Happy summer, everyone! I am popping on here again after some time away from blogging to show you all Nate and Eryn’s summer engagement photos on the campus of William and Mary! They have planned an incredible wedding at Dover Hall Estate this September and I can’t tell you how excited I am to see their incredibly unique vision come to fruition. These two are so naturally in sync with one another and we had a great time hanging out at their engagement photos, strutting around the beautiful campus of their alma mater. I hope you enjoy a few of my favorites and a little interview from Nate on their relationship. Cheers!
How did you meet?
Eryn and I went to the same high school, but we never had any classes in common. Late Senior year, I was talking to one of our teachers about getting into the College of William and Mary, and he was telling me about the 3 other students at our high school that had gotten in – but I only knew two of them! Eryn, of course, was the third.
I reached out to Eryn on Facebook (her profile picture was of Donald Duck at the time), and we set up a time to meet at Brother’s Pizza. I later found out that she was terrified, haha. Our lunch went on for over 2.5 hours! I later found out that her stepdad had shown up and peered in through the pizzeria’s windows to make sure that we were still there 🙂
The incredibly long lunch transitioned into going back to her home and meeting her parents for dinner directly after because we had decided that we, somehow, were not done spending time with each other, haha! After dinner with the parents, we then choose to go see a movie (that neither of us really even wanted to watch) – I think it was “Oz the Great and Powerful”. We didn’t kiss or anything that time, but I was unbelievably excited because in my mind, this was my first bone fide ‘date’, haha
However, despite being 12 hours long, Eryn does not see this as our first date – it is our second meeting that she realized that I liked her when I finally held her hand.
What was your first thought when you saw or interacted with him/her for the first time?
Eryn was standing on her family home’s front lawn in a black and white striped, low cut top with a black blazer the first time I saw her. She was waiting there with her parents behind her as I pulled up in my green 1999 Pontiac Grand Am to take her to brother’s pizza for our first meeting – which was only supposed to be for us to chat about William and Mary, haha!
When I saw her, I was overcome with butterflies. I was so excited that I was going to get to spend some personal time with a girl who was so incredibly pretty. My primary thoughts about her when looking at her for the first time were about the beautiful freckles on her chest that were framed by her top and blazer.
How did you start dating?
We transitioned into dating immediately after our first meeting! It was only natural, haha.
What did you tell your friends or family about each other after your first date?
I didn’t admit to anyone that it was a date! The pretense was that it was only friendly. But when I did tell my family about her, I focused on her intelligence and drive.
When did you know that your partner was the one?
I learned it slowly by sharing my life and every important moment with her for many years 🙂
How did the proposal happen?
I screwed it up! I had intended to propose to her on our anniversary in the Tea Gallery of The Empress Hotel in a surprise vacation to Victoria, British Columbia. However, one week before our surprise flight to the city, I was so stricken with anxiety and worry about the proposal, and I was so worried that I had over-produced the proposal and that the nature of it was only so that it would sound good in a story afterward that I panicked and I proposed an entire week before the plan. I woke up, I saw the beautiful sun outside, and I had the proposal on my mind, and I decided that I didn’t want the proposal to make a good story, because the proposal should be between Eryn and not I – not a spectacle for the rest of the world. In other words, I dissociated and made up a terrible plan on the spot, haha! I took her down to Pike Place Market in Seattle, off the cuff, and picked the first restaurant I could find that looked half decent to propose at. We got lunch at Maximilien, which I choose completely at random, and it was a bit too cold and a bit too early for food. I was so nervous that I couldn’t possibly consider eating my food, and Eryn realized hours beforehand what was going to happen based on how weird I was acting. The final straw in her realization was when I went to the restroom (to covertly grab the ring out of my rain jacket) and she said that she would hold my jacket for me – I told her no, no fewer than 3 times. When I got back and popped the question, she immediately said yes, and then I forgot to put the ring on her finger – a fact that she has not let me forget. The only upside of my screw-up is that the vacation I had planned in Victoria for the following weekend was free of all anxiety and dissociation, and we were able to totally focus on each other.
What quality/qualities do you love most about your partner?
Her intelligence, drive, and perseverance. She has demonstrated on countless occasions an incredible strength of will that I am in continued awe of.
Her beauty doesn’t hurt either 🙂
What are some of your partner’s quirks that you love or appreciate?
I love her dark humor and morbid aesthetics 🙂
What moment of your wedding day are you most anticipating?
Listening to Eryn fuck up her vows out of nervousness, haha!
To see other engagement sessions, you can view more here!