How did the two of you meet?
We first met at Bryant University (in Smithfield, RI) where we both attended undergrad and grad school. We became best friends in the fall of 2009, started dating in the fall of 2012, got engaged in fall of 2015, and are getting married at the start of 2018!
How long have you been together?
4 and a half years. (It was our 3 year anniversary when we got engaged in October of 2015. Since then, it’s been 1.5 years!)
Gee Pailey
Give us the proposal details! When? Where? How?
Parth proposed on our third anniversary, 10/10/15, in the Four Freedoms Park on Roosevelt Island, NY. Parth and I became very close friends in college. Three years after we met, Parth started showing stronger feelings for me, which was a little strange, but also natural I guess, since I’m pretty cool :). Anyway, in order to show me that he thought I was a perfect “10”, he would place dimes in random places in hopes of making me smile. I would find dimes in my books, my backpack, in my shoes, etc.
I was amazed at the creativity and lengths he went to make me feel special – I never knew a guy could be so thoughtful.
In graduate school, we started spending more time together. On the day Parth officially asked me to be his girlfriend, he created a “dime treasure hunt” where he made 10 clues shaped like dimes and hid small treasures along the way for me to find (such as flowers, chocolate covered strawberries, a dress to wear to dinner, etc.) The clues had a secret code which, when deciphered, led me to my final clue at 10:10 PM that night.
Gee Pailey
The “treasure” was a fortune cookie which had a message inside that read “will you be my girlfriend?” with the lucky numbers on the back of the message “10-10-12”. I was amazed at the creativity and lengths he went to make me feel special – I never knew a guy could be so thoughtful. Thereafter each year, on October 10th, Parth recreates this treasure hunt with new clues. On our first anniversary (10/10/13), the clues led me to an adventure on a hot air balloon. On our second anniversary (10/10/14), the clues led me to a horse-drawn carriage ride in the town where one of my favorite TV shows was filmed (Gilmore Girls). On October 10, 2015, it was our third anniversary. I was excited for the annual treasure hunt tradition, but I never would have guessed what surprise Parth had in store for me that year!
Gee Pailey
Parth put together a beautiful proposal treasure hunt which was filled with inside jokes, memories, and surprises along the way. The clues led me all over NYC and eventually to Roosevelt Island where a photographer, videographer, and 40 of our closest friends and family members were waiting to greet me. Everyone was standing in a single file line, each holding a unique wooden rose which was engraved with a reason why Parth loved me. I walked down the line, hugging each of our loved ones and received each of their roses. When I finally made it to the end, Parth took me aside near the water overlooking the NYC skyline, said “you’re not just any dime, you’re my dime.” He then knelt down and asked me to be his wife! Afterwards, we celebrated with our friends and family in NYC. We played games and relaxed at a bar we both love then dressed up and headed to a rooftop lounge to celebrate our newly engaged status. We have now been engaged for 1.5 years and are so excited to celebrate our wedding in Puerto Rico next year!
What has been your favorite experience planning the wedding?
Being able to get our friends/family together for all the various pre-wedding events: proposal, engagement party, bridal shower, bachelor/bachelorette parties has been our favorite part of planning a wedding. It always feels like a reunion when everyone comes back together!
How do you stay sane under the pressures of wedding planning?
It’s actually funny, we have an email conversation which we started a few years ago. We call it the “War Zone.” In this email chain, we both share our raw frustrations with each other whenever they drive us too crazy to verbalize. We’ve realized that sometimes, writing out our thoughts is more effective than verbalizing them. We both enjoy having an outlet to be a little irrational and crazy because it helps ground us in staying sane.
Gee Pailey
What is your favorite part of using Joy for your wedding?
It is SO easy to use and such a great platform. We also really enjoy the app!
What piece of advice would you give couples to ensure that they use Joy to its fullest potential?
Really customize all the features – especially the schedule feature for Indian weddings. That’s our favorite to keep all of the million events organized!
At Joy we believe that even though a wedding lasts a day, joy lasts forever. What does that mean to you?
A wedding is a party- yes it’s beautiful, and fun, and special. But the marriage, love, and foundation the two people have is real JOY.” and that should be the main focus.
