One of the things I love about what I do for a living is meeting newly engaged couples. Love and excitement is in the air, along with so much hope and anticipation. It’s pretty exciting to witness it. I recently did an Engagement Photo Shoot for Anais and Derek at the San Juan Mission in San Juan Capistrano located in South Orange County before heading down to the beach for the remainder of the shoot.
Both Anais and Derek were gentle and affectionate towards each other, as well as very playful. While at the beach, they brought out powdered paint and doused each other with it, giving us some very colorful and outrageous photos. Maybe what I loved most about it is that they got the idea from a “Trash the Dress” shoot I once did. Made me feel good.
As for their wedding, it will be taking place at the Ponte Winery in Temecula (Check out our last winery wedding!) next year, which somehow seems perfect for these two.
Anais and Derek’s Story….
Anais’ Viewpoint:
How did you first meet Derek and what was your first thoughts upon meeting him? Better yet, what made you want to go back in to see him again?
“I met Derek at the Apple store where he works. I was about 10 minutes late to my appointment, so they had to reschedule me. I remember standing there with my arms crossed because I was soooo mad! Finally, after about 30 minutes this guy comes up to me and asks how my day is going. In my head I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, what do you think? I literally waited for 30 minutes.’ Honestly, at the moment I wanted to be rude because I was so upset; I hate waiting. But he was so nice and calm that I got over it quickly.
He asked me about my phone and I told him my speaker wasn’t working. As he was looking at the phone, I began “thee conversation.” I think this was like the ‘make it or break it’ moment. I started off with what my favorite thing to talk about, the Lakers! I said, ‘So what do you think about Kobe this year?’ I knew immediately that I picked the right topic because his face lit up. Then I brought up some new Jordan’s that were coming out in a few weeks. Again, his face lit up. We found so many things in common in the 15 minutes we were standing there. Personally, I think he was taking extra long on purpose. When I walked out of there, I remember thinking ‘wow, he was pretty cool.’ He was so easy to talk to and so down to earth, but in reality I never thought I would talk to him again.
A couple of days later, I was on Instagram and I saw that I had a request. I opened it up and it was this little Asian guy, with an Apple in his Bio. I was like ooohh my gosh, how cute…. he found me. So I added him. About a week later the craziest thing happened. I dropped my phone face down after I had just had it replaced. Now it was completely cracked, so of course I had to post a picture on social media hahaha. Derek wrote a comment that said ‘I know someone who can fix that.’ I gave him my phone number and I went back to the store to have it replaced. The rest is history!”
How did you guys go from the Apple store to that first date?
“This story is pretty funny too. After following Derek on Instagram for a couple of months, for some reason I thought he had a girlfriend. There was a picture of the same girl throughout his profile. So I honestly thought he just wanted to be friends. I remember thinking, ‘wow, there are still guys who just want to be friends in the world.’ So our first hang out/date was at Disneyland. I was sooo hesitant about going because of the fact that I wasn’t sure what his intentions were. I remember telling my sister, ‘ugh, should i go? Is it weird?’
So I finally decided to go. We both had just bought the new Jordan 4’s and I told him to wear them because I wanted to match. Don’t ask me why. Anyway, I seriously had the best time with him. We laughed the entire time and that’s what really set Derek apart. I am completely myself around him since day one. I think that was because we never established or labeled that day as an actual ‘date’ but more of a hang out. I didn’t feel the pressure of asking him uncomfortable questions, because I wasn’t on a ‘date’.
What is something that you find totally cute about Derek?
“Something I find cute about Derek, besides his face, is his story telling. Derek’s stories are so dry and to the point. It’s like hilarious. We have been working on him to add details to his stories to make them more interesting, but it really is the cutest thing.”
The big question, how did Derek propose to you? And were you surprised?
“It was March 21, 2015, a few days before my birthday. Derek had told me that he wanted to take me to dinner on that Saturday since my birthday was on a Tuesday this year. He didn’t want to tell me where dinner was going to be, so I was excited to see where we’d be going. Derek and I are foodies, and we love fine dining, so I knew that wherever it would be that it would be amazing. We got to a restaurant in Los Angeles called La Boheme. It has beautiful decor, hanging chandeliers, along with red and black walls. However, the experience in the restaurant was not so amazing. Our waiter was totally distracted and not attentive at all. He even forgot to put our food orders in, so we didn’t eat for an hour and a half after ordering. It was honestly a nightmare…. and I was starving!
But during those two hours, Derek and I were laughing, making jokes and making the best out of the situation. It was a reminder to me about how everything could be going crazy around us, and yet we could still make the best of all situations because we were together; as corny as that sounds. After leaving the restaurant we began heading home. I was a little tired and ready to lie down quite honestly. But then we made a slight detour and arrived at the Urban Lights at the LACMA. I had always told Derek that I wanted to go there and walk in between the lights. We walked toward the lights. He was acting suspicious, so I could tell something was up. When we got there, Derek got down on a knee. He told me how much he loved me and how he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. I did the typical girl thing and covered my face haha, but I really was so excited and happy, and overall I felt lucky to have found such an amazing person to spend the rest of my life with.”
Derek’s Viewpoint:
What were your thoughts when Anais started following you on Instagram?
“Before I hit the follow button I was nervous that she would think I’m weird for following her first, but in my mind I was thinking that this girl is something special and I didn’t want to miss out and then regret not doing it. After following her I literally threw my phone onto my bed and went for a walk outside. I felt like I was in high school because of the way I was acting. Once Anais followed me back I felt relieved and excited. First thing I did was scroll through her photos knowing that she’s probably doing the same thing.”
Describe Anais in one word and why did you choose that word?
“I would describe her as ‘Passionate’ because she does an amazing job of being a counselor with the kids at her school and is also very passionate about being a person that her younger sisters can look up to. She’s passionate within our relationship too. When we go on romantic dates she gets into a cuddle mode, where she just wants me to show her love, from a kiss on the cheek to a warm hug and she gets little gifts to surprise me.”
Tell us about your first date, what did you do? Were you nervous?
“The first date/hang out we went to Disneyland with matching Jordan’s. I remember on my way to pick her up at her house it felt pretty normal, until I exited the freeway; then I began to feel nervous. I remember the first thing I started to do was I started chewing gum so my breath wouldn’t stink and I also began to sweat a bit too, so I opened the windows to get some air. I remember her walking to my car, and as soon as she got in she said, ‘this is an Evo huh?’ (referring to my car). I was surprised she knew what it was. We got to Disneyland and had a fun night. We laughed and joked, and I felt that I can be myself around her. After that I knew that I wanted to hang out with her again because we had so much fun.”
Was Anais surprised when you proposed? Why did you choose to propose the way you did?
“She was surprised when it happened, but I had a feeling she knew what was going on because I’m not great at keeping secrets. She probably read the signs that I may have been showing. When I brought her to the Urban Lights at LACMA I was looking for the most romantic place that would be unforgettable. I chose that spot because of the times we have driven past the lights she would look over and say how pretty it is.”
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