{Alpena Engagement | Chelsea + Eric}

{alpena, michigan | september 2020}

Unbeknownst to Chelsea, Eric had picked out the ring in February prior to everything being closed due to COVID and was finally able to pick it up on Friday, June 19th. Eric had Saturday, June 20th, off so Chelsea had previously asked him about a day trip to Mackinac Island. He decided that that would be the perfect time to propose so he stopped at her brother’s house after getting the ring to ask his permission/blessing. In typical big brother mode, he promptly told Eric that he knew what he was getting himself in for. Saturday, they made our way to the Island and ultimately decided to meander around the perimeter. About three miles in, Eric complained about having a rock in his shoe and Chelsea wasn’t sure how that was possible. Now a little suspicious, Chelsea stopped with Eric by the water, he sat down, reached into his shoe, and promptly pulled out an actual pebble. The meandering got underway again until Chelsea stopped at the first clear view of the bridge to take picture and, at that time, Eric pulled out the ring box to propose. It was upside down, which Chelsea told him before promptly giggling out a “yes.”

Some advice from these two for future couples planning their wedding:

Be engaged with the planning. The planning process can be a lot of fun, especially if it’s a team effort. Enjoy it and surround yourself with people who are excited to participate in your happiness.

July will be here before we know it!

{Arcadia Dunes Engagement // Mia + Justin}

{arcadia, michigan // july 2020}

These two could be super models! I mean look at them! I had a great time with Mia + Justin out at the Arcadia Dunes. We definitely got our exercising in for the year, but it was totally worth it!

When I asked them how they got engaged, Mia told me that they were both feeling really good about engagement and talked about it a lot. Justin had gotten a ring shortly after their trip to Denver and little did Mia know, her life was about to change. They were long distance so in early December, Justin made dinner reservations and had plans to go ice skating in Detroit when Mia went to visit. He made reservations at a place called Lumen which they found out later was actually designed by his aunt and uncle’s architect firm! They had a super nice dinner and then decided to walk around Beacon Park. It was all lit up for the holidays just around the corner. And under all the lights is where he asked her to marry him. It was the perfect intimate moment with just the two of them. And of course she said YES! After that they walked downtown and picked out their first Christmas tree together from a street vendor and had a few drinks from a cute little market.

Some advice from these two for future couples planning their wedding:

Remember that weddings are still a business. Everything will cost more than you think. Find your venue and do the tedious research sooner rather than later so you can relax for longer in between! For us we didn’t have a date that we had our hearts set on so gave ourselves the full year to get things organized. You never know what can come up so we wanted to make sure to have some control our life. Wedding planning can be managed in small bursts with lots of time in between to talk about all the important things like finances, budget, kids, how to balance your family vacations and PTO time, houses, etc.

Alright COVID, let’s be nice so they can celebrate their New Year’s Eve wedding!

{Grand Rapids Engagement // Nikki + Chase}

{grand rapids, michigan // june 2020}

Nikki + Chase are cute, but have you seen their pup Charlie?! I’m joking!… kind of ;)

We started our session at Robinette’s Apple Haus + Winery in Grand Rapids. The apples on the trees weren’t as big as we thought they were going to be, but that’s okay! The sun was coming through the trees perfectly though. Charlie didn’t want to sit for very long as their was a ton of space to run around and explore but we got her attention for a couple photos. And if anyone was around, they would’ve had a blast watching 3 girls try to get a dog to look up. We then went over to Provin Trails, which happened to be just down the road. In the middle of the trails is a sand dune with a gorgeous view. And I might have had them run part way up it… twice. Sorry guys!

Nikki told me about their engagement and I’m jealous! Back in February they went on a trip to South America. It was their last night there before heading back home. They were at a beautiful fountain in Santiago, Chile and Chase got down on one knee and asked Nikki to marry him. She was in complete shock as they had talked about getting married but she didn’t think it would happen when it did. Once she finally came back down from the clouds, she was so excited and couldn’t stop smiling!

When asked what their favorite part about being engaged was, they said:

The only advice I have is to go with the flow and enjoy this time! It is so special and goes by so fast, so there is no time to stress and be worried! Everything will end up working out.

I can’t wait to photograph their special day in November!

{Holland Engagement // Brittany + Hayden}

{holland, michigan // june 2020}

I had so much fun on my session with Brittany + Hayden! Brittany contacted me after they had to move their original wedding day because of COVID 19. It makes me sad when I hear about couples having to move the day they have been dreaming of and planning for because of what’s happening in the world.

To start our little adventure, we heading into downtown Holland near Hope College. After a little time there, we headed over to their venue which happened to be down the road. Seeing the venue, Port 393, got me even more excited for their August wedding as it is such a gorgeous place. Then we headed over to our final destination of Dorr E. Felt Mansion, which I didn’t know used to be an insane asylum until Brittany told me. I think buildings that could possibly be haunted are amazing! We had to keep an eye out to make sure we didn’t get hit by any disc golfers while we were there. As the sun was setting, we made the decision to make the hike to the beach. And when I say hike, I mean hike. But it was definitely worth it!

Brittany told me about their proposal story and it is adorable. She said Hayden wanted to do a scavenger hunt leading her back to where they met in Hawaii, but sadly it wasn’t feasible at the time. So instead, he made a slideshow of their journey together so far. When she got home, the living room was decorated with flower petals, candles and twinkle lights which confused her a lot. The slideshow started with them meeting in Hawaii, their two and half year long distance military relationship to him asking if they could continue their life journey together. When she turned around, he was down on one knee asking her to marry him! She was not expecting it at all but it was a great surprise!

When asked what their favorite part about being engaged was, they said:

Being able to be together in person and not being half way across the world anymore! Having fun dates, seeing family, and now planning 2 weddings!

Only a couple more weeks until their August wedding!

{Timber Trails Engagement // Meghan + Patrick}

{interlochen, michigan // may 2020}

Meghan + Patrick couldn’t have been any more cute! These two got engaged back in March at a beautiful restaurant in downtown Traverse City called Minerva’s. This was a special place for them as they spent their one year anniversary there and a couple other anniversaries as well. Patrick didn’t know where he wanted to propose, inside or outside, but he knew he wanted it to be intimate. As they finished with their dinner, Meghan went to get up and Patrick asked her “What are you doing?” Meghan thought they were done so she assumed they would be leaving, but then he stood up, got down on one knee, and proposed with the sweetest words. Meghan was in complete shock as she never pictured him proposing in a restaurant. And funny enough, they were sat in the same booth where they had their one year anniversary dinner.

Meghan had told me about the Timber Recreational Area and showed me a couple pictures and knew it was going to make for some gorgeous photos. And boy did it. These images really show the love that these two are in and it makes me happy just looking at them. We spent a little while walking around the area and stopping and the most beautiful locations. Towards the middle of one of the trails is an old Girl Scout Camp, which I thought was really cool. As the sun started to set more and more, we talked about getting some photos by the water, but the lake by the camp didn’t have a beach area that wasn’t swampy from the weeks worth of rain. So we took a little drive into Traverse City and stopped at Bryant Park right on West Bay and got the most stunning sunset photos. The only bad part about that was the 50 degree weather and the wind, but it all worked out in the end.

Some advice from these two for future couples planning their wedding:

Our advice would be that you don’t have to stress about spending a lot of money to get your dream wedding. You can make your dream wedding come true! And don’t let anyone control or intimidate what you want for your wedding, do it your way and don’t care about what other people say! And most importantly it’s about marrying the person you love!

February will be here sooo soon!