Carla Gamble and Teneshia Washington had their romance blossom outside of the now-closed XO Lounge.
Gamble, 28, and a few friends were trying to hail a cab when Washington, 33, entered the scene and got a taxi for them. The two exchanged numbers on that December 2013 day, and the rest was history.
The couple married on Aug. 19 at the Friends Center in a traditional Christian ceremony. Washington reflected on the wedding-planning process.
“If I was to give advice to anyone, I would say to make sure that you set a budget and stick with it and don’t let anyone keep adding things to it,” she said. “By the time your wedding comes, you’re already panicking, so make sure you plan it out.”
Their big day included a series of challenges, which saw Washington cooking for the entire wedding party.
“I’m just so proud of her,” Gamble said before turning to Washington. “And I just love you.”
“Until this day, I am like, I can’t believe my wife cooked for our entire wedding party. That’s a lot to do on your wedding day. This was her wedding too,” Gamble added with a laugh.
Other experiences weren’t so funny — such as when certain family members didn’t show up to the wedding because they did not believe in same-sex marriage.
“It was definitely a shock,” Washington said. “We ignored it. We just got married.”
However, Washington said there were also a few surprises, particularly around Gamble’s mother and stepfather.
“They are really high up in a black Christian church and they were in front-row center and they were very supportive and walked her down the aisle,” Washington said. “So we allowed those who disagreed to feel comfortable in the fact that it’s OK for them to disagree as long as outside of all of this, you still love us as human beings. We’re not going to fault you for your beliefs, just like we hope you won’t fault us for ours. And the people [whom we] thought were the ones who wouldn’t come, they were there.”
“I definitely was very thankful because my mom came and I lost my father last year, so that was hard,” Gamble added. “Having my stepfather walk me down the aisle was such a big deal because they are very high up in the church and I didn’t really expect that.”
After all of the setbacks and surprises, the couple was ready to go on their honeymoon. The two stayed at the Wyndham Grand Rio Mar Beach Resort & Spa in Puerto Rico and enjoyed a variety of activities on the island, including horseback riding, go-karting, tours and scuba diving.
The couple said they were so relaxed, they were in bed by 8 or 9 p.m. just about every night.
“We got dressed to go to San Juan one night,” Washington said. “We’re like, OK, we’re going to go party. This is going to be our party night. Then we got fully dressed and we were like … ”
“Ah!” the couple sighed in unison, adding they were too relaxed to go anywhere.
The two agreed that it “feels different” to be married.
“We attract so many couples who want advice,” Gamble said. “I feel so honored but we’re human. We’re not perfect even though we’re married. They respect us so much more because marriage is a big deal.”
Washington said the one piece of advice she would give couples is to “never stop talking” and noted the importance of compromise.
“We had this huge argument because I used to fall asleep on the couch all the time. [She said] she can’t sleep without me so she used to get upset. [I didn’t] realize how frustrating it was to her and how much she just wanted to be near me, but then I had to adjust for that.”
Washington said these expectations from Gamble ultimately are grooming her to be a better person.
“It’s just making me a better me,” she said.
Meanwhile, Gamble said she loves Washington’s work ethic and driven attitude. Additionally, she noted Washington has a 6-year-old son, Daniel, from a previous relationship and hinted at the future.
“[Washington’s] parenting skills are amazing and I love that, which will prepare me for my future child. She is so loving and understanding and I just love that about her.”