Make Me a Match

By Lisa Arnett
May 2026 View more Better Together

A blind date led to longtime love for this Naperville couple

Back in 2019, Romina Lara and Alexander Liddle let mutual friends play matchmaker and set them up on a date. “Before I met Alex, I was doing a lot of the dating apps,” says Lara, who was born in Chicago and raised in Cicero. “You’re swiping left, you’re swiping right, and you don’t really know anything about that person. It was refreshing to have someone I already knew introduce me to him.”

They went to a comedy show in Chicago, and the laughs kept coming. “She was so giggly, and she would laugh at all my dumb jokes,” says Liddle, who was raised in Naperville and graduated from Naperville Central High School. They dated steadily from there on out.

A few years later, during a walk around downtown Naperville, Lara and Liddle decided on a whim to pop into Costello Jewelry Company. They ended up finding a radiant-cut diamond she loved and designed her ring right there and then. He proposed on a trip to Michigan on Independence Day weekend in 2024, with plenty of family members there to capture the moment on camera.

They married at White Stone Events in Sugar Grove on Sept. 21, 2025. “Our heritage is very important to us,” Liddle says. “I have a very big Italian family, and she is first-generation Mexican American. My aunt made a thousand traditional Italian cookies, and we had a cannoli guy who walked the dance floor and filled cannolis to order.” A mariachi band played while the couple made their entrance into the reception space, where the ceilings were draped with papel picado (traditional Mexican paper banners) and string lights. Lara’s veil had special significance as well. “It was actually a gift from my brother,” she says. “I had my bachelorette party in Mexico City, and he said, ‘I’m buying you a veil handmade there,’ and I picked it up during the trip.”

Special moments with family made the day memorable. “My father passed away from esophageal cancer 10 years ago, and my uncle took it upon himself to give a beautiful speech in Spanish so [Romina’s] family who does not speak English could understand,” Liddle says. The groom’s sisters, who sing professionally, also performed at the reception. “Dancing our first dance as husband and wife and the song being sung by his sisters was a really special moment, along with being walked down the aisle by my dad,” Lara says.

The couple lives in Naperville with their dog, Pipa, who donned a bloom-laden collar to be their flower girl on their wedding day.

Wedding Details

Venue
White Stone Events, Sugar Grove

Wedding planner
Amy Harloe of Happily Ever After by Amy, Naperville

Bride’s attire
Dress by Bri’Zan Couture, Naperville

Bridesmaids’ attire
Azazie

Groom’s attire
Custom suit by Dean’s Clothing, Naperville

Groomsmen’s attire
The Black Tux

Rings
Costello Jewelry Company

Florals
Floral Events, Naperville

Catering and desserts
Noteable Events, Naperville

Cake
Area 51 Cupcakery, Naperville

Entertainment
Mariachi Herencia de Mexico, Chicago; DJ Ruki Dole of Dream House Productions, Chicago

Photographer
Rue Pattison of Eight Hands Photography, Mokena

Photos: Eight Hands Photography