kate + brad: atlanta, georgia
This beautiful, sophisticated woman that you see so completely in love with this equally handsome man - that girl and I used to play dress up together with a host of other little ones that were part of our beloved babysitter/second mom's club on Wilton Road. We used to "cook meals" (dead grass, leaves, and nuts) on our "stove" (the roots of a big tree). We used to put on plays and play house and debate over who would be the boy, Katie so often taking up the role since she was the tallest. We used to sleep over around Christmas, eat spaghetti, and drive around Cleveland to see the lights. We used to run through the sprinkler on hot days in the front yard with plastic play ice cream scoops in our bathing suit tops... Yup. There it is. We were silly, but I think every one of the kids who spent the days there would say that those were some of the best and sweetest days of our lives.
Now we are all a little more grown up. Some married, all with jobs, living in different parts of the country. But we did all manage to pile into the car once again with our dear babysitter just a few years ago to sip hot cocoa and look at the Christmas lights. We all hold on to those sweet memories, and now we are adding new people to the club. No more "no boys allowed." One by one, each girl is finding their person. For Katie, this person is Brad.
Kate and Brad met at a sweet 16 party 10 years ago. Through high school, long-distance college, long-distance med school/Brad has a job in Atlanta, they loved each other well. Have you done long distance? It takes work, man! But for these two, it seems that nothing could have stood in their way. After 10 years, they are engaged and ready to start the year of preparation for the rest of their lives together.