I, personally, am batting .500 when it comes to setting up friends. One was a complete success (one marriage and three gorgeous babies later), but it’s always a risky proposition. When your hunch is right, however, like in the case of Eve and Mike, magic can happen. They were set up by friends—two and a half years later they’re planning a wedding! We asked Eve and Mike about the proposal, destination wedding planning, and how to ward off wedding planning woes.
Give us the details! When? Where? How?
Mike took Eve to Gettysburg, PA for an overnight getaway where they stayed in a nice hotel, went on a ghost-walking tour, and toured around the town. Sunday, October 23, 2016, he got down on one knee overlooking the Gettysburg National Military Park and asked her to marry him! Eve was in shock and her first response was “Are you sure?!” Then, eventually said yes! A lady was nearby and noticed they just got engaged. She just so happened to be reading a book called “Letters to My Daughter; The Art of Being a Wife,” and gave that book to Eve!
What has been your favorite experience planning the wedding?
We’re doing a destination wedding – so looking at all of the locations and beautiful resorts to choose from was exciting!
How do you stay sane under the pressures of wedding planning?
My future mother-in-law started asking me about bridesmaid dress colors, my wedding dress style, etc. two weeks after we got engaged! This is overwhelming to hear when our primary concern was searching for a venue, but I politely tell people who are asking me multiple details that we are still in the early stages of planning and haven’t gotten that far yet. We also just bought a house and a puppy, so I am tending to the puppy and house more than wedding planning right now! Luckily, we have a 14-month engagement.
What piece of advice would you give couples to ensure that they use Joy to its fullest potential?
Use every section that pertains to your wedding and customize sub-sections that are specific to your wedding – for example, I created a “Travel Safety” section for Zika Virus since we’re having a destination wedding and that has been in the news lately! Also, use the RSVP section to your advantage – you don’t necessarily need RSVP cards if your guests can RSVP online.
At Joy we believe that even though a wedding lasts a day, joy should last forever. What does that mean to you?
Although your wedding could be the biggest day of your life, don’t center all of your attention on the small tidbits planning your wedding – focus on your lifelong commitment to each other. The joy in a marriage is meant to be forever and not focused on one day, since you both have a lifetime of love and joy ahead of you!
