2007 was a big year for me, due to one very important decision that I made and how that one decision changed my life in ways I never imagined. I decided to attend grad school to earn my MA in British history, and because I have always been passionate about anything British, I decided to actually GO to grad school in England. I figured, why not? This is my chance to live in a place that fascinates me, and do things that most people only dream about!

So in September 2007, this Arizona girl stepped off a plane in northeast England and headed for her new university. My new life was beginning and I couldn’t have been more excited. The next day, I joined a university housing-sponsored walking tour of the city, and it was on that tour that I met Chris for the first time. We were in the same small cluster of waiting students, we shook hands, and I learned that he was from Norway. Some of my own family came from Norway, so I was incredibly excited to meet someone who came from the same country that my ancestors did. In the days and weeks that followed, Chris and I just kept talking. We gravitated towards each other at social gatherings, our conversations flowed easily, and our friendship developed naturally. It wasn’t long before I realized that I was falling for him. It took me several tries, but in December 2007 I finally managed to confess (using Facebook!) that I had feelings for him, and it turned out that he felt the same!

I started thinking seriously about our future together after about six months of dating. I was on my first visit to Norway, and I witnessed the close, loving bond that he has with his family, so similar to my own. He was kind and thoughtful, and managed the language barrier between myself and his family beautifully. None of us ever felt uncomfortable, and I realized that it was important to him that we all enjoy ourselves and get to know each other. I had found a man who made both me and his family priorities in his life, and I knew that that was a quality that I wanted in a partner.

I stayed in England for three years, and although Chris moved back to Norway for work, our relationship never faltered despite the distance. We visited frequently and relied on nightly skype calls to keep our connection alive. When Chris proposed to me in Copenhagen after 2 1/2 years of dating, I didn’t hesitate. I had given the question a great deal of thought while we were living in different countries, and I knew beyond a doubt that this was the man I wanted to marry. His steadiness balances my excitability; his humor matches my own, and his unwavering love and support helped me through those difficult moments when I couldn’t stand to be away from him any longer. Being with Chris has literally opened up my world; we have visited 8 countries together so far, and I can’t think of a better person with whom to experience everything that the world has to offer. The physical distance between us grew even larger shortly after our engagement, as I found a job in the US, and had to leave Chris behind in Norway until he finds his own job here. It is heartbreaking to be without my fiancé right now, yet I have never doubted that marrying him will be the best decision I will ever make. We balance each other and bring out the best in each other, and I know that he is the man I want to love, live with, and grow old with. I didn’t expect to find the love of my life when I decided to go to grad school abroad, but I’m so glad that I did.

Our wedding is sure to include many wonderful, unique, and unexpected moments, because we will have guests from several countries as well as friends and family from all over the US. It will be a day on which two people from different sides of the world are finally united, overcoming geographical obstacles, and it will require a gifted artist to record such a wonderful moment in our lives. Emily’s work is extraordinary. She captures an amazing range of emotions in her wedding photography, from the most tender moments between a bridal couple to the excitement of the day’s celebrations with guests. Our multi-national story is not one that happens every day, and it is important to me and Chris that our photographer can record the most special images from our wedding day. Great wedding photography records the individuality of the couple and their wedding, and it would be a privilege if Chris and I are chosen so that Emily can work her magic for us!

August 20th 2011 we will be celebrating our love story! Randy and I meet with what would seem to be an appropriate way to meet when you are young, in high school. We didn’t attend the same high school nor did we drive so our foundation began with letters. It was the highlight of my day to come home a see his hand writing on an envelope. Words spoken within those letters will live in my heart the rest of my life. When we did spend time together I found myself saying “I wish I would have met you later in life” my way of saying you have my heart for life but we were just so young , I still knew I was meant to be with him. Outside forces separated us for 10 years as we took different paths. We kept in touch by sending a letter of “hello” a few months here and there and my heart would physically ache to be near him. Those 10 years went past and the connection we made years before was still strong. I loved him and that would never change. At times I would pray that I could just stop thinking of him. I tried to put him out of my mind by rationalizing that it was puppy love. I wondered if so much time had passed would we even be the same? I had a sort of confidence that his heart was the same for mine. I knew my heart was safe with him. His words for me were caring and sincere. I knew he genuinely loved me for me. That type of love does not just fade. Just the thought of knowing he was in the same state within driving distance made me happy, the possibility of running into him anywhere gave me hope. He reached out to me one day and we arranged for a walk around Green Lake and had coffee. He confirmed his heart was still in search of me as much as I was for his! We began to date again and experiencing life together. This past summer Randy proposed to me in Yellowstone! I want to trust the photographer, this day wont be repeated and is the celebration of our love story. I just want beautiful pictures to capture it. My fiance and I are funding the entire event. It has taught us a lot of valuable lessons on saving and I appreciate that, but the one area I don’t want to cut back on is our photographer. These pictures will mean so much to us I can’t express that enough.

Great stories, right? I always love hearing how couples got together. So, now it’s up to you, Dear Reader. There’s a poll, and you get to vote for which couple you think should win the wedding package. And then, because you feel all warm and squishy inside from the love stories and from the fact that you are helping one of these couples out, you can go tell all your friends to come vote, too. And then maybe peruse my site and/or blog. You know, just in case.

**Poll closes at 11:59pm on April 10.