Ah, spring. It’s one of my favorite times of year to photograph! Everything’s in bloom & love’s in the air! I loved meeting up with Lauren & Jorge earlier this month at Ponce City Market! These two have such an overflowing joy together, and I loved capturing all the giggles (and straight up belly laughs) between them! After taking a few photos around PCM, we explored the Belt Line, walked through lines of gorgeous yellow magnolia trees and ended with photos at Jackson Street Bridge! It was the perfect way to kick off spring engagement season! And, I can’t wait to capture their beautiful wedding at Montaluce Winery in June! Without further ado, let’s jump into the photos and the story of how these two became a couple!

Tell me about how you met & fell in love – “It wasn’t love at first sight. In fact, it wasn’t really “like” at first sight, either.” 

“During the summer of 2012, Jorge and Lauren were both on dating website. Jorge read her profile and noticed that she was from Connecticut and played kickball…just like him. He thought it would be a good idea to message her and start a conversation. After about a week and six emails, the conversation fizzled out. But, they both knew that there was a potential to run into one another at kickball in the future.”

“A couple of months later, low and behold, we found ourselves paired up on the same Wednesday night kickball team. For the first four weeks of the season, we refused to acknowledge one another. The awkward tension finally reached its breaking point after Jorge refused to throw her a defensive ball to second base and Lauren called him out for it. Later at the bar, we had a ‘Come to Jesus’ conversation and acknowledged our history. After a little time, we became friends. Lauren even tried to set Jorge up with one of her friends. Eventually, our friendship became more genuine and soon, we were talking almost daily.”

“Fast forward to August 14th, 2013, Jorge walked Lauren to her car after a kickball game and told her that he wanted to be more than friends. We decided to give the dating thing a try and see if there was really something there…which everyone else kept telling us there was ‘something’. There was and it was wonderful.” 

Lauren, what is it about Jorge that you love the most? – “It is a toss-up. When you get to know Jorge, you will find that he has a great sense of humor. He often is making jokes…some of them mildly inappropriate. He makes me laugh every single day. When I take life too seriously or get overly stressed about work/school, his humor and infectious laugh forces me to take a step back and enjoy the little moments. 
However, he is very serious when it comes to family. Though Jorge’s family is all in Connecticut, he does all that he can to help whenever needed from afar. He fits in with my family seamlessly and they all love him like he has been a member of the family for years. My nephew/the ring bearer calls Jorge ‘my best friend.'”

Jorge, what is it about Lauren that you love the most? – “What I love the most about Lauren is that each day I spend with her the more I fall in love with her.  She brings so much joy into my life by her being just being the person that she is.  She can always find a new way to make me laugh.  She has the funniest sayings that make me laugh so hard.  Like when I bought Wendy’s for dinner one time, and she yells out, ‘Awesome, there are some calorie-free fries in this bag (fries that are at the bottom of the bag).’ I love that we get enjoyment from the little things in life like running errands together on the weekends, especially at Target.  I cherish every moment  that I spend with her because she is just an amazing person.”

About the Proposal – “Jorge didn’t like the idea of proposing on a ‘cliche’ day like Christmas or Valentine’s day.  He decided that the best day to propose to Lauren was on their two year anniversary from the ‘confession in the parking lot’ moment mentioned earlier.  Jorge’s plan was to make a reservation at a nice restaurant and then from there they would head over to the bar’s parking lot. It would be there that Jorge would propose to Lauren in the exact same spot he asked her to take the relationship to the next level.  For the most part, the plan went off without a hitch but not without some funny moments throughout the day.”  

“First, the morning of the special day, Jorge had requested that they take it easy and relax watching tv but Lauren insisted on doing chores.  Then when Jorge was getting dressed for dinner, he wanted to wear a sports coat to hide the ring box but Lauren insisted that it was too much and that he would get hot in it.  So Jorge sat in the bedroom trying to find ways to hid the ring box in his jeans.  Leaning from side to side making sure it didn’t look obvious what was in his pocket.  Later at dinner Lauren and Jorge started talking about finances and Lauren was concerned that money had been so tight the last few months.  Little did she know that Jorge was saving as much money as he could to buy her a ring that he felt was worth to be placed on her finger, essentially leaving him poor.” (continued below) 

Proposal Story (continued) – “Jorge had planned to say special things about Lauren and their relationship throughout dinner. He was hoping that when they got to the parking spot and he reminded her of their special anniversary that she wouldn’t know that he was proposing but was being sentimental.  The only problem was that when Jorge starting giving Lauren his proposal, he clammed up when he saw his friend out of the corner of his eye, covertly taking pictures of the proposal.  Jorge instantly became so nervous that he forgot everything he wanted to say. Instead, he reached for the box as he was bending down on one knee and nervously mumbled ‘will you marry me?'”

Congrats, Lauren & Jorge! I’m so excited for your wedding at Montaluce Winery in June! 🙂