Daniel and Christina tell their engagement day proposal story so sweetly I invited them to do so here.


Christina: ” My boss at Forrest Home let me have a free day to work from home, and since Mondays are Dan’s day off and I typically try to spend as much time with him as possible — I was like, hey! Can I work from your house on Monday, and he surprisingly said no. I was so disappointed. So I went to work on Monday, and tried to leave early to spend time with him, but that was not an option either. I was told 4 pm — no earlier! I felt bad, because I knew he was spending time with his dad that day…so I apologized and sucked it up. But, in the back of my mind I had a feeling he was up to something. So, I left work promptly at 4 only to arrive at his house and be whisked away to dinner. No time to freshen up or put my stuff down…we were off. We did have a nice dinner together, just talking and laughing like the best friends we had become. Then, we went back to Dan’s house for what I thought would be dessert. Instead I found myself wandering into the backyard we had worked to make feel a little more like home. The patio was filled with sunflowers and rose petals and candles, and he stood there waiting for me, a small black box in his hand”.


Daniel: “Her boss told her she could have a half day that day but I had already planned on her working a full day and then taking her out to dinner and surprising her after by proposing. So that day was full of me trying to comfort her from being sad and a little hurt that she couldn’t come over earlier and work from my house. I was balancing comforting her and yet trying to surprise her and not tell her abut the surprise to comfort here. Plus, trying to hide my excitement for what I was planning for her. After lunch with my dad, I spent the day getting sunflowers and rose petals and getting everything set up with the help of my sister and my friend, David. I was balancing comforting her and it was hard not to share all that with her. But totally worth it in the end”! 


Dan: “I was nervous and excited at the same time and it felt surreal that I was getting the chance to ask the woman of my dreams to spend the rest of her life with me. I was overjoyed that she said yes. I couldn’t wait to start planning the rest of our lives together”.


Christina: “He said he loved me, that I was his best friend, and that he wanted to start a life with me. He dropped down on his knee and asked me to marry him. After much giggling and head nodding, I finally got my mouth to say YES”.


Christina: “And we just held each other for so long and quietly swayed together. I couldn’t stop smiling and looking at him. The man of my dreams was holding me in my arms, and better yet — we were going to spend the rest of our lives growing together, knowing each other more deeply, and loving each other more fully. It was the best Monday night of my life”.


Dan: “While we were dancing I was thinking that God is so good and gracious to bring a woman as amazing as her into my life. I am blessed and honored to have the privilege to marry her and spend the rest of my life with her. It was a pretty awesome Monday night”.


Christina: “I look forward to getting to adventure alongside this amazing man the Lord has given to me, to see him grow in the Lord, to follow God’s call in his life and to hopefully raise some awesome kids of our own. Dan truly is a gift from the Lord. Everyday God just reminds me of his faithfulness in Dan. No one has ever loved me so well, and treasured me so fully as Dan has. I can’t believe I get to be the one to love and care for his tender heart”.


Dan: “I look forward to waling in and strengthening our faith in God together. In sharing faith in God together. In sharing life’s good times and bad times. In starting a family together and sharing in the joy and struggles of parenthood. In sharing the rest of my life with my best friend, to being pushed and challenged to grow as a man of God and to be encouraged to lead in our relationship in Godly headship. In sharing adventures of exploring new places and creating new memories together. I look forward to being able to love and care for the love of my life and best friend for the rest of my life, no matter what”.

As Daniel’s big sister I had a front row seat to watch them fall in love. Each time he spoke of her we all knew that she was something special. Dan described loving her love for God, her eyes her smile, her compassion for others and the easy comfort he felt in her nearness. He was so settled with her we knew it was just a matter of time before he would propose and ask for her forever. So when I got a text from him asking if I would photograph a proposal I could hardly contain my joy.


I rarely cry behind the camera as I am often so focused on making amazing images of life events for my clients. But as I documented their proposal, memories of our childhood, thoughts of the tough times, all the moments we walked through in adulthood, the losses and struggles, came flooding back and met the overwhelming joy of the moment causing tears to flow. I am so truly grateful to watch my brother embrace love and hold his forever close. I love the way she guards his heart and encourages his soul. I love the way he dreams again with her. I cannot wait to see all that God has in store for their story.