I love love in it’s simplest form and sometimes you don’t need a lot of fancy-schmancy for it to show. Jannina and Miguel are one of those couples; Jannina glows and Miguel dazzles…it’s serendipity. Just look at these two!

This was one of the first gowns from Gigi Bridal Boutique and it fit Jannina beautifully!

They’re pretty glam

Jannina explains how her mother-in-law made her reception gorgeous: Yamile is Miguel’s mother. She’s a wizard with flowers, decorations and party planning. We didn’t think twice about letting her take the reigns on the decorating front. I didn’t have any themes set in stone as to what I would like at the reception. I simply showed her pics of table settings and centerpeices that I thought were pretty and let her work her magic. The end result was beautiful! She stuck with the white and green theme and every centerpeice was different. She varied from high and low centerpieces and in my opinion kept the reception looking crisp, clean and perfect for a summer wedding.

One thing that so many couples grapple with is what to do for favors but Jannina and Miguel knew exactly what they wanted to do- they made a donation to the Michael J. Fox Foundation in honor of Jannina’s mother who is suffering from the disease. The bride also added each guest’s name to the foundation’s contact list in the hopes that if one of them needs the resource someday, they will know where to go for help. This thoughtful touch is money well spent and your guests will appreciate it more than any box of jordan almonds.

KG: Now that you have had a chance to settle in, what is your favorite thing about being married?

J/M: We both agree that the most amazing thing about being married is that we’ve begun living the rest of our lives with our best friend. Every morning is the start of a new adventure with the person we love the most. Every night is peaceful rest in the arms of the person who loves us the most. It’s the greatest feeling. Knowing that our love and respect is mutual and reciprocated is motivation to keep striving to be a better version of ourselves.

Building our home is our big project. Slowly but surely, we’re making it our own and coming home everyday to something we’ve created for each other and ourselves is a dream come true.

KG: Tell us about your honeymoon

J/M: Initially, when we were deciding where to go for our honeymoon; we both agreed that we wanted to go to a beach (didn’t matter where). We wanted to go somewhere we could have options to go out for a night on the town or stay in for a romantic dinner. We chose Laguna Beach after Miguel’s Great-Aunt was kind enough to offer her beach house for us to stay in. We spent our time lazying around the pool, eating, and napping… a lot! We took the Ferry to Catalina Island and spent a few days there. We kayaked, hiked, and even zip-lined! It was a nice change from the laziness in Laguna. It was the best of both worlds and a week that we both didn’t want to end.

KG: What advice would you give to couples planning their wedding?

J/M: My advice for brides to be is to create a timeline. Every week have a project for the wedding that you have to accomplish. This way you’re not stressing out at the last minute to do everything that you forgot. Don’t sweat the small stuff… if something goes wrong at the wedding… laugh it off and enjoy your day. More often than not, you’re the only one who noticed. Lastly, have good music! Our DJ was awesome! He kept people on the dance floor all night! He did a great job of reading the crowd and playing music to their liking and was nice enough to honor a few “request” songs. DJ selection is a big portion of having a successful wedding.

Jannina and Miguel, CONGRATULATIONS and thank you for sharing your day with us!

Jannina and Miguel’s Real Wedding Team:

Ceremony Site: Santa Cruz Parish

Reception Site: La Mariposa Resort

Photographer: Butterfield Photography, Maria

Bridal Gown Store: Gigi Bridal

Bridesmaids Dresses: A Tailor and Tuxedo

Tuxedos: Top Hat Formal Wear

Florist: Yamile Lopez

Invitations: Jannina Catalan

Cake: Irma Corona

Entertainment: Mariachi San Juan

DJ: Robert Escalante

Make-up Artist: Stephanie Hernandez

Hair Stylist: Aholibama Ayala

Officiant: Father Thomas Reeves

Happy Planning from your Tucson Wedding Blog!

Kelly

 

Share on Facebook

So many engagements happen this time of year that even I have engagement fever! Why do I love the engagement session so much? Because it’s a truer, more natural reflection of you as a couple. Sure, you may go to a location you wouldn’t normally go to, but you choose your clothes, you choose the feel of the session, and you are simply more relaxed. The pressures of wedding day photos get to almost every bride and groom, no matter how comfortable they are in front of the camera, so think of the e-session as practice for the real deal.

Heather and John’s engagement session is really cool for a few reasons: they are naturally playful, they hit a few locales for their shoot and they incorporated elements that are unique to them. Enjoy!

I would say that this is one of my favorite photos from the session but I would be lying…I really love all the photos and can’t pick a fav!

I asked the couple about the books and here’s what they said: The books in the photos represent a running joke of our relationship.  John is working on his doctoral dissertation and his books follow us everywhere.  There are piles of them in every room of the house and scattered throughout the car. I feel like we have started a miniature library in our apartment.

GORGEOUS!!! The grounds of DeGrazia Gallery in the Sun are absolutely beautiful! It was a perfect location to capture the beautiful Tucson desert, mountain backdrop and general Old Pueblo atmosphere in our photos.

How did Heather and John meet? I will let them tell you all about it!

Heather’s Side of the Story: John and I met on the 4th of July on Mill Ave in Tempe (yes some people can still meet in bars!). I was visiting a friend in the “big city” for the holiday and she and I were having a gal pal bonding moment when he unexpectedly interrupted. His big pick up line of the evening was an unintentional drink order in my direction while next to me at the bar. Boys, if you want to pick up the ladies just yell “Can I get a Guinness?” mere inches from a gal’s face and you are in! After a brief moment of confusion, it wasn’t too long before we bonded over our love for the study of history, outdoor adventuring and world travel.

A first date was immediately planned for breakfast the next morning and things pretty much took off from there.

John’s Side of the Story: Heather got most of the details right, but I want to add that the drink order WAS intentional. The extra volume might have been a bit much, but I wanted to make sure that I got her attention as I had been looking for any opening to talk to her for awhile. In my defense, it was a very noisy bar. I was a bit nervous that Heather wouldn’t show up to breakfast, but she did and everything went splendidly from there.

We did long distance for the first two years of our relationship between Tucson and Phoenix and although it did have its difficulties, it was definitely worth it! I think I knew pretty quickly that he was the one because with only 3 months in, I had traded in my SUV for a more economical sedan. John cringes thinking about how many times during those few years that he had to take the Greyhound bus back and fourth at 5:30 in the morning before his class that day.

Heather and Amanda (of Amanda Rockafellow Photography) chose The Shelter while hanging out with friends there one day. Heather smartly realized that having a drink or two during the e-session would help loosen things up too. It also was a good fit for the session because, as Heather explains, “The retro and historical elements of the bar combined with John and my love for history made it a perfect location for the shoot. “

John is from Portland, Heather is from Tucson and while both adore their hometowns, the ultimate goal is to settle on the Pacific Northwest. I like how they pay homage to their history while looking to the future with these cute photos

If you can hang onto your photographer until the evening (bribing them with dinner and a refreshment probably helps), do it. You will get the pretty late afternoon light but can mix in some night life shots as well!

(All images courtesy of: Amanda Rockafellow Photography)

H/J: I think we can both agree that our favorite thing about each other is just how much we motivate each other to try new things, explore new places and live our lives to the fullest.  Without John’s encouragement, I would have never had the confidence to apply for my current position at the UA.  Also, before I met him, I would have also never thought I would have been able to complete a graduate degree (July 2012!). (John adds:) Heather helped reawaken my love for the outdoors and helps to counter my overly cynical nature.

Heather and John, thank you so very much for sharing this fun engagement session with us and congrats on the upcoming wedding!

Many thanks to photographer Amanda Rockafellow who shared her work with us!

Happy Planning from your Tucson Wedding Blog,

Kelly

Share on Facebook