By Barry Wise Smith Photos by Caroline Bobbitt Photography
To say that Stephanie and Daniel Sims had a busy 2025 would be a drastic understatement. In the span of a year, with just eight months separating them, both of their children—son Trey and daughter Kate—got married. “While it was busy and a little challenging at times, it was fun and special for our entire family to celebrate all year long,” Stephanie says with a smile.
Trey & Mary Cate
Trey kicked off the nuptial excitement when he proposed to his now wife Mary Cate Saville on Memorial Day weekend in May 2024. The couple met as Cupola Engineering Ambassadors when both were engineering students in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering at Auburn. Mary Cate recalls, “When Trey proposed, I immediately began dreaming of a beautiful spring wedding filled with color, flowers and fun details.”
The couple set their wedding date for April 12, 2025—Mary Cate’s parents’ 28th wedding anniversary—at Vestavia Hills Methodist Church, where Mary Cate grew up going to church. “Having grown up attending VHMC, it was especially meaningful to be married in the place where the foundations of my faith grew,” she says. “Above all, I wanted our wedding weekend to feel joyful and stress-free so we could fully focus on celebrating the beginning of our marriage with our family and friends.”
Mary Cate hired wedding planner Carly Stanback of Elizabeth Carlisle Events and planned her reception for the Vestavia Country Club. Caroline Bobbitt was the wedding photographer, and Kate’s future mother-in-law, Melissa Mistrot, contributed the wished-for flowers with her design group Garden Party Designs. “Our vendors brought every vision to life beautifully, and I can confidently say it was the best weekend of our lives,” Mary Cate says. Minister Robert Sturdivant, Trey and Kate’s youth minister at Trinity United Methodist Church, performed their ceremony.
As parents of the groom, Stephanie and Daniel hosted a fun and festive rehearsal dinner at Dyron’s Lowcountry, where Garden Party Designs also did the flowers, which were then added to arrangements at the couple’s reception the following day. “It all came together perfectly,” Stephanie says. “I can’t say enough nice things about them. It was so lovely.”
Both Kate and her fiancé Will stood up for Trey and Mary Cate on their wedding day, a favor they would return a few short months later. “Experiencing wedding season together made the whole year that much more fun,” Mary Cate says. “It was easily one of the most memorable years of our lives, and I love that we got to experience it together.”
As for her wedding, Mary Cate says it turned out just as she had hoped, “It was the sweetest, most joyful day surrounded by our family and friends. From getting ready with our favorite people to dancing late into the evening, every part of the day felt incredibly special.”
After a Hawaiian honeymoon, Trey and Mary Cate settled in Homewood with their golden retriever, Sandy, and both work as engineers at Southern Company. “Our wedding day was a joyful celebration, but even more importantly, it marked the beginning of the life we look forward to building together,” Mary Cate says.
Kate & Will
Unlike Trey and Mary Cate, Kate started dating her now husband Will Mistrot while they were both students at Homewood High School. A year older than Kate, Will went to Auburn first as a civil engineering major, and Kate joined him a year later majoring in biomedical sciences with an eye toward medical school.
In 2024, after Trey got engaged, Stephanie remembers thinking that Kate, now a medical student at the University of South Alabama, had a very finite window of time where her schedule would allow for a wedding and a honeymoon. “December was her last real break and the chance to have a wedding,” Stephanie says. Kate and Will got engaged at Christmas in 2024 and set their wedding date for the following year on December 20, 2025.
Having just celebrated as the parents of the groom, Stephanie and Daniel quickly switched gears to planning a wedding as parents of the bride. They enlisted wedding planner Megan Wyatt of Megan Wyatt Designs to help execute Kate’s vision for the wedding. “We pictured a night of celebration surrounded by candlelight, florals and all of the people who have loved us, influenced us and supported us throughout the years,” Kate says.
The ceremony was held at the Sims’ church, Trinity United Methodist, and Robert Sturdivant, who performed Trey and Mary Cate’s ceremony did the same for Kate and Will. Garden Party Designs did the flowers for the rehearsal dinner at the Clubhouse on Highland and the wedding, and as the two couples shared an officiant and floral designer, Caroline Bobbitt also did photography for Kate and Will’s wedding. The reception was held at The Farrell in Homewood with Tre Luna as the caterer. To expand the intimate space, Wyatt added tents in the courtyard and a floored tent in the parking lot to house a bourbon bar for the groom.
Trey and Mary Cate returned the favor and were included in Kate and Will’s wedding party. “The four of us had teary eyed conversations on both of our wedding weekends about how incredibly grateful we felt to finally be family,” Kate says. “How lucky are we that we have built-in best friends for life! We cannot wait to grow old with each other, but also with Trey and MC!”
As for the wedding living up to her expectations, Kate is clear that it was a success. “Our wedding was everything we could have imagined and more,” she says. “We had slow mornings getting ready in our childhood homes and a stunning ceremony at the church I grew up in. Because we are both from Homewood and attended Auburn, the night felt like a much-needed reunion of friends from every stage of our lives. It was shockingly beautiful weather for the end of December, and we have never felt so much joy.”
After a honeymoon in Saint Lucia, Kate and Will settled into their home in Mobile with their Labrador Retriever puppy Mae as Kate completes medical school and starts her medical residency in pediatrics and Will continues his career with Brasfield and Gorrie.
As for the monumental year in their family, Kate says, “We joked about ‘our poor parents’ and ‘at least they got it over with in one fell swoop,’ but we really are so grateful for our parents being willing to take on such huge celebrations within the same year—2025 was absolutely a year to remember for our family!” Stephanie agrees, “It was truly all just perfect. Someone told Daniel and I to just enjoy every minute, and I can say honestly at both weddings, we did just that and had so much fun!”
