Very seldom do I discuss my own wedding – in fact, most of my clients barely know I’m engaged! I love photographing weddings, but when it came to getting engaged myself – it scared the beejezus out of me! I mean… who would I hire as my photographer!?
One thing I knew for sure, was that Jenn from EllaCharles absolutely HAD to be my coordinator. After working with her on Courtney and Greg’s fabulous wedding in November, I knew her easy-going personality, attention to detail and flawless style would be an awesome fit for me and Anthony.
So I’ve been harrassing her for about 6 months now and procrastinating on setting a date for a multitude of reasons. We just went out to Something Blue Bridal to dress shop, and after talking over the “theme” during lunch – I knew I was ready. I still didn’t have one thing… a definitive date.
After mulling over some farmer’s almanacs, and having a basic timeline of Winter 2011 – I stumbled upon January 18, 2011.
Hm, that date sounds familiar?
I started digging through calendars and appointments… was I already booked to shoot a wedding then?
Ha! Then it hit me. Duh. Anthony proposed to me on January 18, 2008!
The engagement?
Well, on our first date, Anthony and I walked around the Polynesian Resort at Disney. We decided to take a quick break on a Hammock on the beach, and I saw “The Hill”. Back when I was vacationing at Disney as a child, my family was out on the beach and I saw a wedding up on the hill. I remember everything about it – and I remember telling my mom that I would get married on that hill one day. So I shared the story with Anthony, and he tucked it away somewhere.
So that was August 2006. The next couple years would pass by and in January 2008, he surprised me at work with a rose, a blank DVD and a secret getaway (carefully organized by himself and some of our coworkers). We drove down 417 and I bugged him the whole way about where we were heading (the airport? Bahamas? Italy?!). We finally arrived at the Polynesian at Disney! How fun! He arranged a weekend getaway and our first stop? The LUAU! After the luau, he told me he had checked us in earlier that day and would be staying the night – but not before a little walk around the resort to enjoy the gorgeous weather.
He was checking his watch like crazy – and making us do all this random souvenir shopping (?
!). We ended up walking along the beach and heading towards my favorite hill, when another couple beat us to it. He just kept going, dragging me reluctantly along behind him. When we got to the top of the hill, he started talking to the other couple! I was so embarrassed – until I realized it was his friend from work, Rick, and his wife, Vicky! There was some awkward small talk about the weather, and then he handed Anthony a DVD player. They said their goodbyes, and Anthony asked me if I had the DVD he gave me earlier (which I had stuffed in my purse and forgotten about).
When he played the DVD, this was the video I saw:
At the end, I looked down and he was on one knee with the most perfect ring I had ever seen :) A beautiful 2 carat solitaire! Anyways, after a few squeals and hugs, I think I recall saying yes? He timed it perfectly to propose just before the fireworks across the lake at the Magic Kingdom began. It was all so romantic, perfect and memorable.
So it only seemed fitting that January 18 22, 2011 just happens to land on a Saturday – [just over] 3 years to the day that we got engaged.
In fact, I’m even planning a late night ceremony so that our first kiss is as close to that minute that he proposed, if I can.
So that’s that. Save the date.
Downtown Orlando, FL. – January 18 22, 2011
Edit: Thanks to Dixie, my uber smart lawyer buddy, Outlook has made me think that December 18, 2010 was actually January 18, 2011. It’s confusing, I know – but Jan.
18 actually falls on a Tuesday – and therefore not a good day for nuptials. As such, I have changed my date to January 22, 2011. Thank God for Jenn, who managed this crisis and helped me pick the next best date.
