Ree Drummond Says Husband Ladd Is ‘Halfway Healed’ and Walked Daughter Alex Down the Aisle Without Neck Brace

Ree Drummond

Ree Drummond’s husband Ladd is still healing months after he was involved in a truck collision with his nephew, Caleb, that broke his neck.

In a post on her blog, the Food Network star announced that Ladd did not have to wear a neck brace while walking his daughter Alex down the aisle during her wedding to Mauricio Scott on May 1.

“The wedding was meaningful and special—even more so because it wasn’t lost on any of us how different Alex’s wedding day could have looked, given Ladd and Caleb’s accident in March,” Drummond wrote. “The fact that they were both able not only to be at Alex’s wedding, but to also be pretty much healed and able to enjoy themselves, was a total gift! I made it a point throughout the weekend to stop, even if just for a few seconds, and give thanks. I’m not letting this blessing pass me by, man!”

Ladd and Caleb’s accident occurred as they were responding to a fire on the family’s farm in Osage County, Oklahoma. Ladd, 57, originally refused medical attention after the crash. “This was partly because he wanted the paramedics to focus on Caleb, partly because he was still a little stunned by the accident, and partly because cowboys don’t like to admit when they’re hurt,” Ree said at the time.

Originally, Alex thought that her dad would have to wear his brace throughout her special day, but during an Instagram live Q&A ahead of her nuptials, she announced that Ladd was meeting with his doctor to see if he could take it off at any point during the evening.

Ree Drummond

Up until the wedding day, Ree said her husband had been “pretty compliant” about wearing his brace to ensure his neck fracture healed, but he hoped the doctor would “sign off” on him taking it off just to walk her down the aisle. Ultimately, Ree and Ladd got better news than they had hoped for during his check up.

“The doctor said that his neck is about halfway healed, and that Ladd could take off his brace for the brief moments at the wedding that mattered,” she wrote.

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So, on the night of the wedding rehearsal, Ladd sported his brace, but when it came to the ceremony, he was able to take it off to see Alex in her dress for the first time, walk her down the aisle, and participate in their professional wedding portraits.

“I’ve had a few folks comment that he looks stiff and uncomfortable in photos, but it’s more that he’s making a concerted effort not to turn his head or move his neck much,” Ree wrote. “He’s not in any pain at all, he’s just trying to keep his neck still.”

Ree Drummond

However, Ree then jokingly warned Ladd’s doctor not to read the next part of her post, adding that Ladd also took off the brace during his first dance with Alex and during the reception toasts.

“He wanted to make sure he had a few photos in each of the important moments that didn’t include the brace, and while I considered arguing with him, I realized it was his call,” Ree wrote. “Spouses gotta pick their battles!”

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Ahead of the wedding, Ree had other worries about the potential of high winds during her daughter’s outdoor ceremony, but the event went off without a hitch at the family’s Oklahoma ranch.

Before the ceremony, Ree joked about her daughter’s wedding. “Our honeymoon baby is getting married tonight. (TMI?😂),” she captioned a photo of her and Ladd in his brace.

Alex, 23, and Scott met during their freshman year of undergrad at Texas A&M University. They shared the news of their engagement in August.

Ree shared many details about their wedding over the past several months, including a recent preview of the mouth-watering menu catered by the Food Network star’s restaurant, the Mercantile.

Ree took her job seriously, of course, selecting a classic main course of beef-tenderloin filet, charred vegetables, peppers and asparagus, and mashed potatoes as one of the side dishes, she explained during a recent Instagram Live Q&A for The Pioneer Woman Magazine.

The star of the side dishes was macaroni and cheese with caramelized onions and seven cheeses, including two different processed cheeses (to make it “dreamy and creamy,” Alex said), Fontina, goat cheese, mozzarella, sharp cheddar and Parmesan.

Guests enjoyed two wedding cakes created by Amy Cakes in Oklahoma City. The first was a more traditional cake, boasting multiple layers featuring half vanilla cake and half strawberry with white icing and florals. The second groom’s cake, for Scott, was chocolate, shaped and decorated like a football jersey — half dedicated to Texas A&M and the other half to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Scott’s favorite teams.

“We decided to go with vanilla cake with vanilla icing,” Alex said. “I know it’s so basic, but it’s definitely my favorite.”