{Engaged} Christina and Dan :: Jersey Shore Engagement

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black and white engagement

Christina and Dan’s Jersey Shore Engagement Session was stunning. Christina had a multiple outfits to choose from including a cute flower printed navy blue dress. Dan complimented her perfectly with his casual navy blue polo and shorts. During our session we walked around the beach and took in the scenery – the light was phenominal this day! Christina and Dan decided to have their own ‘picnic’ on the beach and brought some delicious macaroons customized with their names and cute sayings on them! Congratulations Christina and Dan! I can’t wait for your wedding! EnJOY! 🙂engagement photos

A little bit about the couple:

1. How did you meet?We met through a mutual friend named Monica. She has been one of my best friends since high school (we actually worked in the mall together). Dan had a beach house right next to her 7 summers ago in Belmar and they became friends that way. After that summer Dan moved to Dubai to do real estate and when he returned back to NJ for good he told Monica he wanted to meet a nice girl. She told Dan that she had the perfect girl that met his long list of criteria and would love to set us up. Our blind date was the weekend after valentines day at Connolly Station in Belmar. I remember the second I saw him and heard his goofy laugh I felt instantly comfortable with him. We talked all night and I felt like I knew him forever and remember thinking it was the best first date Ive ever been on. Dan however has a slightly different version of the story since he was actually violently ill that entire day with a stomach virus. Apparently during the date everytime he got up to go use the restroom he actually needed to throw up! I had no idea he was so sick during our first date! Now he says he is soooo happy he didn’t cancel the date that night because he met his true love! It sure explains why he didn’t go in for a first kiss on our first date though lol. Now Monica is one of my bridesmaids in our wedding and she told us she wanted us to ask her to be in the bridal party in a unique way since she takes full credit for our love story. Dan and I told her to be careful what she wished for bc we can be very creative! We actually had a singing telegram gorilla dressed up as a bride go into her NYC office and pull her out of a work meeting to sing wedding songs to her asking her to be a bridesmaid! Luckily her vice president at her company is cool because he actually took pictures and put it into their work newsletter lol.

sunset engagement

2. Whats something annoying but cute that each of you do?
Dan gets lazy and hates shaving his face so he will let his facial hair grow pretty long. When I actually get him to finally shave for an event he will shave everything but the mustache part and he will run around singing how he longs to be a conquistador. He looks like one in that moment with a very long mustache and he literally runs around for a very long time singing this conquistador song he made up and I beg him to finish shaving. The whole process takes a long time and is annoying but at the same time Im always laughing during it and for some reason find it to also be adorable.
3. What’s one thing you’re looking forward to in your life-after-marriage together?
We both are looking forward to having a large family together. The only problem is Dan only wants boys and I only want girls! When it comes down to it though we really just pray we are blessed to have any children at all and that they are healthy.

silhouette engagement photo

4. What do you both enjoy doing together with your free time?In our free time in the winter we both love to put on our Norwegian onsie fleeces, make some hot cocoa and watch movies on the couch with the fire going. In the summer we are much more active and love going out to the beach, playing golf, going for walks at night, and getting ice cream. Every summer in our spare time we also like to try new things on the weekends such as going to the drive in movie theater or racing sailboats. We also have a nerdy side and love going to the museum of natural history. Jersey Shore Engagement

5. How did he pop the question?Dan proposed to me in Disney world. We are def mouseaholics! We have gone to Disney 3 times this past yr together so he knew it was the perfect special place he would have to pop the question. He planned it out perfectly!I graduated with my MBA from Rutgers this past May so he told me instead of throwing me a graduation party he would take me to Disney to celebrate my accomplishment before I started my new job. The first night we got there he had the room decked out with mickey graduation décor. There were mickey graduation balloons and grad hats and even a mickey grad diploma waiting in the room for me. I texted my sister immediately after saying how he def is 100% not proposing on this vacation bc he is making such a huge deal out of me graduating. Then the next night he proposed lol I found out later on he had the Disney magicmakers decorate the room for my graduation just to throw me off and get me to not think he was proposing on the trip! He is very sneaky! and his plan totally worked bc it def made me think he wasn’t gonna propose on the trip. So the day he actually did propose….We had a dining reservation at Be Our Guest which is the new beauty and the beast restaurant. For those who don’t know much about Disney world this restaurant is like near impossible to get a reservation at! We eat in NYC all the time and it is way harder to get a dining reservation at Be Our Guest then anywhere in the city. He was planning the proposal for a long time though and was able to get us this dining reservation which I was dying to go to all year! After we got all dressed up for dinner we hopped on the shuttle over to Magic Kingdom (the park the restaurant is in). Funny enough I was chatting with an older woman on the shuttle and she asked me if I was married. I replied no Ive been with my boyfriend for over 5 years and ugh hes never proposing lol Dan was standing on the shuttle behind me and when he heard me say this he held the ring up over my head to show the woman. I didn’t see this happen bc my back is to dan so Im still complaining to this stranger how my boyfriend is never proposing and she sees that he has a ring on him lol She actually starts to play along with him and tells me that I should wait 10 more years to get engaged! When we got off the shuttle and entered the park he asked me if I wanted to take a picture with this professional photographer that was standing infront of the castle. I said sure! Apparently he had notified Disney ahead of time of the proposal and had requested for a photographer to be at this exact spot at this time for the proposal. We lined up to take a picture and that’s when he grabbed both my hands and told me ho much he loved me and then got down on one knee and proposed! It was the most beautiful 1 carat pear shape diamond ring, not that that swayed my decision, but it took my breath away. There was a large crowd surrounding us bc a parade was going to start soon. Everyone around us started clapping and cheering! Even the woman from the shuttle ran over and told me she knew he was gonna propose and she saw the whole thing. Getting engaged in Disney was so great because they gave us these newly engaged pins and we wore them around the parks everyday and kept getting free stuff for being newly engaged! It was great! we would go out to dinner and they would give us free cake and champagne to celebrate! I highly recommend it to everyone to get engaged in Disney! Anyways…after he proposed we had our wonderful dinner and went back to the hotel room and this time the room was decorated with Disney engagement décor. There were candles, roses, champagne, Disney bride and groom ears, Disney towels with our names on them, engagement chocolates etc! It was amazing. Best night of my life! Jersey Shore Engagement Jersey Shore Engagement

6. If you could both relocate anywhere in the world – where would it be?We both 100% agree we would move to Vancouver Canada. We are both obsessed with the Vancouver canucks hockey team. Our first vacation together was out to Vancouver to see a hockey game and we had the greatest time together. The city is so beautiful and clean and the people are so friendly. Plus we want to put our future children in the canucks camp one day it looks so fun! 2014-08-06_0009 Jersey Shore Engagement 2014-08-06_0011

9. What are you most excited about for your wedding?Dan is most excited about the food and music at our wedding. He also said he is more excited about everything that comes after the wedding. I am very excited for this Caribbean 3 piece steel band I hired to play outside during cocktail hour. My favorite song in the world is Red Red Wine and I may even get to play that song with the band! I also have a few surprises up my sleeve for Dan at the wedding that I am very excited to see his reaction! I am also very excited to see friends and family that are flying in for the event that I have not seen in a long time.
10. What is your favorite memory together?There are so many great memories I cant pin point just 1 best memory. We love spending the Christmas season together bc it is both of our favorite holidays! After Thanksgiving we start watching a Christmas movie every single night after dinner up until Christmas.

Jersey Shore Engagement

11. What’s one thing that drew you to your significant other? Dan says first my looks drew him in he said I looked like a model with my very long legs. Then it was my kind soul and how I am always there to help anyone in need. What drew me to him initially was this indescribable ora. I cant put it into words but I just always wanted to be around him. He has a way of making people feel instantly comfortable with him. Oh yea and he is hot lol. 2014-08-06_0013

12. If you both were shrunken down to nickel size, and dropped into the bottom of a blender, what would you do?We would both drink our way out together!
Jersey Shore Engagement by Vanessa Joy Photography

About Vanessa Joy

Weaving together moments of intimacy and grandeur to create alluring, romantic, and moving portraits.

Vanessa Joy is a highly sought-after wedding photographer known for her stunning imagery and artistic vision. She is internationally recognized for her exceptional talent and unwavering commitment to her craft. From elegantly composed photographs to a seamless blending of timeless sophistication and modern flair, Vanessa Joy's work has captivated audiences worldwide. 

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