The Colony House Wedding in Anaheim with Abby and James

Their story:

“A Story 10 Years in the Making: As told by the groom…
Our story began in 2007, when Abby and I were just in high school. We met through mutual friends and her sister, Isa. I remember thinking that Abby had to be Isa’s younger sister (since she was shorter than her); so while I thought she was pretty, I figured she was off-limits. As I talked to Abby later that night, I was surprised to find out she was actually the older sister! We spent most of the night getting to know each other and I remember instantly feeling comfortable with her despite having just met a few hours before. We were soon talking every day and began dating later that year.

As we navigated high school and grew up together, Abby was faced with a difficult decision when it came time to decide where to go for college. She ultimately chose to attend San Francisco State University while I would go to UCLA, and we agreed we would try the long-distance relationship. Despite the miles between us, our bond continued to grow stronger over countless Skype dates and dozens of car/plane/bus rides to see each other. Abby eventually made her way back to Southern California to finish her nursing degree, and we were thankful to be able to spend more time together. Over the next several years, we reached more milestones together: graduating college, getting our first jobs as RNs, and traveling internationally to Spain, Japan, and Korea.

As we settled further into our careers, I knew that it was time for us to move on to the next stage of our lives together. Abby had always mentioned that she wanted her family and friends to be present when we got engaged, so I secretly began planning a proposal. On May 20th, 2017, I had a few of Abby’s friends take her out for what she thought would be a normal night out. I had even told Abby I was working a night shift to erase any suspicion. Little did she know that while she was out, I was busy at work decorating her backyard and gathering all her closest friends and family! Abby arrived home and was confused why there were all these people gathered at her house, but as she walked along the crowd and saw me at the end she eventually realized what was happening. I was so nervous that I forgot half of what I had planned to say, but it didn’t matter because Abby was still in shock and could only keep saying “You were supposed to be at work!” With that, I got down on one knee and asked her to marry me!”
-James