One of the reasons why Jay and I love engagement sessions is that they allow us to get to know our couples a bit more before the big day and that’s always so much fun! As soon as we met Lauren and Chad, we realized that they love to travel as much as we do, so travel talk immediately ensued. In fact, when we met up for their engagement session, they were getting ready to go to Peru! We enjoyed hearing about their travel plans and loved that our conversations brought us back to some of our very own favorite trips. Jay and I are so excited for these two! Not only have they found love, but they’ve each found a lifelong travel partner. For their engagement session, Lauren and Chad had such a sweet idea! We started out in their neighborhood in the East Village and hit a few of their favorite local spots before heading out to South Street Seaport to the very spot where Chad proposed. Enjoy getting to know Lauren and Chad and get excited for their March wedding at the Grand Cascades Lodge! We can’t wait!!
How they met: We originally met in 2006 on Birthright Israel, but didn’t stay in touch after the trip. Summer 2011, I ran past Chad on the street and thought he looked familiar. We were friends on Facebook from the trip, so later that day I sent him a Facebook message asking if I did indeed see him running in Alphabet City or if I just saw his doppleganger. It was obviously him and we figured out that we had been living a block away from each other for two years and had no idea. We caught up over a beer and Chad invited me to play on his kickball team. We became good friends quickly, but it was several months before we started dating. And the rest is history.
What they remember about their first date:
We went to a restaurant in Alphabet City called The Beagle (now closed). We had yummy cocktails and shared some overpriced tapas. I think we quickly found that the way to each other’s hearts was through one another’s stomachs (me being a dietitian and self-proclaimed foodie and Chad having an appetite for someone three times his size).
The proposal:
It was our three year anniversary and we were going out to dinner. Chad suggested getting a drink down in the financial district before dinner. There is a speakeasy type bar we’d been itching to try. Chad then suggested we walk there, which was not a particularly outlandish idea, except that it was January and freezing. I bundled up and went along with the plan, which he knew I would. As we got down near South Street Seaport, Chad wanted to see if the park we found and dubbed “our secret spot” was open. It was indeed open so we admired the Brooklyn skyline on a clear night, until I was too cold and demanded to move on to the bar. As I started to walk away, Chad said, “Wait a minute, I have to ask you something.” When I turned back around he was down on one knee. He asked, I answered, and that’s how we got engaged!
One thing they love about each other:
Chad says, “I love that you put up with my goofiness and can be just as goofy back.” I love his laid back personality and willingness to go along with all my adventures; everything from ballets and musicals in NYC to hiking mountains in foreign countries.
Besides getting married, the one thing they are looking forward to on their wedding day?
”Kicking off our life together with an epic party!”
