How we met:
James and I were working in the same office when we met. Initially, we never spoke to each other but I would notice him and he always says he noticed me, specifically at the costume contest our office had when I won dressed up as Michael Jackson. It wasn’t until one morning James was running late for work on a route he did not typically take which turned out to be my usual route. Because James was late for work, he was speeding and tailgating me not knowing the vehicle in front of him was going to pull into the same office. Since I thought it was a random jerk with road rage driving behind me, I would slow down because he was tailgating me and speed up when he would try to pass me. When we both turned into the same office, I didn’t think twice, however James felt awful and eventually came to my desk to apologize. From that day on, we would acknowledge each other, say hello and even have small talk which led to James asking me on a date to trivia by sending me a “check yes or no” text (which I saved).
The Proposal:
The proposal came during the year of my 40th birthday and the 4th year we were together. We had a few trips planned that year including a family trip to Cancun a few weeks before my 40th and then a trip to NYC for my actual 40th birthday to celebrate with my friends. Everyone around me thought that James would propose in Cancun or thought he would propose at my 40th in NYC with all of my friends around. I was pretty confident that the proposal would not happen during either of those trips and I was right. James chose to propose on the Friday afternoon after we returned from Cancun. It was a regular work day for me when I came home to see James on one knee and a sparkly ring around my dogs neck. I was definitely surprised!
The Wedding & Celebration:
Our wedding and celebration was unique and really reflected who we are as a couple. James and I cherish moments that are just the two of us (similar to the proposal) as well as moments that include our family and friends therefore we chose to elope at the Grand Canyon where it was just the two of us, an officiant, a photographer and a pilot (for the helicopter) in May 2024 for our wedding ceremony and a celebration we held over a weekend in Athens, GA with about 250 of our closest family and friends in June 2024. Though we eloped, I chose to wear an ivory sari to incorporate an Indian aesthetic to my look while acknowledging James’ Christian faith. When it came to the celebration for our marriage with our family and friends, we kept with the same theme by incorporating both of our cultures and religions – I wore a red lengha to our Welcome Henna Party which was at a brewery with catered Indian food and a white lengha for our reception in a beautiful atrium with a served dinner. For my red look at the brewery, I also had a matching dress made for my dog! My favorite part of our wedding was that we created something that was personalized and special to us while also having one of the best weekends of our lives with our closest family and friends.
