How We Met
Mike and I met through online dating 3 years ago. My tagline on my dating profile was ‘I’m looking for my partner in crime’, his initial message to me was ‘Do you make a good getaway driver?’ haha I knew then he had a great sense of humor and was able to joke around and make me laugh which has always been super important to me. We chatted a bit online and realized we both had mutual interests when it came to TV, politics etc AND we were both originally from the East Coast making us LA transplants. We also noticed (thanks to this dating app) that we frequented a lot of the same stores like Walmart, Wendy’s etc and decided to go on a date after a few weeks of talking.
We went to The Comedy Store in West Hollywood on our first date and after the show realized how similar we were based on what we both laughed at vs what we didn’t, we had the same sense of humor and thoughts on things which instantly bonded us together. After that first date we talked everyday, continued to go on dates every weekend and then made it official a month later. After a few months together Mike got a job offer in London and we had to make the decision to continue on long distance with just a few months under our belt or continue to see where the relationship goes. Luckily we stuck together and the rest is history!
He was there for 8 months and I visited him twice in London and we even went to Paris (I had never been outside the country before this so it was beyond magical to have those experiences together and memories that will last a lifetime). Once he returned from London we moved in together and began building our life together.
One thing that we bonded over and love is DISNEY! I am a fashion, beauty and lifestyle blogger who works with Disney on campaigns, attends events etc and Mike is a kid at heart just like me so it’s great to bond over our love of Star Wars, Mickey Mouse + more. Mike is super supportive and helps me shoot all my photos, come up with creative content ideas, is my park buddy and all around the best friend I always dreamed of!
How They Asked
Every February for the past 3 years for my birthday (February 3rd), our anniversary (February 11th), and Valentine’s Day we take a vacation to celebrate all these holidays at once. Typically we go to Disney World in Orlando, FL since I LOVE Disney but this year he suggested we do something different and travel not to a theme park. I wasn’t on board at first till he suggested Hawaii and Disney Aulani Resort & Spa. For months I researched the area as we booked the trip and was on the hunt for a great photographer since Mike wanted a photo break while we were on ‘vacation’ and I wanted fun photos at Hawaii hot spots since we had never been to Hawaii before. I found this amazing photographer, Vanessa Hicks on Instagram and we instantly bonded over our mutual love of Disney and booked a shoot for when we would be in Hawaii. Little did I know Mike reached out to Vanessa without me knowing and began planning the proposal months in advance.
They brainstormed which spot to do it at, the time of day if it should involve Disney characters, etc. They settled on my birthday February 3rd, at sunset shortly before the character dinner I booked that evening. I was getting ready for dinner when Mike suggested we head down and take photos on the before dinner to capture the sunset (me never being one to turn down photos) said yes.
Once we got to the beach we began walking and I noticed we were walking away from people who would be able to take our photos and turned and asked what’s going on then he gets down on one knee, says ‘Melissa’ and pulls the ring out of his pocket and I burst into tears before any other words could be said haha!
As I am crying Vanessa jumps out from behind the bushes skipping towards us and I started crying even more because it was my dream to have her capture our proposal after we built up such a great friendship so to have her capture it was amazing (cue the ugly crying haha).
Following the proposal we had a sunset photoshoot on the beach, told our parents, and then headed to dinner where Stitch, Chip, Dale, and other Disney characters congratulated us making it the most magical proposal ever!
We are now planning our Disney Wedding in Orlando, FL at the Grand Floridian Wedding Pavillion and American Rotunda at Epcot for Spring 2021 and naturally we will have characters on the big day!