out to be Matt and his message read, “Second chances?” It just so happened that Matt and Bryan were out celebrating Oktoberfest and Bryan’s curiosity about how Tinder worked led Matt to come across Nicole’s picture. Matt didn’t need much convincing to “swipe right,” and when Bryan took Matt’s phone and typed the message that would.” eventually lead Matt and Nicole back to each other, Matt didn’t stop him from pressing the send button. Lo and behold, a couple of weeks later Matt and Nicole went on their second “first date.”
The engagement
Nearly five years later, Nicole and Matt took a trip to Charleston, SC. Due to their mutual love of travel, Matt and Nicole traveled to a different vacation spot every summer since their first year together. On August 7, 2019, Matt gave Nicole one more reason to love her favorite city when he got on bended knee and surprised her with a proposal at Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. The Holy City now forever holds a special place in both Nicole and Matt’s hearts.
The brightest memories from Nicole and Matt’s wedding day were:
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Matt seeing Nicole for the first time as she walked down the aisle
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Nicole’s “first look” with her dad in her mom’s garden
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the profound homily given by their priest
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being introduced as “Mr. and Mrs. Iocco” as they walked into the reception to “Feel This Moment
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their first dance to “At Last”
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dancing to “Wind Beneath My Wings” for the father/daughter dance because Nicole’s dad always told her she was actually his “hero”
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being surrounded by their closest family and friends
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tearing up the dance floor with their families and friends
