1) How did you meet and fall in love?
I (Meg) had decided I needed a sport to balance out my crazy workload while studying my Bachelor of Biomedical Science, and my best friend (and now bridesmaid) Steph, convinced me to try out for a women's baseball team.
Since I had played softball before and enjoyed it immensely, I figured 'why not?'. On the come and try day, a rather cute man took us out to the field to throw a ball around and have a go at batting.
Baseballs are much lighter than softballs, and I quickly impressed this coach with my 'gun of an arm' - his words, not mine. I in turn, couldn't help noticing what nice legs he had from squatting as a catcher all the time (haha!). And that is how I met James!
2) Tell us about your proposal?
Well I (Meg) am just lucky it happened - apparently, I messed the first two tries up. James was going to propose to me at a park we love to walk our dog Molly. It was a beautiful sunny day, and he had the ring in his pocket - when I casually mentioned that this was the park where our friends Xavier and Amy had apparently gotten engaged. Strike one.
The next time he wanted to take me to Caulfield Racecourse - another favourite walking spot. But I wouldn't go as it was raining and I had just washed my hair. Strike two.
The time he finally did get to propose I had driven back from Wodonga with our dog Molly, and upon pulling up requested his help to unload. I figured while he took Molly for a wee, I would go unpack.
As I walked past our bedroom to the back bedroom I saw a blanket fort draped from the ceiling fan with some champagne laying in wait on the bed. I barely had time to register this before James came bursting in the door behind me, dragging an unwilling Molly.
As I stood there, still sweaty in my athletic gear, James started to say all these beautiful things about how much he loved me. I was so overwhelmed I almost forgot to say yes!
But I did, and then we spent the night calling family and friends before settling to watch the movie we watched on our first date 'The Italian Job'. It was perfect!
2) Tell us about your Nolan and Vada engagement ring and why you chose it?
We had talked a lot about the ring, because we desperately wanted the ring to be ethically sourced, so that eliminated quite a few companies straight away.
The other thing we had in mind was our budget - while we both agreed it should be an investment, and something to stand the test of time - we didn't want to spend money on a ring that could have been spent on our next adventure like a house, or a baby.
So, we decided to look for a white sapphire, as I love how they have a softer light than diamonds, and almost had a vintage feel without necessarily having to wait a lifetime for it be considered so.
I found N&V online, and knew our best friend, and best man, Alex was heading to Auckland fairly soon - so I messaged him querying when his trip was. He sent back a photo of the Auckland skyline. Within the hour he was in Nolan and Vada studio, taking photos of the kind sales consultant who agreed to try on the ring style I had fallen in love with.
Similar to most things with this wedding, I've just known when I've found the right one - the dress, the venue, and then the ring. You can have something completely different in mind, and then you see the right one, and you just know!