Back in the days of undergrad and hours filled with self-discovery, I wrote poems. I spent most of my days sitting on the steps of the college library, writing about my unacquainted love or rather… loves. I was a crusher and I certainly didn’t discriminate, let me tell ya. A boy could accidentally brush his arm against mine, and I’d write a poem about him. Another boy smiled at me in class, and out came another poem. I was a hopeless romantic. I wanted a Mr. Darcy of my own. It must have happened in high school somewhere in the midst of trading Jude Deveraux romances with my friends and giggling about you know what when I became a hopeless romantic. I thought for sure there was a knight out there for me and that happily ever after was just over the horizon.
Back in the days when girls made zines and coded their websites using only Notepad, I had a web journal. It was fittingly named Love in a Phone Booth. On that journal, I wrote about my little love incidences, and sometimes, as embarrassing as it was, I shared a love poem. I’m not that naive anymore to believe that love comes easily, or that I’ll be save from my college debt by a handsome and established suitor (who by the way happens to be a duke from ireland) but I still believe in pockets of miracles. I believe in second chances. I believe in growing old together. I believe in holding hands while we sleep. I believe in weekend hikes and picnics. I believe in secret codes. I believe in simple gestures.

Even though I have outgrown romance books, I still very much enjoy reading love stories. When Matt and I posted our photography giveaway, we were pleasantly surprised by the amount of entries we received from brides across the country. It became so hard that when another entry came we looked at each other and simultaneously said, “Uh oh.” We are big softies and wanted to let everyone win. I was very tempted to but obviously, we couldn’t do so. We did, however, decided that we would each pick a winner. So…here are our Love Bird Contest winners!
Jinjie and James :
What we love about them: They are strong believers in love and souls mates. They took a major risk, did what their hearts told them, and they found each other. Their marriage will result in a “brady bunch” family . Coming from a successfully blended family myself I am positive that everything will go smoothly as the kids have alrady “jived with each other. Their wedding will take place in San Jose, California at a beautiful cathedral and the reception to be held at the San Jose Museum of Modern Arts.
Jinjie writes, “Yes, we are one of ’those couples.’ Totally in love, always holding hands & canoodling. It doesn’t matter if there is a room full of people, time stands still and it’s always just the two of us…like everything else fades into the background. We text each other & call each other constantly all day. Heellllo, we are not teenagers, but we kinda act like them. Even if it’s just to tell each other something weird or funny that happened on our drive to work. Or a simple text to say, ‘I’m so lucky to have you in my life.’ We are so comfortable with each other. It’s unlike any relationship I’ve ever had before, and I can’t imagine having this level of emotion for anyone else, EVER. Every time we’re together it makes it so clear that we were meant to spend the rest of our lives as partners in crime.”

Our other winners are Angela and Ben, young farmers who hail from Vermont. What caught our eyes about the this couple is their dedication to living a fulfilling, sustainable life growing and making their own food and clothing, etc. When I read their entry I see myself living their simple (although, I wouldn’t call farming simple) lifestyle and being very content.
Angela writes, ” Our wedding, like the life we’re creating for ourselves, will be handcrafted. The dress, the flowers, the food, the linens-will all be grown, sewn, and created by us with our families. We want our wedding to be simple, beautiful, and intimate. Between our families and our friends, we won’t be having a small ceremony but we know, love, and would like to spend an evening with each and every person that will be there. And we hope everyone to be a part of the celebration. We will encourage people to share their thoughts also we are requesting in lieu of git some of our more talented friends perform music.” I’ll be honest, this is my ideal wedding. Everyone who is invited has a part in making the wedding happen.

Congrats to our winners. We can’t wait to celebrate with you come June and September!
by Chatti Woop Woop
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