Rachel Leigh Photography: August 2011

Yes, my brother is engaged to be married!! But y'all probably saw it comin' ;).

I love when people get engaged :D.

Anyway, our first night in Florida, Daniel proposed to Emily! But I'll let Daniel explain the first part to y'all :).

“I knew I wanted to ask her on the beach, and I had assumed that that would be on the beach near our condo. However, with the uncertain weather forecast, and long after dinner activities, I was worried it wouldn't work out as well as I planned. The first evening there, we had plans to eat at The Crab Trap, and then we would head to Walmart and get groceries, landing us back at the condo well after sunset. With Dad's encouragement, I decided to instead utilize the beach next to The Crab Trap, as we were pretty much guaranteed a long wait for a table. I didn't know how I was going to conceal the ring-box. I tried it out in my pocket and it was extremely conspicuous. Nevertheless, I gave my plan a green light. When we got to the restaurant, I was surprised to hear Emily ask ME to go walk on the beach. I could use this to my advantage; she'll have even less suspicion. The only big problem was how to get the ring out of Mom's purse and into my pocket. Mom got Emily's attention and made a big deal about Emily's purse sitting on the ground while at the same time fishing the ring out of her bag and jamming it into my hand. I tried to authenticate the ruse by telling Emily 'Mom is just really particular about purses.' Amazingly enough, Emily never suspected that anything was up. My confidence in Emily's secret agent skills is much lessened.”
And now I'll let Emily explain the other half of the story :D.
“I was so excited to come to Florida with the Greene family. I knew it would be a very special trip, one I would remember forever. However, I was oblivious to any notion of engagement the very first night of the trip. I was thrilled to be at the beach and wanted to stick my toes in the sand as soon as possible, so when we arrived at The Crab Trap, I asked Daniel to go for a walk on the beach.

As we walked and talked and chased seagulls,

we began to reminisce on the past year and four months. Daniel seemed especially sentimental, but I remained oblivious as to why. He started telling me how deeply he loved me, and when he began to talk about how wonderful a future together might be, I realized that this was more than just an ordinary walk on the beach. With a lighthearted and knowing smile, he said, 'hey, I think I need to tie my shoe,' and as he knelt down (and realized that he, in fact, did not have any shoes on), he gently took my hands and said, 'well, since I'm down here...' He told me how he loved me and wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. 'I want your face to be the last thing I see every night before I fall asleep and the first thing I see every morning. So, if you feel the same way, I would be incredibly honored and incredibly happy if you would marry me. Emily, will you marry me?' With an ear-to-ear smile I said quite enthusiastically, 'Yes!' After I demanded he stand up, we hugged, and he lifted me up and spun me around. And there was great rejoicing. (and some applause from the random audience of strangers who gathered to watch the joyous event)."
As they came back to the restaurant, I started snapping away :D.

Everyone waiting outside of the restaurant clapped, cheered, and congratulated them :D.

Then came the family hugs :).

Daniel knew what kindof rings Emily liked (they had looked at some together), so he picked it out himself and she couldn't have been more pleased with it :D.

That's me :).

And then the engagement pictures began!!

Man, taking engagement pictures RIGHT after the couple gets engaged is just great :D.

This is probably my favorite. Their joy is just bursting through :D.

"Beautiful outside in
Beautiful I'm findin'
Daylight inside your eyes, there's no hidin' the look of love,"

~"The Look of Love" by Joy Williams

Yaaay for happy love smiles :D.

Beholding the ring. Haha :D.

They're so perfectly matched, it's crazy...well, it's actually not crazy, it's just God's providence :).

This is a favorite too :) :). Oh, do not their faces here look EXACTLY the same?! I'm tellin' ya my theory is looking more and more like fact everyday. Haha :D.

What theory? Well, I've developed this theory over the past year or so and the theory is that people are attracted to people that look like themselves. If it be a big resemblance or just their noses look the same or something. Lol. I think this is true because you know how people say the longer you're married the more you start looking alike. Well, we all know that's not really possible. Lol. Sure, they start making the same facial expressions and stuff, but they had to have looked a bit alike in the first place! It may sound vain at first, but I don't think so. You see, we are comfortable with the familiar, and what are we more familiar with than our face! When we subconsciously see that familiarity in someone else, it makes us feel at home :). So, that's my theory :).

Anyway, back to my brother and his fiancee :D. (I LOVE saying that word!)