J A R R A D & M I C H A E L
With their beautiful son Reid by their side, on their anniversary, Jarrad dropped to one knee, opened a shiny black box and asked Michael the question he had been waiting to ask for 17 years…
Wedding Wheels…
Michael and Jarrad met in 2001, striking up a conversation about their mutual love of cars. “We just clicked and at the end of the night had arranged to meet up again the following weekend at Salamanca Market, (our first date)”, they said.
It didn’t take the couple long to realise that they were meant to be “it didn’t take long for us to know that we had something special. We recall talking about being Dads on that first date at Salamanca”.
The Perfect Plan…
After organising photographers, balloon stylists and the perfect ring, Jarrad had a foolproof plan in place. The hardest part about the whole thing was keeping it a secret from their son Reid. “His entire class would have heard about it before I got round to proposing. We don’t have secrets in our house, it’s something we’ve instilled to Reid from a young age. This however was the only exception to the rule and it was hard”, says Jarrad.
Jarrad had planned for the family to go out to dinner, before arriving at a friend’s home where the perfect engagement set-up was waiting and he would pop the question.
“Before the proposal, we had arranged to go out for dinner. I wanted to go the our local cheap and cheerful dumplings place (short and t-shirt type of place). Jarrad managed to convince me to change the venue and dress up a little”, says Michael.
Moments before leaving for dinner, Jarrad’s perfect plan was put on hold as friends arrived with bottles of champagne in hand to celebrate the couples 17th anniversary.
“Jarrad heard me pop the cork and started to freak out! Sweating like a mule, he joined in the festivities and went with the flow. After a glass (or two), our friends left, and we went to dinner- now 45 minutes behind schedule.”
After a quick meal, the couple were on their way. “As planned, we called past a friend’s place after dinner. They had called Michael earlier that day and asked him to call past after dinner to give them a hand to lift something. Michael was hook line and sinker!”, says Jarrad.
17 Years In The Making…
“Jarrad had organised a room at their friend’s home to be filled with a breathtaking balloon arrangement, including 17 photographs hanging from the balloons throughout the room – one for every year of our life together. “
With their beautiful son by their side, Jarrad got down on one knee and begun to read the most beautiful and heartfelt proposal, before asking the 5 words he’s been waiting to say for so many years, “Michael, will you marry me?”.
Inspiration Overload…
They have only just started to think about their wedding style and are overwhelmed with the amount of choice available. “Up until a couple of months ago it wasn’t legal to get married, and although we always hoped for it, we’d never really considered the finer detail. We are excitedly scanning Instagram and Pinterest and boring all our friends with a million questions seeking inspiration.”
Nearest and Dearest…
What are the couple most excited about? “We think it will be the time at all our nearest and dearest friends and family come together, a time we can thank them for their support and love.
We are so proud that our son will be there to witness his Dad’s declare their love for not only each other, but for our family. Reid is the most important person in our world, his presence at our wedding will be very emotional.”
Photographer: Corey Wright Photography / Rings: Paul Bram Jewellers / Balloon Stylist: Mister Party Box