Give us the proposal details! When? Where? How?
I had to travel to Japan to present my research at a conference. As usual, I invited Will and we scheduled some sightseeing. During this time, my brother was in the middle of his backpacking trip and we were planning on meeting in Kyoto. I was ecstatic! We have all talked about visiting Japan together for years. We bought traditional festival outfits chosen for us at the textile shop and then visited the Fushimi Inari Shrine. We walked the main path up the mountain, surrounded by the 10,000 tori gates. At one of the shrines, someone shared with us the traditional steps for praying for a “good match” in marriage. Will and my brother teased me, giving me a coin, to start bowing and praying. Before making our descent, I asked my brother to take a picture of Will and I by the tori gates. My brother looked at his shots, frowned and kept snapping some more. A crowd started forming behind my brother. Embarrassed, I turned to Will to suggest we continue walking because everyone was waiting. It was then that I found him on his knee with his hand out to me! I stood there, mouth gaping for a while. I realized that the crowd actually stopped because they were waiting for me to turn and notice him! I could not stop grinning. During our climb down the mountain, I kept asking if it was all real because it felt like a dream.
What has been your favorite experience planning the wedding?
Sharing the experience with my future husband, our family, and friends. (e.g. dress shopping, bachelorette, bridal shower, tasting, engagement photo shoot, and all the distractions in between).
How do you stay sane under the pressures of wedding planning?
We go on dates in the middle of the week! We like movies, going out to eat, theatre productions, and going for walks.
Paul – Tara Weddings
What is your favorite part of using Joy for your wedding?
The look and feel of the website, along with the RSVP features. I love customizing the pages!
What piece of advice would you give couples to ensure that they use Joy to its fullest potential?
Work on it together and check out the tutorials. Share the website with your guests by adding it to your save the date cards, invitations, and social media accounts. It makes it so much easier to keep track of RSVPs and communicate event details! It’s also helpful when someone loses their invitation.
Paul – Tara Weddings
At Joy we believe that even though a wedding lasts a day, joy lasts forever. What does that mean to you?
We found joy in each other when we met and we want to create reminders of that during our wedding. We want to continue to nurture that joy long after we have forgotten the flavor of our wedding cake and we hope to keep dancing long after every song in the world has stopped.
