How did the two of you meet?
My mom doesn’t know this, but we actually met on Tinder. (Sorry, Mom!) I had been in only long-term relationships since I was pretty young and had never really taken time to figure out what exactly it was I wanted in a relationship. Not to mention, I saw my roommate at the time going on all these “Tinder dates” and getting so much good, free food! So, I figured, what do I have to lose?! At the very least, a girl has got to eat!
Fast forward just two short weeks and I have quite a few matches on the app but have realized I do not have the guts to actually talk to any of them. That’s when Mike’s first message showed up. It may have been the Green Bay Packer playoff win or the few beers I enjoyed while watching the win, but for some reason I couldn’t stop talking to this guy. Four hours of Tinder chat later (which we have saved on our phones and read to each other every now and then just for laughs) we finally exchanged numbers.
Here we are two years later and planning our wedding!
Give us the proposal details! When? Where? How?
We were on the last leg of our three week trip to Thailand this past June and were enjoying the relaxing, resort portion of the trip in Phuket. Our first full day there we had done the most amazing island hopping boat trip in Phang Nga Bay. (Mike later admitted this was missed opportunity #1 to propose.) We loved it so much, we immediately booked the company’s other island hopping trip to Phi Phi Island for our last full day on the island prior to going back to Bangkok.
Unfortunately, when we were in the shuttle half way to the dock on that day, the trip was cancelled due to the rough conditions on the water, spoiling Mike’s second chance to propose. Heading back to the hotel, we discussed what we would do instead finally deciding on relaxing during the day and, in the evening, taking a tuk tuk up to the Karon Viewpoint overlooking the 3 gorgeous bays on the southwestern side of the island.
We are choosing to make this commitment because we’ve learned that, regardless of any obstacles we face, we always have each other for support and to put a smile on the other’s face, and we don’t see that changing anytime soon.
The Karon Viewpoint was beautiful and it was here that Mike decided that opening the ring box containing his great grandmother’s ring, while trying to take a selfie to capture the moment was a great idea. One terrible selfie (sorry, not sharing!), a ring dropped on the ground, and a few muttered words later, we were engaged!
Almost better than the proposal story is Mike’s retelling of all of the places he had to hide the ring during the previous two and a half weeks as we traveled around Thailand, which even included in his swim trunks the morning of the actual proposal!
What has been your favorite experience planning the wedding?
We’re getting married in Hawaii with just our immediate family and some close friends and then doing a laid back barbecue reception once we’re back in Wisconsin. Planning the Hawaii portion of it all has been amazing, which is probably why it’s the only part that is actually done! It’s basically like planning a really awesome vacation, which I can’t imagine anyone not enjoying.
How do you stay sane under the pressures of wedding planning?
The best decision I’ve made so far was to just go book a package with an awesome company in Hawaii that takes care of all the ceremony details for you. Definitely helped reduce a lot of stress. Otherwise, sanity has been maintained through wine. A bottle gets opened whenever I decide to sit down and do some planning. (Answering these questions falls into the category of “planning” in case you were wondering.)
What is your favorite part of using Joy for your wedding?
I love the RSVP functionality and the ability to send out reminders. The thought of not having to rifle through a stack of returned RSVP cards and also not having to pay for all of that postage such a huge relief.
What piece of advice would you give couples to ensure that they use Joy to its fullest potential?
I feel like we’re still just getting started with Joy, but I’ve been trying my best to take a look at every page available and to not be afraid to customize anything and everything! If you can’t figure something out, the “help” functionality is awesome.
At Joy we believe that even though a wedding lasts a day, joy lasts forever. What does that mean to you?
While we are looking forward to celebrating our wedding and reception with our friends and family, these events are not the reason we are doing what we are doing. We are choosing to make this commitment because we’ve learned that, regardless of any obstacles we face, we always have each other for support and to put a smile on the other’s face, and we don’t see that changing anytime soon.
