Keely decided to grab dinner at one of her favorite places along Happy Valley Road, a pizza and sandwich joint; she knew she could enjoy a bite to eat and a good conversation with the bartender-the perfect way to spend a Friday night alone on fourth of July weekend. About a slice into her meal at the Mellow Mushroom, Keely spotted Allan and his large, boisterous group of friends dining at a nearby table. Ever the extravert, Keely walked up to the group of laughing strangers and picked out Allan, who seemed like the most approachable person out of the bunch and tapped him on his shoulder to introduce herself.

There was definitely a spark when the two locked eyes on each other and Allan invited her to join his group of friends. But later in the evening, Keely thought she might have blown it with the tall, handsome stranger when she was making her way to the outside patio where the group had migrated and accidentally used the wrong side of the door to follow them. Embarrassed, she hoped no one had noticed and nonchalantly rolled to the other side of the entrance to correct herself in as fluid of a motion she could muster to make it appear she'd planned to exit that way the entire time. Allan had noticed. And when he went to poke fun at the blushing bombshell about it, the two shared a giggle over the incident and their first private inside joke together.

After a few hours of sharing similar life stories, Keely and Allen left that night with each other's phone numbers and the indescribable feeling that they'd known each other for years.

Two days later the pair met up for their first official date to the Arrowhead movie theater where Allan, ever the gentleman, picked up Keely and also made sure to assist her by opening up any of the doors she'd have to walk through that evening. Just in case :-). Keely was smitten, with how generous and caring Allan was, and for the first time in her life, she felt like she finally found someone she could truly be herself around. Through the years Keely had struggled with insecurities and gotten in her head when she was in relationships, but with Allen it was different. With him, Keely felt free to genuinely be herself because he accepted and loved every single part of her. The pair brought out the best in each other, and it didn't take long for the two of them to know that they had found the one.

Two years into dating Keely, Allan proposed at the Pointe Hilton Resort. He had phoned his unsuspecting would be bride to surprise her with last minute reservations that he said his uncle had pawned off for the Different Pointe of View Restaurant that night. Arriving early, they waited for their table to be ready and took a stroll on the patio overlooking the downtown skyline as it twinkled in the night sky. When Keely found a photo opportunity with the city lights luming in the background, she stepped up onto a short wall for the right angle and asked Allan for a hand on the way back down. But when she jumped off the ledge and landed, Allan didn't let go of her hand and instead got down on one knee to ask Keely to marry him. Completely shocked, it wasn't until she saw the flash of a familiar friends camera capturing the moment that she collected herself to reply to Allan with a big resounding YES!

Keely said yes to Allan's question on the 24th of February two years ago, and in a few short weeks on the 30th of March 2019, the pair will both say yes as they pledge to spend the rest of their lives together. I was honored to document their love at Superstition Mountain, and I can't wait to photograph their tranquil wedding ceremony nestled amidst the lush desert landscape at the Audubon in Arizona next month!

We roamed around the Lost Dutchman State Park where every angle of the stunning mountains and cacti in the distance caused me to ooh and ahh. The sunrise that peaked over the Superstition Mountain proved to make a gorgeous backdrop for engagement photos...

Keely, you're beautiful. Really.

Although Keely’s sweater and wrap were cute and warm, Allan is the best thing to keep her cozy…

Allan is a charming guy with a soft heart and a great smile…

The couple even brought along their "babies" Bennie and Tobie for some photos, and when Keely told me she hoped to use a picture of the four of them from the engagement session as their Save the Date, I knew immediately, this spot would make for a perfect choice...

I’ll end with this photo because it’s a quiet moment of two people in love…and two of the most adorable little fur babies with their humans!

I loved spending the morning in Mesa Arizona, meeting Allan for the first time. It felt like we were old friends and I can’t wait to spend more time with such a lovely and kind couple in a few short weeks!