After 3 years of dating and a special trip to Hawaii, the teacher and firefighter are getting married. Christine and Zac’s story and photos grabbed us from the moment she reached out to us. The fire station engagement session captured by Crystal Brisco Photography gave us a sneak peek inside Zac’s life and the love he and Christine share.

Keep reading for their love story and engagement session photos!

 

  

Interview with Bride to Be Christine

How did you meet and fall in love?

We actually met because of an old friend of mine, Felicia, was out one night with a group of people and she noticed Zac. She always was trying to set me up and she thought he was someone that I would be interested in. She contacted me and told me about him and then got on my Facebook page and messaged him as me! Zac and I began to talk through Facebook and I kept waiting for him to ask me out when he disappeared for a couple of weeks. I thought that was it when he finally contacted me after getting back from a cruise and asked me for my number. He asked me on our first date in which he invited me to his house to cook me dinner and watch a movie. Little did he know because I didn’t want him to cancel our date, I was going to have knee surgery days before our date. The day of my surgery, he texted me and asked about it. I told him I didn’t want him to cancel our date but I might be on crutches and he told me he would help me with whatever I needed. He ended up cooking me enchiladas!

I would say we both fell in love with each other pretty early on, but we didn’t say it for a long time. The time we fell for each other was when he invited me to go to pickwick for the weekend.We had only been dating for two weeks and this was supposed to be a guy’s trip only but girls ended up going so Zac asked me to join. We were going to his friend’s, Jeremy’s, land to camp and when I met him at his house to leave, Jeremy and Zac were waiting on me. I walked out with one bag in my hand and both of the guys said they’d get the rest. I told them I only had one bag and they both started laughing now because they swore I was going to show up with 5 bags. This is one reason Zac fell in love me because I wasn’t high maintenance. The second was when I casted a reel and went fishing with him. I fell in love him because he was always taking good care of me. He always checked on me and made sure I was okay all the time. I never had anyone take care of me like that. Neither have I ever trusted someone like I do him.

How did he propose?

Zac and I went to visit his family in California two years ago and his uncle told us he owned a condo in Maui. We decided to save up a year and go. Even though I had been nagging him that I’d rather have a ring than go to Maui, we still went. I mean… We had been together 3 and a half years and I was turning 28. Can you blame me?

So we flew out to California for a few days to see his family and get the keys and information from his uncle. Had a great party the night before with all 35 of them! Then, woke up and started our long morning of airport traveling. Zac was acting like himself, being a leader and taking charge and very antzy to get to Maui and I was just tired and quiet. We got in around 3, picked up our jeep, and headed to the condo. Zac kept asking to go see the beach but we had too much to do. Plus, I had been telling him for months that the first night was important to go to bed around 6 because we were getting picked up at 2 in the morning for our first excursion.

After dinner, he asked again to go to the beach with me and I said no. I wanted to get ready for bed and he sighed and said he would set up the netflix. When I came out looking for him, he was down on one knee and I asked him what he was doing because he was so far away from the TV. I thought he was still setting up the netflix! He pulled out the ring, asked me to marry him, and admitted he had been carrying the ring on him all day which is why he wanted to take me to the beach. I felt so bad but it was so typical us.

How did you decide on your engagement photo locations?

We picked the engagement picture location because he is a fireman for Olive Branch fire department and Fairhaven Volunteer. Plus, it had some great opportunities for us to get creative with the fire station and the field across the street.

When and where will you be getting married? What are you most looking forward to about the wedding?

We are getting married July 23, 2016 at Heartwood Hall in Rossville, TN. We are both looking forward to all of the fun and exciting surprises we have planned for our guests on our big day! I don’t want to reveal them before the big day but I can guarantee it will be a blast and no one has seen some of them before. We are doing some traditional and non traditional things at our wedding and we can’t wait!

Photos: Crystal Brisco Photography

Thank you to Crystal Brisco Photography for sharing this engagement shoot with us and becoming our most recent Mid-South Bride listed wedding vendor!

You can learn more about her here: Memphis Wedding Photographer Crystal Brisco Photography.

Today’s post is very special. Our newest (and first!) Mid-South Bride Intern, Sara, is sharing the story of how her sister recently got engaged in Memphis.

The proposal took place at Beale Street Landing on the Mississippi River in Downtown Memphis and Sara was there to capture it all. As Sara writes, “Seeing the reaction on her face as she realized what was happening had made all the secrets worth it.”

 

Catherine & Jack’s Love Story

Catherine and Jack have been dating for two years and both graduated from Mississippi State University this past May. Catherine is currently living in Birmingham and works at an advertising agency as a social media specialist and Jack lives in Atlanta where he is a sales representative at NAFECO. Catherine’s best friend from high school set the two up during the summer before their junior year of college.

Unknowingly, Catherine and Jack had actually met in preschool in Memphis.

“When we began to date, we had all of the typical “getting to know each other” conversations and one that popped up was how he is from Memphis and before he moved to Atlanta, he went to preschool at Germantown Baptist. This blew my mind because I, as well, went to preschool there. So we knowingly met on July 13, 2013 in Jackson, MS at his fraternity’s summer rush party. What’s funny is we awkwardly passed each other on the sidewalk before getting to the venue. We both just pretended we didn’t see each other. Then the rest is history after we met that night. We ended up talking outside during the entire party, not paying one bit of attention to anyone else,” says Catherine.

After dating for a few months, Jack saw a potential future with Catherine. After a long weekend for fall break in Memphis he knew his relationship with Catherine was special and different from any past relationships. So two short years later fall break held a surprise that kept Jack’s nerves on edge all day.

  

The Proposal

Catherine and Jack came to Memphis with very different ideas on how the day would unfold. Catherine believed they had come to Memphis in order for Jack to meet Catherine’s new niece and go to dinner with her brother and sister-in-law, but Jack had the whole night planned.

I went ahead of Jack and Catherine to Beale Street Landing and set up a picnic blanket, basket and a collage of photos of them. On their way downtown Catherine’s brother calls to say he’ll be late so Jack takes Catherine up to the top of Beale Street Landing. I hide behind the elevator waiting for them to come out to get candid shots of the moment.

Catherine recalls the minutes leading up to the big question saying, “So we go up the elevator and the doors open and we walk out to the roof and I immediately see my family’s blanket we’ve had FOREVER and then a picnic basket and a board of our pictures. It hit me then! So we walk over and look at the pictures and “reminisce,” although I’m really just freaking out at what is about to happen! So he grabs my hands and starts telling me how he wants to spend his life with me and then tells me to flip the sign over and on the back of the picture sign, “will you marry me” is written. I could not believe those words were RIGHT THERE talking to ME! So then he gets down on his knee and pops the question and I can’t even get words out, I just nod my head and grab him to hug him! I didn’t let go of him for so long that he eventually says, “well, let’s put this thing on!” After Jack popped the question he tells Catherine they have one more picture they have to take and pulls out a Polaroid camera from the basket. The two take a ring selfie and I come out of hiding to capture more moments of the excitement.

Proposal Celebrations

This was only the beginning of the surprises for the night as Jack handed me the keys and told Catherine they had a ride to dinner. We go downstairs to find both of their parents waiting to congratulate them and a Cinderella carriage ready to show them to their real dinner destination. They ride off and go meet their families at Majestic Grille for dinner.

After dinner there is one last surprise for Catherine. They leave dinner to go have a celebratory party back at her brother’s house with more family. “Couldn’t have been more perfect,” says Catherine after the night concludes and she stares with unbelief at her glistening finger.

The couple has plans for a summer wedding at the end of June. Catherine hopes to plan a wedding that exemplifies the joy of their relationship with a classic touch of Memphis.