Donna-Marie grew up in Orange Park, Florida and Monne in Newport News, Virginia. They both moved to Atlanta after grad school, when Monne accepted a position as a management consultant at a global firm after finishing her MBA at Harvard Business School. Donna-Marie accepted a position at a large law firm after finishing law school at the University of Florida. They met through the dating site OKCupid and started a friendship, which blossomed into a romantic relationship after a few months.
Proposal Date: Donna-Marie proposed to Monne on February 25th 2017 at Arrington Vineyards, outside of Nashville. Monne proposed to Donna-Marie two days later at Bacchanalia, one of the couple’s favorite restaurants in Atlanta.
Donna-Marie: “I started proposal planning around October 2016. Monne had always joked that if we were going to get married, I’d have to do the proposing so that she knew I was serious. I don’t think she believed I was going to do it first, and I wanted to beat her to it. We had gone to Nashville four years ago for our first real vacation as a couple and visited Arrington Vineyards. I told Monne I was planning a fun romantic weekend so that we could get away from our hectic work schedules for a bit.”
Monne: “Donna was right. I didn’t think she was going to propose first. I planned to propose in March and thought I would beat her to it. I was actually running late for our trip to Nashville because I went to pick up her ring before we left.”
Donna-Marie: “I planned a picnic at the vineyard. With the help of a wonderful local photographer—Jay Farrell—we were able to capture all of the beauty, love, and excitement of that day. I was so relieved once the proposal was over!”
Monne: “I was very excited and surprised when Donna popped the question. That night, I started thinking about how I was going to propose since she stole my idea!”
Donna-Marie: “We spent the rest of the weekend in Nashville relaxing (I planned a spa day the next day) and celebrating together. When we got back to Atlanta, Monne told me she wanted to take me to dinner at one of our favorite places.”
Monne: “I decided to surprise her later that weekend. I made a reservation at Bacchanalia, one of our favorite fancy places and called the restaurant to see if they could help me pull this off. When we got back to Atlanta, I snuck out to buy flowers and coordinate with the restaurant. I wrote Donna a letter telling her how excited I was to marry her and gave it to her during dinner. Then, after our main course, I asked her to marry me. The restaurant hostess only snapped one picture, but it perfectly captured Donna’s surprise in the moment. It was the perfect end to a great weekend.”
Donna-Marie: “It was perfect.”
Below are some highlights from the engagement shoot with Jay Farrell, followed by some shots from Monne’s counter-proposal.