These two fell in love via love letters and continued as they celebrated one holiday right after the other before this Groom-to-be left for Afghanistan. The proposal came at the same spot where they celebrated that faux Valentine’s Day, so it’s only proper that their engagement pics were captured there as well. As if it couldn’t get any better, these cuties say “I do” next February 13, to toast the next day, as husband and wife, properly and officially. See all of Meg Miller’s pics accompanying this love story right this way!
From the Bride-to-be… Mike and I were good friends for nine years before we went on our first date. And from that friendship, both our playful banter and unfaltering trust in each other have continued to be the heart of our relationship. Mike is a First Lieutenant Officer, and I first knew I loved him when I sat down to write him a letter while he was in the US Army Ranger School. I really wanted to help distract him from his tough training, but I did not know how I could write anything without seeming completely in love. So it took me a few weeks to admit it and gather the courage, but once I had received a letter from him, I bit the bullet and wrote my own. From there, our dating courtship took place over dozens of letters to each other over five months before a weekend visit in Atlanta where we told each other how we felt in person.
Eventually, Mike moved to upstate New York and I lived in Manhattan. We dated long distance for over two years including nine of those months with Mike deployed in Afghanistan. We had only three weeks’ notice when he was told he would be leaving. I worked with our families to surprise him with celebrating every holiday he was going to miss while away. Our first dual family dinner was “Thanksgiving.” “Christmas Eve” was spent making cookies and opening stockings at his parent’s house, and “Christmas morning” was the hardest to pull off but I managed to set up a mini tree with lights (in October!) while he slept in the same room. But Mike wanted to know when “Valentine’s Day” was going to be, so he could be prepared. We spent Valentine’s Day in Central Park with a picnic and a carriage ride that started off from Columbus Circle. He says in that moment when I walked up to meet him was when he knew he was going to marry me when he came home.
That was the reason why he proposed to me at Columbus Circle, and also the reason why we wanted to have our engagement pictures taken there. We brought a bottle of champagne and a blanket to have a small picnic like our first “Valentine’s Day” date during our shoot to feel more candid. I love anything and everything white, so Mike surprised me by having a posy made of these beautiful white flowers the day of our session to carry throughout the park. Our wedding day will be February 13, 2016, and the next day will be our first day as man and wife, and our first Valentine’s Day spent in person together as well. So for us, everything has come full circle.
Photography: Meg Miller Photography | Dress: Elizabeth And James | Bride's Shoes: Sam Edelman | Groom's Attire: Brooks Brothers | Venue: Central Park