We love a great Mount Royal proposal story, don’t you? Jo is a part of our local wedding professional community so of course, when we saw her proposal we knew that we wanted to feature Jo & Paul’s mountaintop marriage proposal story.
Share with us when and how you met each other.
MY BEST FRIENDS WEDDING
Our story began even before we knew one another. Our best friends tried for months to have the two of us meet when visiting their home in Jacksonville. The timing was never perfect and their attempts unsuccessful until Sarah & Alex Roepe were wed in December 2017 and the two of us were guests at their wedding. My best friend married his best friend. Should we call Hallmark now?
While we did not spend much time together at the wedding itself, talking only briefly here and there. Upon leaving the wedding weekend in Sebastian, FL, we made plans to go to a hockey game in Tampa (where Jo was living) later in the month as Paul’s Philadelphia Flyers would be playing the Tampa Bay Lightning over New Year’s Eve weekend.
We kept our plan hush hush as we talked for weeks on the phone, getting to know one another’s lifestyle and routine from afar. After four weeks we were reunited for an official first date and the rest is history…
What are your favorite things to do together as a couple?
TRAVEL! We love nothing more than to grab our passports and investigate foreign lands – jumping from one pub to the next via a hop-on-hop-off tourist double-decker around the most beautiful cities of the world. When we are unable to travel abroad, live music shows/concerts or a weekend of camping at the springs keep us zen with our crazy lives.
Not to mention a quiet night home with a nice glass of bourbon, a roaring fire and our pup top our list of favorite moments. We love going to sporting events – our first date was a hockey game and although we have NO teams in common that we root for, it keeps it very interesting!!
How long were you together before getting engaged?
We were together for a year and a half before we were engaged although he tells everyone that he knew leaving me back in Tampa our first weekend together that he knew he would do whatever it took to marry me one day.
Did anyone help with the mountaintop marriage proposal?
Our best friends (whose wedding that we met at) helped Paul (PJ) plan his proposal in Canada. Sarah – having been a bride herself, recorded the whole process of buying the ring, asking my family for permission, and his nerves!
Share your marriage proposal story…
SUNSET HEART HANDS
In June 2019 we visited the great white north with our friends, Sarah & Alex Roepe. For weeks Paul spoke about hiking up this mountain at sunrise to see the city in its best light. To paint you a picture, the sunrise was at 5:00 AM and the mountain was an hour away from our apartment for the weekend. Needless to say, we did not wake up at 3:00 AM but decided that sunset would be just as magical!
Atop Mount Royal in Montreal, Canada on June 21, 2019, Paul asked me to create my signature move for photos in every country we travel to. My left hand creating half of a heart, and his creating the other half over the city of Montreal.
The picture was breathtaking, but even more so, he placed a ring within the heart we just created and asked me to be his wife on that mountain top. Pretty romantic, eh?
What was the best moment of the proposal?
Every moment after I said YES. I almost fell off the mountain in shock but I was on cloud nine for weeks!!
Who did you tell that you were engaged first?
Since our best friends were with us – my first call was to my mom and sister who of course already knew this was happening and were waiting ALL DAY for the call! Next was his family to join in on the celebration. After the immediate family knew, we took the rest of the evening to enjoy the moments and shared them with friends when we got back to the states.
Tell us about the ring!
Paul purchased my ring from a small family-owned jeweler, Beard’s Diamonds, in my hometown of Jacksonville which meant SO much to me! My ring is a round-cut elevated diamond on a halo setting.
How quickly everyone finds out and asks how the wedding planning is going lol – All of our family and friends are so invested to ensure that our day is perfect and for that, we are very grateful!
Working with my fiancé to plan the most incredible day of our lives. Even with having to postpone our wedding due to COVID, we have worked with our vendors to customize an amazing experience that we will never forget! I can’t wait to marry my best friend and travel the world together.
What are you most excited about wedding planning?
Is it wrong to say the cake tasting? I really enjoy getting feedback from my fiancé to make sure that the day is about US and continues to tell our love story.
If you’ve already decided, when are you getting married and what is your venue?
Updated Date: October 16, 2021, at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky
Why did you choose that venue?
I took PJ to the Bourbon Trail for his 30th birthday and we fell in love with the countryside and foliage. Did I mention we like Bourbon?
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Lots of Pinterest! I researched the average pricing on all of the elements and ranked the items that were most important to us as priorities with the larger budgets allocated to them. All in all, we were able to do everything we want and stay mindful of our spendings.
Romantic Farmhouse Chic really highlighting the natural elements of the wooden cabin and beautiful aesthetics.
Have you selected any other vendors for your wedding?
Ring: Beard’s Diamonds; @beardsdiamonds
Venue: Buffalo Trace Distillery; @buffalotracedistillery
Catering: Dupree Catering; @dupree_catering
Coordinator/Florals: Doug Smith Designs & Events; @dougsmithdesigns_events
DJ: Kentucky Pro DJ; @kyprodj
Linens: BBJ Linen; @bbjlinen
Wedding Cake: Martine’s Pastries; @martinespastries
Photography: Jen House Photography;@jenhousephotography
Congratulations Jo & Paul on your mountaintop marriage proposal!
Want to feature your proposal? CLICK HERE to submit your story!
