Hailey and I met back in the college days…. gosh, I miss it! We were both in the piccolo section of the MRDs (Go Dukes!) and have so many memories during those years! I was photographing Taylor and Hailey last Friday and for a moment I realized how much Hailey has grown up since I first met her. It was obvious how much Taylor loves her just from our time together and I could not be more happy that she has found her soul mate! They have known each other for a VERY long time as they realized when we were photographing close by a church that they used to play in the courtyard there when they were kids. Funny how things come back around. 🙂 It was my first time meeting Taylor at the session and they both love to make each other smile and laugh. Oh and how OBVIOUS it is in these photos! <3 We were finishing up with the last bit of our time together when the rain drops started to come down. Talk about perfect timing! Glad we took the chance and made Friday an amazing way to start off the Holiday weekend! 🙂
Taylor & Hailey’s Love Story
How they met:
Taylor and Hailey met in the summer of 2006, when she was visiting her friends at play practice. She had gotten a video camera for Christmas and was filming anything and everything. So there is actually a video of them meeting and bonding over 80s music. A year later, when they were in a play together, Hailey gave Taylor his first stage kiss… which happened to be his first kiss ever. It must have been good, because he kissed her again backstage a year later. They stayed just friends for 7 years, until one day Hailey decided to follow her mother’s timeless advice: “If you’re not sure if you like someone, just kiss them and find out!” And what do you know, it turns out she liked him quite a bit. After two months of courting her, he finally asked her to be his girlfriend, and they both knew that this was it!
How Taylor proposed:
Taylor and Hailey decided to go to Savannah, Georgia for his last spring break. They had been having a wonderful week taking tours and exploring antique stores, and one day they decided to go into this huge jewelry store just to see what they had. They were led immediately to a ring identical to one they had been designing back home. So he bought the ring, and they left the store to the sound of church bells ringing. Hailey was unsure of when he was going to propose, so she was a nervous wreck all day. But they went to the zoo, got pizza, and then took a horse-drawn carriage ride around the city. When they were done, they went walking for what felt like forever until they arrived at the Forsyth park fountain. He started playing one of their songs on his phone and he told her that he was in love with her. He had called her dad and asked his permission while he was “in the bathroom” at the zoo. Then he was on one knee saying “Hailey Ratliff, will you do me the honor of marrying me?” And to top it all off, a complete stranger had stopped and taken pictures of the whole thing. It was perfect!
Thank you Taylor and Hailey for an incredible Friday evening!!! Cannot WAIT for your wedding this fall!!! <3 XOXO!
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