This week, our real Virginia weddings story comes from a happily engaged couple, Grace and Kevin.
“We met when we were neighbors in our apartment complex during our Junior year of college at West Virginia University. During our junior year, we were just friends, but we started dating when we both lived in Morgantown for the summer before Senior year. Our first date was at a Mexican restaurant and going out for Mexican is still one of our favorite date nights.”
“We had the best first year dating during our senior year of college, and when we graduated, Kevin convinced me to move to Northern Virginia. I am a Nurse and Kevin works in business, so it was easier for me to go where he was going. Throughout our time dating, we have had a lot of fun exploring the northern Virginia and DC areas. We both love the outdoors and have spent a lot of time hiking and exploring various parks in Virginia. We dated just about 6 years before getting engaged.”
“I had no idea that Kevin had an engagement ring so the engagement was a total surprise to me. Kevin kept asking me to go on walks with him and suggested a lot of date options during the time that he had the ring, but I was busy with schoolwork at the time and kept pushing off the date ideas, not knowing they were going to lead to a proposal. On Saturday, May 1, we were sitting in our apartment together having a conversation about life and how far our relationship had come and suddenly Kevin was on one knee. I was so surprised I couldn’t even process what was going on. Then we celebrated with our puppy, Ellen, and called all our close family and friends.”
The Scoop:
Bride: Grace, 27, Registered Nurse in the NICU at Children’s National Medical Center in DC
Groom: Kevin, 27, Financial Analyst at Accenture
Engagement Date: May 1, 2021
Wedding Date: August 13, 2022 (One day before our dating anniversary)
“Kevin grew up in Northern Virginia and I have lived in the area for about 5 years. We both love Old Town Alexandria and all its charm, so it was easy for us to decide that was where we wanted to have the shoot. Old Town Alexandria is stunning and we think Kylie really captured its beauty in our pictures.”
“One of the most special moments in our life together was when we got our puppy, Ellen, in February of 2021. I had been wanting a French bulldog puppy since I was in high school and friends of ours let us know they were getting one and that puppies were available. We went that day to look at the puppies and picked out Ellen. She has brought so much joy to our lives and our favorite activity is taking her for daily walks together.”
“One of the best parts of our relationship is that it is always so much fun and we keep each other laughing, even when life gets hard. We truly are best friends, and we feel so lucky to have a strong relationship like we do.”
“My tip is to really enjoy the process because it all goes by so fast. Wedding planning shouldn’t be stressful, try to always go back to why these decisions are important to you as a couple and how they will reflect your personalities and interests. We are trying to make our day truly reflect us as people, which has made it so fun.”
Congratulations to you both!
Vendors:
Photographer: Kylie Hinson Photography
Ring: Ketterman’s Jewelers in Leesburg Virginia, 703-777-0033
