Heather & Eric || A Very Duke Engagement

Every Friday (or most Fridays, anyway), Heather would go to a wine tasting with friends. It was the same group of people every week--regulars--and that group included Eric. Though Heather enjoyed Eric's company, she wasn't too sure about dating him--their mutual friends tried to convince her to give him a chance, but it wasn't until Eric quit smoking because he knew Heather hated it that she saw how serious he was about taking their friendship to a new level. After a year and a half of dating, Eric proposed to Heather on a Viking Cruise on the Danube (in a very complicated story involving surgery, delayed flights, and lots of painkillers, which is better told by them than me!), and they will be getting married this September.

Since their relationship has so far been filled with much craziness and fun, it only makes sense that I had a tumultuous relationship with their engagement session. We had scheduled it for one of those undecided Southern weather days, where the forecast tells that the skies could open up and pour anywhere at any time. I was a little ball of anxiety all day leading up to their session, trying to predict what the storm might do. Fortunately, it decided to skirt Durham after some few showers, leaving the air a bit cooler if no less humid, and doing us the grand favor of clearing the majority of visitors out of Duke Gardens. After we had finished strolling around the Gardens, as Heather and Eric are both avid Duke sports fans, we headed over to two of their favorite places in America: Cameron Indoor and Wallace Wade Stadiums. The hazy summer light was beautiful, and shooting with them was so much fun! Can't wait for their wedding in September! (More from their engagement session on Facebook.)

Jeanine & Leslie || A Durham Central Park Family Engagement

Jeanine and Leslie were referred to us by our awesome friend Gretchen of RedBird Events, who is coordinating their wedding celebration for later this summer. (Jeanine and Leslie got legally married in DE last year, and are now getting wedding'd in wonderfully Durham-y style.) When I first started emailing with Jeanine, we uncovered some uncanny coincidences: She grew up in Hampton Roads (where Mike was stationed for his last five years in the Navy), she coached softball at Lafayette College (which is just a few miles from where Mike and I grew up in the Lehigh Valley), and now we have Durham in common--we're a match made in photographic heaven!

Since Jeanine and Leslie love Durham just as much as we do, they wanted to have their engagement session in a spot that's iconic for the city, and Durham Central Park made perfect sense. Their adorable twin daughters--who turned two the day before our session!--weren't about to get left out, and while they weren't super psyched at having to wait to get ice cream (who would be?), they pranced around, tried to eat some rocks, and snuggled with their mommies and were adorable all the same. (And I mean, their little coordinating outfits? Too much!) We can't wait for more hip cuteness from Jeanine and Leslie's August wedding! In the meantime, enjoy their engagement session images below! (More on Facebook.)

Note from Mike & Kate: Here seems as good a place as any to say, unequivocally, that we are proud and emphatic allies. While we love Durham and much about the Triangle, we think it's stupid that Jeanine and Leslie--and lots of other LGBTQIA folks--had to go outside the place they call home in order to make their marriage official. We aren't particularly fussed about how you structure your relationship, as long as you are cool people and fun to be around! Until the North Carolinian legislature and citizenry gets its collective head out of its collective butt and ratifies some sort of statute to grant same-sex couples what Mike and I (and many other right-thinking folks) conceive as a universal human right, we will continue to support all LGBTQIA dudes in constructing whatever sort of marriage/wedding/commitment/fill-in-the-blank celebration seems most fun and perfect for them. Yay!

Jimmy & Nina || An Ayr Mount Wedding

The Saturday before Memorial Day was perfect. Blue skies, an occasional light breeze, sunshine--an ideal day for an outdoor wedding. Jimmy and Nina's early summer wedding went off without a hitch--well, except for the one that really matters, anyway. (Get it?!) They read their own vows, which were rife with inside jokes (Jimmy's mentioned a janitor's closet), making each other and all their guests laugh and showcasing the unique brand of humor that makes them a perfect fit for each other. Friends waved them off with handmade streamers, laughed at the fake programs (listing the officiant as Obi Wan Kenobi, the wedding date as Stardate 12543.7, the reception location as the Hog's Head pub in Hogsmeade) which were dispersed along with the real ones, and watched Nina and Jimmy's dog, Zeus, follow them calmly down the aisle after the ceremony.

Nina and Jimmy are regulars at Mystery Brewing's Pub House in downtown Hillsborough, so it struck them as the perfect place to hold their reception. They rolled up in a stunning vintage Excalibur and entered the bar to AC-DC's "Shoot to Thrill." Their playlists throughout the night evinced their eclectic musical taste and their background as musicians, and even though, as Jimmy said, "They're a bunch of engineers, I don't know how much dancing we really expected," the music kept people moving throughout the night. With custom velociraptor cake toppers (handmade by one of the bridesmaids), toasts recounting tales of Pokemon cards and terrible sadistic childhoods, some big ol' granny panties tossed instead of a garter, and delicious craft beers flowing freely, it was an upbeat night of endless fun celebrating two excellent individuals. We are so thrilled to have been a part of Nina and Jimmy's wedding day. Check out their awesome images below! (More on Facebook.)

Vendors:

Ceremony: Ayr Mount

Reception: Mystery Brewing Public House

Officiant: Mayor Tom Stevens

Transportation: Classy Transportation

Flowers: Fernrock Farm, arranged by the bride, family, and friends.

Catering: Emily Mills

Cakes and Sweets: Matthew's Chocolates

Hair & Makeup: Haven Salon

Bride's Jewelry: Virginia Geiger Jewels
Rings: Bride's diamond wedding ring - family heirloom; sapphire engagement and groom's rings - Ashley & Co. Jewelers