Travel-Inspired Alabama Engagement Session

When it comes to true love, you just can’t explain how great it feels. But, as most of us are familiar, the expression “floating on cloud nine” is the closest we’ve come to describing this remarkable sensation. Take a window seat view of the vibrant love story shared between Franceline and Weslie; captured by Elle Danielle Photography below:

How they met:

Neither Franceline nor Weslie ever would have imagined that a simple “Hello” in 2009 at the birthday celebration of a mutual acquaintance would be the start of a beautiful romance… albeit a slow start. It took a few times of running into each other before the butterflies began to flutter but with each encounter Franceline became more and more intrigued with this handsome, friendly, and eccentric guy. They finally exchanged contact information and the courtship began. Franceline recalls a specific outing to the gun range, after which she elatedly informs her friends that she REALLY likes this guy! He was so much fun and they really had great times together. Her heart was open to love. Her friends have a running joke and often tease them about how deeply and passionately they look into each other’s eyes, like a pair of cartoon characters. It is a beautiful thing. The fun outings, romantic dates and spectacular trips were just the icing on the cake to what had become an authentic friendship, true intimacy and a blossoming love. Their love grows stronger and deeper daily. They are both so excited to continue this exhilarating ride of love and life hand in hand.

 The Proposal:

September 20th 2014 marks the day I asked the love of my life to spend the rest of forever by my side. This grand, romantic gesture took months, maybe even years, of preparation. Let me explain. Since marriage was ever the topic of conversation, I’d always told Franceline that I would never propose on either of our birthdays. This sentiment was purposely reiterated over the course of our 3 years of dating. That seed was planted and rooted in her mind, kind of like Inception, so she had no idea of what I had up my sleeve. We decided to take a trip to Puerto Rico to celebrate my birthday, which is September 21st, but I had been on the hunt for the perfect ring for my future wife before this trip was ever booked. It took quite some time to find the perfect ring. I’m sure she began to wonder when on earth I was going to propose! But it had to perfect: the perfect band, the perfect diamond. I know my queen’s standards and I was going for the shock factor when presenting her with the ring so I didn’t mind making her wait a little while. I finally scored the perfect ring and the only thing left to do was create the most magnificently, romantic scene to present it to her and pop the big question. Something told me this upcoming romantic getaway might be the perfect backdrop.

A couple of weeks prior to leaving for Puerto Rico, I set the wheels in motion by calling the resort to let them know that I was planning to propose and would need their help. On the evening of September 20, 2014, a day BEFORE my birthday, my plan was set into motion. It started by having the receptionist call our room to offer me a birthday surprise. The call, of course, piqued Fancy’s interest. I told her the hotel wanted to do something special for me for my birthday at 5:30 that evening. She thought that was thoughtful of the resort, being that she didn’t even have to plan it. They were doing it all on their own. Where to hide the ring before leaving the room was one thing I had NOT planned for so I improvised and hid the box in band of my Hanes underwear! It seemed safe enough. When we arrived downstairs the head chef of Solaris escorted us to our beach side candle lit table. Upon sitting down, we were poured glasses of Merlot by our server as he wished me a happy birthday: “Happy birthday Mr. Rembert!” What’s a romantic candle lit beachside dinner without a mini photo shoot! Fancy decides to sit in my lap for some of the shots. This made me a little nervous because I didn’t want her to discover the ring box. But, thankfully, she did not notice it. After our mini photo shoot was over, our waiter brought out cake but instead of placing the plate in front of me, he placed the plate in front of her. Of course, she tried to correct him, telling him to give me the cake but upon taking a second glance she noticed the plate read “WILL YOU MARRY ME” and NOT “Happy Birthday”. The moment had been perfectly staged and the time was NOW. I got down on one knee and poured out the words that spilled over from my heart, full of pure joy at that very moment. I said: “THE LAST TWO YEARS, ELEVEN MONTHS AND ELEVEN DAYS HAVE BEEN THE BEST MOMENTS OF MY LIFE. WITHOUT A DOUBT, YOU BRING OUT THE BEST IN ME. SO, FRANCELINE…WILL YOU MARRY ME?” She responded with a resounding “YES” after which the waterworks began. Tears of joy began to flow. The rest is waiting to be written in blissful history!

These two cannot wait to merge families and start a wonderful life together.

The engagement session…

We pondered long and hard for a theme for our engagement session. We knew whatever it was it had to be grand, memorable, fun and representative of both our personalities. Since we both love to travel, we decided to make travel the focal point. Being the boss that Franceline is, she pulled a few strings and was able to set the background to reflect how true bosses travel! The private jet, airport hanger, a little old Hollywood glam and the chemistry between us on camera created engagement photos that were everything we had hope for. Being a big city girl, Franceline also wanted photos that incorporated some urban shots that were reminisce of New York City.

We feel extremely blessed to be able to work with the most amazing wedding photographers in the industry. Elle Danielle and Nikesha Fantroy are truly amazing and awesomely talented. With them and the help of friends and family, we were able to make our vision for the shoot a reality.

What did you do on your first date?

For our first date, we decided to revisit the restaurant where we first met. Weslie was and is the perfect gentleman. He shows me every day that chivalry is definitely not dead. The conversation lingered on and on, maybe because it was so intriguing, maybe because we weren’t, yet, ready to leave each other’s presence, maybe because the wine was so smooth and the food so delicious. Whatever the reason, we are so glad that it happened. Even then we seemed to balance each out, Franceline extra laid back and Weslie always keeping the conversation going. It was a very special night; special enough for us both to agree to a second date.

What’s your favorite thing to do as a couple?

This may sound extremely cliché, but it really doesn’t matter what we are doing; dinner, movies, bowling, traveling; as long as we are doing it together. We simply enjoy each other’s company. We know that many superficial things will fade away but the fact that we are true friends and do share a special kind of companionship makes us welcome the idea of growing old together while staying forever young at heart.

How has wedding planning been so far?

Like any girl who had just been proposed to by the man of her dreams, my head was in the clouds and I was floating around on the high from this gorgeous ring and a dream proposal. After a few weeks of that, the accountant in me kicked into overdrive. By nature and by profession, I am very organized, detail oriented and good with time management; all skills I’m using to make the wedding planning process not so stressful. I’ve created a binder, now officially known as “The Binder”, which houses my wedding checklist, pictures of wedding ideas and vendor contacts. I believe that the smallest details can make most lasting impressions. Pinterest has become my go-to for finding ideas on how a bride can incorporate fabulous small details into her wedding. Although some days of planning can be slightly stressful, I can definitely say I’ve had more fun days and am living in every moment. My friends and family have been so supportive throughout this process, helping me in any way they can. My fiancé, of course, would give me the world and make all the stress go away but I wouldn’t trade a single day of the process. I’m locking away every memory to look back on and smile at the fabulous journey to get to the alter to marry the love of my life.

Tell us what you’re looking forward to most on the wedding day.

I am so looking forward to every moment like putting on “the wedding dress”, walking down the aisle to meet my groom, the two of us sharing sweet communion with God, pledging my love to my love and him pledging his to me. There are so many things to be excited about and look forward to experiencing. We also cannot wait to spend the evening with friends and family. It’s going to be an awesome celebration of love!

Photography: Elle Danielle Photography