As you can probably imagine, I hear a lot of stories about how couples met and fell in love.  And while every one is unique and special, there are some that just stick.  On the day that Mike and Myra met, Myra said that she went to a bar in downtown San Jose with a friend- she spotted Mike almost immediately (and he spotted her), but neither approached the other.  Myra held up her camera over her head (backwards) and took a pic of him with her friend’s point and shoot camera.  It must not have been subtle, because Mike approached her and asked if she had just taken a pic of him.  As Myra says, “We started talking and the rest is history!”  I asked Myra if the photograph turned out and if she still had it, and she said that it had and they did!  I love that they met and fell in love and that there is a camera central to the story. 

When I asked Myra how Mike eventually proposed, she said, “Mike surprised me with a champagne picnic on a very quiet beach in Carmel, CA on a perfect sunny day on Sept 27, 2010. He took his time emptying the picnic basket and the last item was a small box which had my ring inside.”  They knew that they wanted to have a destination wedding– it was important for them to celebrate with an intimate wedding in a beautiful spot, so they chose Puerto Vallarta!  (Of course, Myra’s family speaks Spanish, so that helped to seal the deal!)

Here are a few of my favorite photographs from their wedding at the Westin in Marina Vallarta:

I asked Mike and Myra what their favorite parts of the day were, and each had a different answer.  Myra said, “My favorite part of the day was when the ceremony began and I FINALLY got to see Mike waiting for me at the altar. He’s never looked so handsome.”  And Mike said,  “My favorite part of the day was when our fireworks show started and Myra and I were standing on the wall watching them together.”

Myra and Mike brought down some wonderful details- I loved that they integrated M&M’s (for Mike & Myra) in yellow into the design!  Myra wore gorgeous Jimmy Choos with her gown.  Mike chose the design for the wedding invitations from weddingpaperdivas.com.  They had a couple of borrowed items with sentimental value– Myra wore a pearl necklace to complement her dress which she borrowed from Mike’s mom and the wedding cake topper was borrowed from Myra’s parents (it was the topper from their wedding cake many years ago)!

Myra also said, “Our wedding cologne and perfume was bought specifically for our wedding. A wedding stylist gave us the idea to wear the sprays for 40 days after the wedding and then only wear it on anniversaries, so that it can remind us of being newlyweds.”  What a great idea!

Thanks for reading– have a wonderful weekend!!

I am so pleased to announce that one of my December weddings– April and Glenn’s wedding– was featured on Style Me Pretty yesterday.  I loved April and Glenn’s style, from the succulent details to the soft colors.  I had a wonderful time at their wedding- you can click below to check out my original blog post about their Puerto Vallarta wedding, or you can head over to the Style Me Pretty Destination wedding blog to see the post about April and Glenn’s wedding.

Laurie and Chris were married at the stunning Hacienda Paolo Maria (outside of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico) on New Year’s Eve.  Chris and his family have had a home in Puerto Vallarta for years, and Chris proposed to Laurie at Trio (an incredible restaurant in Vallarta), so it was only fitting that the couple chose Puerto Vallarta for their wedding destination.  The event was coordinated and catered by Plush Catering and Events, and Blaire and her team did an amazing job.

Laurie’s gorgeous dress was designed by Ulla Maija, the invitations and save the dates were designed and printed by Wedding Paper Divas, and the paper on the day of the event (including the place cards, signs, menus and programs) were created by Abby at Flair Designery LLC on Etsy.  Of course, the food (which was to die for, by the way) was put together by Juan and his team at Plush.

Because it was New Year’s Eve, there were sparklers and fireworks– two of my favorite things!!  I met up with Laurie and Chris the day after their wedding for an additional shoot in and around Vallarta and Conchas Chinas, and I had a wonderful time with the two of them!  Here are a few of my favorites from the event:

Post by Puerto Vallarta Wedding Photographer Michelle Turner.