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Jessica Batten has found her happily ever after!
The Love is Blind alum and her partner, Benjamin McGrath, eloped after getting engaged in September 2021, and they shared exclusive details of their small ceremony with Brides.
Batten, 38, and McGrath, 36, who is a California-based foot and ankle surgeon, were joined by just four guests when they held the intimate ceremony at a historic Santa Barbara courthouse. It wasn't the wedding that the pair had initially intended, but they shared that "several personal factors" led to them doing away with the idea of a larger wedding for the time being.
"We both went through COVID following the engagement, and we had to move residence shortly thereafter," the couple shared with the publication. "This unexpectedly pushed us out in the planning process. Once we started diving in after the beginning of the year, we realized there were more complexities than we planned for."
Though the two have plans for a larger celebration "down the road," they both said it still felt like now was the right time to elope. Their small event was orchestrated by Crowned Events, just as their larger celebration will be in August 2024.
While the ceremony took place at the historic courthouse, the couple then shared a private dinner and week-long vacation at a private residence in Montecito, per Brides. They told the outlet that the experience was "beautiful," and buzzed about the Spanish architecture of the location.
"My planners made it easy to select vendors because they completely got the vision (and made it even more dreamy). They have extensive knowledge of wedding planning in Southern California from Santa Barbara down to San Diego," they said. "We ended up using vendors from everywhere in between! I stood by in amazement and watched it all come to life!"
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As for the couple's look, Batten wore a "classic staple" of hers, including a nude lip for the ceremony and a coral shade at the wedding reception. She also wore a low bun hairstyle, as well as a lace dress from Reem Acra's 2023 Spring collection, which she says was unplanned.
"I did not plan on a lace dress. In fact I was vocal about that," she told Brides. "But Reem's lace is different, a very modern lace and silhouette, and the appliques were absolutely dreamy. I liked the versatility of the removable overskirt. I could have an over the top moment for a first look, and a much more casual (and comfortable!) look for the courthouse."
McGrath, on the other hand, wore a neutral look with a tan Italian suit, a white tie, Ferragamo loafers, and Batten's father's watch, which he gave the groom the day of the wedding. The couple, who wrote their vows the morning of the event, after spending the night apart, finally saw each other in the morning of the wedding for what they described as a "dramatic moment."
"Our photographer Alex had the perfect idea that Ben would walk through this grandiose standalone door that was located at the back of the property and enter into the courtyard, to see Jess for the first time," they said. "It was the perfect idea and made for a dramatic moment."
Following the ceremony, the couple had dinner on the patio of a private residence, and chowed down on a two-tiered vanilla cake, which included passionfruit curd, mascarpone, blueberry sauce and cream cheese frosting from San Diego baker Peggy Liao, per Brides.
Chef Johnny Weber took care of their five-course meal, which included a main course of smoked prime beef tri-tip with cactus, tomato vinaigrette and cilantro. And even though they weren't there for the whole thing, the couple found a way to involve Ben's two kids in the elopement with a wedding picnic. The couple also said they felt the support of their families on their special day, as they received a message from Ben's parents, and Batten talked to hers in the morning.
"Our elopement was a bite-sized version of a vision that we have planned for our 2024 celebration that will be worthy of our dear family and friends," the couple told Brides.
Their loved ones were previously on hand to celebrate when McGrath popped the question on Sep. 10, 2021, at Akash Winery in Temecula, California.
Batten — who famously ended her engagement to Mark Cuevas on the Netflix reality show by saying "I don't" — told PEOPLE that following the proposal she was "definitely floating somewhere on cloud nine."
"It was quite sneaky," the Illinois native told PEOPLE at the time. "We'd been planning on my dad being in town that weekend for the Bears-Rams football game, but then my dad made a change to his itinerary at the last minute. I thought that was a little strange, but then he said he would plan dinner for all of us on Friday night. I didn't think too much about it. Then Friday came and Ben said, 'Hey, I ran late in surgery and hit traffic, can you just meet me at this winery? We're having dinner there.'"
"So I got in the car with my dad and my stepmom to head to the winery, and I could tell my dad was prolonging things," she continues. "I think Ben was still setting up. But anyway, we make it out to the winery, and it was just a gorgeous night. I walk out and this woman meets me and takes my purse, which I thought was a little strange. She said, 'Let me escort you down into the vineyard.' I'm like, 'Oh we're getting a wine tour!'"
What was waiting for Batten in the vineyard ended up being even better than she could have imagined.
"I walked down into the vineyard, and one of the aisles of grapes had rose petals all the way down to this gorgeous arch with roses all around it," she says. "Ben was standing there, and I pretty much knew at that point what was happening. So I just started getting overwhelmed with emotion. When I walked down, the first thing he said was, 'I want you to remember this moment for the rest of your life.'"
McGrath got down on one knee with a round brilliant ring from Mark Broumand. Their favorite JP Saxe song "Line by Line," was playing in the background.
Batten told PEOPLE that though she was "totally overwhelmed" in the moment, she was able to remember the special response she had planned.
"The best part was — and I had planned this for whatever he asked me — I recited this line from Suits because we had watched eight or nine seasons together when we were long distance: 'Do I have brains in my head? Do I have a heart in my chest?' So that's what I said instead of 'yes.' We were both crying!" she recalled.
At the time, Batten recognized that she had come a long way since Love Is Blind first started streaming in February 2020.
"It was such a weird time, and I was definitely experiencing some hate when the original show came out," she said. "It was like, kind of like that Taylor Swift song, 'Reputation.' "
But not everything to come out of the show was negative, in fact, McGrath actually reached out to Batten on Instagram after watching her on it. They then decided to meet for a bike ride in March 2020, right before California was sent into lockdown amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two were based an hour and a half away from one another at the time which meant "a lot of FaceTiming."
Before their engagement, the couple had moved in together and gotten close to each other's families, including McGrath's two kids from a previous relationship, Poppy and Ethan, and Batten's dog Payton, who Batten said is "very happy to have a new dad."
In October, Batten opened up to PEOPLE about "learning to be a parent" to McGrath's children.
"It's been awesome and three for the price of one for me," Batten said. "I didn't know this would be in my future, but I couldn't imagine my life without them. They're so super special to me."
As to what she's learned about being a parent so far, Batten said it's the importance of finding "a balance" in both her relationship with McGrath and the kids.
"It's a lot of sacrifice, but it's so rewarding," she says. "After being by myself for so long, or just me and [my dog] Payton, now having them, it's just a whole different perspective."
As she looked forward to her future with the father of two, she said she was excited to expand their family.
"We can't wait to start," she said. "I think we're going to have a very short engagement, and then, yeah, we're definitely [going to have] kids down the road. Whatever that looks like for us, whatever God blesses us with. I'm also open to adoption too, so we'll see what happens."
While reflecting on that moment in time, Batten said was "emotional" for her to see how far she's come.
"Both of us have had a broken road that led us to each other," she said. "And I know that's a really cliché, sappy love song, but it's very true for us."
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Love Is Blind's Jessica Batten Is Married to Benjamin McGrath - PEOPLE
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