When I first met Kendall we were both in the maternal/child health program at the UIC School of Public Health.  Her warm spirit and kind heart instantly made me love her!  A few years later, I was delighted to hear that not only had she gotten engaged but that she wanted Vasili and I to be there to capture their wedding which will take place next May by their home in Michigan.  For their engagement photos, we decided to do something here in Chicago to really get that city feel to their images.  Somehow I neglected to realize that the day of our session was scheduled for the first day of the Air and Water Show so we decided to meet really early in hopes of missing the 2+ million people that crowd around downtown and the lakefront.  It seriously could not have worked out any better as we were able to not only roam around the city unbothered but as I was driving back home the sun disappeared and it began to rain.

HOW HE PROPOSED

We had planned to go to a nice dinner for Sweetest Day last year (10/16/10), but after curling my hair and putting on my brand new heels, we realized that neither of us had made a reservation and the earliest we’d be able to sit down for dinner was 10pm.  

So, we decided to go to a haunted hay ride and corn maze in Mason, MI.  Kevin had been asking me to go there for weeks, but I kept refusing since I hate haunted things.  But we didn’t have any other plans.  I changed into jeans and a sweatshirt and Kevin took an especially long time cleaning his car (I now know he was talking to my dad on the phone).

We waited in line for the hay ride for over an hour, and after embarrassing myself in front of a bunch of teenagers because I was so scared, we went in the “non-haunted” corn maze.  Since everyone else was in the haunted corn maze, we had the maze to ourselves and got lost several times.  We were being silly and running around in all the wrong directions.  At one point I turned around and Kevin was standing there with a ring!  The sinking mud we were standing in prevented him from being able to get down on one knee, but the proposal was so sweet and absolutely perfect.

Kevin had planned on proposing in the corn maze for weeks, which is why he kept asking me to go.  If I hadn’t kept turning down his offer to go on the haunted hay ride, we might’ve been engaged sooner!  

Thank you so much Kendall & Kevin for hanging out with me for a few hours and making it an awesome morning!  Vasili and I can’t wait to be there on your big day next year (only 6 months already!!!)