So...we can't just elope?

Needless to say, Alex and I have started the process of this crazy thing called wedding planning. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not giving up, or turning into a crazy person...at least not yet. But let's be honest, nobody is ever prepared for how exhausting and complicated planning a wedding can really be. 

We think, oh, my wedding will be different. It will be stress free and we will make it work. But we know we will have the occasional disagreement and that things won't always go as planned. What I didn't expect was that Alex and I are both extremely picky. 

Naturally, our first task is to pick a venue and set a date. Well, we easily figured out the date we want to get married. We just can't set it in stone because it turns out there aren't many venues that can suit our very picky taste. I knew I would be picky because I am a photographer. It was easy to know that I would be looking at every venue with a photographer's eye. 

It was surprising to me that Alex has such strong opinions on the matter. For instance, he doesn't want a barn to have anything to do with our wedding. I don't disagree, while we both grew up in Enumclaw, neither of us grew up in the country. But let's be honest, about 70% of venues around here have a barn somewhere on the property. So, we are expanding our search elsewhere. 

We took a trip to Seattle yesterday to scope out some parks and gardens that are available to rent. We didn't really like any of them except one garden. It was gorgeous! The neighborhood was quiet and really nice...unfortunately, the garden was smaller than we anticipated and could probably only fit about 70 people realistically. So, we scratched that off the list. The day ended with five venues being crossed off and left us back at square one...and slightly discouraged.

But...I did learn something yesterday. I learned that Alex and I deal with frustration pretty well together. And I learned that there is almost nothing better after a long day than curling up on the couch together, watching funny TV shows and eating hummus. 

Really though, I learned to not take the simple things for granted. I learned that when you love someone, you don't have to have anything fancy or have everything figured out. All you need is to just be with each other and remember to laugh together every day.

~ sarah

A Dream Come True

I am engaged. I am a fiance. I will soon be a wife. And I am still waiting for it all to feel real. I am still in a dream state, but the ring on my finger is a gentle reminder that I am in fact engaged. I cannot even begin to express how I feel right now. This is the realization of a dream I have always had to only ever be with one man. I didn't want to date a bunch of guys to eventually find the one I was to marry. I wanted to have a relationship with one man that would last a lifetime. And now I am engaged and one step closer to marrying the man of my dreams. 

Many of my friends and family have been asking about the proposal, so I thought that I could just tell the story here...it is certainly worth telling. I don't know how to shorten the story, so I will warn you this will be a long post.

The whole thing started with Alex telling me that he wanted to take me to dinner. He said that because of the weather on my recent birthday, he wasn't able to do what he had originally planned and wanted to make up for it now. So, naturally I agreed and looked forward to a date night.

So, the evening started with driving up to our dear friend's house up on Lake Walker (A huge thank you is in order for Rich, Lynette, and of course, Anthony Stair.). As we approached the house Anthony came outside, all dressed up of course, and took the car and parked it for us. We then walked down to the lake to be greeted by another very dear friend, Joe, who was also dressed for the occasion. I looked out on the dock and saw a table with two place settings, candles, and flowers. There were rose petals all over the dock along with more candles. The setting was just beautiful. So, we sat down to a beautiful meal, prepared by Anthony, and enjoyed conversation and just being together (With nice music being played in the background by Joe).

Near the end of the meal, I heard the sound of a paddle boat coming up from behind us and saw that Joe was bringing the boat around for us. We then went on a beautiful boat ride around the lake. I think it is important for Joe and Anthony to know that during the paddle boat ride, we talked a lot about how blessed we are to have such wonderful, caring friends. When we neared the dock again, I was delighted to see that the dock was lit up with more lights and candles, it was really beautiful. When we were back on shore we then made the walk back to the car and were on our way. In my mind I was thinking, wow, this was an incredible date, and I was feeling very blessed to have such an amazing, thoughtful man and to have such generous friends.

Little did I know, the night was far from over. Alex has asked me during the paddle boat ride if I wanted to go for a walk when we got back to town. Since it was such a nice night, I agreed. We stopped at the store to buy something to drink and then Alex drove us to the Grocery Outlet parking lot and said that it would be nice if we took a walk on the Enumclaw-Buckley Trail. A side note: this trail has significance in our relationship, before we were dating we had a conversation here when Alex told me that I was worth pursuing and he was not going to give up on us being together. 

So, we began our walk down the trail, all the while reminiscing about our relationship and all the milestones and fun moments. We talked about how God has blessed us with a season to rest and focus on being a couple and learn even more about each other. When we crossed the road to the second half of the trail, there was a tent of sorts with sheer fabric hanging down from the sides and you could see that there were candles inside. I was still very oblivious at this point and didn't even think that this beautiful setting would have anything to do with me. But we walked around to the entrance and I was taken aback by what was inside. There were candles lit and there were pictures of Alex and I hanging all around inside the tent. I will tell you, that was the moment that my heart skipped a beat and I knew that this was not just a date.

Alex then spoke about how this had nothing to do with my birthday and that it was about me and him. I have to be honest, I don't remember what he said after that, everything happened so fast. But I do remember him getting down on one knee, pulling out a ring, and asking me to marry him. At this point I was crying and could barely speak the word yes, but it was enough for him to know to put the ring on my finger. We then hugged each other for what seemed like forever in that moment. And then I heard the gentle sound of music...

Alex took my hand and we went around the trees to find Anthony and Joe playing a song and celebrating the moment with us. I have to tell you that I am so grateful and feel so blessed to have those two there to share in that moment. So, after the song we then made the walk back to the car. Everything was so surreal. I had never been happier or felt more loved than right at that moment.

We went back to Alex's house and he led me to the side of the house and to a ladder. We climbed up to the roof to be greeted by two chairs, ice cream sundaes (from his parents), and a bottle of champagne (from his brother). We sat and enjoyed the moment together knowing that this was the beginning of the rest of our lives together.

I am blessed. Alex is the most amazing man and I cannot describe how it feels to know that he chose me.

<3 sarah