By Barry Wise Smith Photos by Kristen Pugh Photography
Even in childhood, Riordan Wyatt Matthaei was fascinated by Spain. “I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t interested in visiting Spain,” she says. “I think it started in elementary school when my parents encouraged me to take Spanish.”
Growing up in Homewood and going through the Homewood schools, Riordan focused on studying Spanish and cheering. “My parents said that if I learned how to speak Spanish, I could travel to these exciting places, and I was hooked,” she continues. “I studied Spanish beginning in sixth grade and continued it all the way through college.”
That college was Birmingham-Southern (BSC) where Riordan was a cheerleader, continued her Spanish studies, majored in Business and Spanish and met her future husband Colin Matthaei, who grew up in St. Augustine, Florida, and came to BSC to play soccer. “Spanish dominated most of my educational journey,” Riordan says. “It was always my top priority and guided me in choosing where to go to school, what to study and what experiences I wanted. I chose BSC because it allowed me to continue my Spanish education and provided opportunities to study abroad, which I did in Seville in Spring 2016.”
Riordan and Colin first met during BSC orientation when they were in the same orientation group. But their first real meeting happened during a Jan-term trip to Costa Rica in January later that year. “We quickly connected over our interest in traveling,” Riordan says. “By the end of the trip, we decided our friends needed to be friends, and we kick started the creation of our little community at BSC. We didn’t actually start dating until the summer before our senior year. We love that we had years to foster such a strong friendship and build our relationship.”
After Riordan’s semester in Spain, she knew she wanted to return. When she discovered the North American Language and Culture Assistant Program—a program through the Spanish Embassy that places American students and graduates in Spanish schools to help with language programs—Riordan, now with Colin in tow—packed up her life and moved to Madrid. “We had two incredibly fulfilling years living in Madrid and working as English language assistants in local schools,” she says. “In that time, we created a small community of ex-pats—still some of our best friends to this day, and some who were with us at our wedding—traveled throughout Europe and grew our relationship through the unique experience of living abroad.”
The Wedding
After Riordan and Colin got engaged, Riordan’s mind turned immediately to a truly beautiful Spanish wedding (the titular Boda Bonita). “I always said I wanted a destination wedding, and when we got engaged, it just made sense,” Riordan says of her plan to have her wedding in Spain. “Travel and Spain were integral parts of our relationship, and then we had the ultimate adventure to Spain together as first-time adults. We couldn’t not incorporate something so critical to us becoming the people we are today.”
Riordan’s mom, Megan Wyatt, a Birmingham wedding planner, immediately stepped up to help coordinate the details. “I loved working with Riordan and Colin to plan their wedding,” Wyatt says. “As a planner by trade, I wanted to share my expertise and knowledge but also wanted to stay in the role as mom. I was so fortunate to be able to lean on the super talented wedding pros here in Birmingham and in Seville to help guide us, but it was my great team that took the lead and allowed me to be truly present and enjoy the process more fully!”
On March 8, 2025, Riordan and Colin had their Boda Bonita at Real Parroquia de Santa María Magdalena, in Seville, followed by a reception at Casa Manolo Leon. Attended by about 30 people, including their immediate families and very close friends, the wedding was a traditional Catholic ceremony conducted in English.
“When I was studying in Seville, my host father told me that he hoped I would come back and show the people I love this amazing place and how it made me, me,” Riordan remembers. “Since then, I have shared Seville with my family, my best friend and then Colin. Through my experiences in Seville, I found what meant the most to me, what I wanted in life, and who I wanted to share it with. It was only fitting to go back to the place that gave me so much to start the next major phase of our life together. It will forever be a sacred place to me, and I cannot wait for the other major life events it will hold as we grow.”
Guests spent the days before the wedding exploring the sights in Seville, including a tour of the Alcazar (a local Moorish castle), and a welcome/rehearsal dinner at Rio Grande. “One of our top priorities was getting to share what we love most about Spain with the people that are most important to us,” Riordan says. “Spain is our absolute favorite place and where we feel most at home. We wanted those closest to us to see a glimpse of the place that made us the people we are today and see how it shaped our relationship.”
Riordan had several favorite memories of the wedding week, including she and Colin’s first look on their wedding day, which was intended to be a private moment but quickly became the center of attention at the local plaza. “We had a crowd watch our entire meeting,” Riordan says with laugh. “Something quite ironic for two people who do not enjoy being the center of attention.” Between the ceremony and reception, the wedding guests took over a small bar, even sitting on the bar for photos.
For the honeymoon, Riordan and Colin went to Italy, visiting Rome, San Casciano de Bagni and Florence, with a final stop in Dublin for St. Patrick’s Day. “It was Colin’s first visit to Italy,” Riordan says. “We had a trip planned there in 2020 while we were living in Madrid, but it was cancelled due to Covid. We have been hoping to go back ever since!”
The Party
After returning from their honeymoon, Riordan and Colin enjoyed a Welcome Party at Cahaba Brewing Company hosted by the Matthaei family, with family and friends diving into delicious Alabama BBQ. The following night, April 5, the couple hosted 200+ people at the Cathedral of St. Paul for a reception. After a family mass with newlywed blessing, guests enjoyed a sampling of southern bites from Tre Luna and danced the night away to the Emerald Empire Band. Riordan’s brother, Ander, dressed up in the BSC Rowdy mascot outfit and took pictures with guests throughout the night.
Once again, Megan Wyatt put on her wedding planner hat to help coordinate the reception details, pulling in vendors she regularly works with. “Colin and Riordan had a clear vision of what they wanted for both locations, so everything fell in place so easily and organically,” she says. “They wanted to merge their love of Spanish and Southern cultures with touches of color but ultimately wanted to make their guests feel welcome and celebrated.” Guests sipped on a specialty cocktail at the reception—the “Tio de Verano” (actually a tinto de verano but named for their dog Tio)—a refreshing mix of red wine and lemon lime soda that had been a daily treat during the wedding in Spain. With family from New York and Chicago in town for the reception, there was a late-night pass of Davenport’s pizza to help those guests have a little taste of home.
Now settling in to married life, Colin is an associate at Lightfoot, Franklin, & White, and Riordan works in operations at Southern Veterinary Partners. They recently bought a house in Homewood with their golden retriever, Tio (Spanish slang for buddy).
