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more-van-anything-saguaro-American desert national park queer lgbt same-sex couple elopement Dancing With Them Magazine

Heather & Lauren

ARIZONA, USA

 

We matched in 2016 on tinder. Heather “super liked” Lauren, and Lauren always says Heather wasted her one super like for the day because it was already a match. We FaceTimed before meeting and then had our first date. We have been inseparable since. Looking back, we have many great memories together, full of spontaneous moments and new adventures in new places. Our favorite memory would probably be our first Christmas together. We spent Christmas Day just us two and our dog, Theodore, and it was a perfect glimpse into our future together. We spent the day in jammies and cooked together, and danced in the kitchen. It was just one of those perfectly effortless days that we will always remember.

 

Tell us about the proposal.

We lived together before the engagement, and while on a cleaning spree, Heather decides to move some of Lauren’s hats in the closet. No reason whatsoever because they were perfectly fine where they were. Just so happens, Lauren hid Heather’s ring box under those hats. Lauren spent the entire day trying to convince Heather that it was an earring box, but she knew better. 

Lauren woke up screaming with excitement around three am because something was on her finger, and she never wears rings to bed. Heather was planning to propose in the coming weeks on a trip to Colorado, but after learning Lauren also bought a ring for her, she couldn’t wait (we suck at secrets). Lauren ran to get Heather’s ring, and we got engaged in our favorite place, our bed.

Talk us through the decision to elope.

Eloping has always been a dream of Lauren’s, and it was effortless to convince Heather that it would be the best way to share the best day of our lives. We loved that we got to spend the entire day with each other, and although we love our friends and family, we got to focus on one another. Not to mention the adventure we got to go on. Who else gets to dance around 20ft cactus in 100-degree heat on their wedding day.

We never hid the fact we were eloping. Even though family and friends weren’t invited, we wanted them to feel a part of it all. We are both so lucky to have a family that loves and supports us 100%. One of the best investments was the photos and videos to share our fantastic day with the ones we love most.

 

Talk us through the actual elopement.

For starters, the planning of everything was a breeze. We took our time finding vendors and took it one step at a time. 

The morning of our elopement day, Lauren’s hair and makeup were scheduled for 6am. She got an early start and got to see a family of Javelinas in the yard of our Airbnb. 

Once we were both ready, we did our first look at the Airbnb. It was Heather’s first time wearing makeup during our relationship, and Lauren’s dress was not at all what Heather expected but “100% Lauren” so we were both shocked. From there, we set off for our ceremony in Saguaro National Park. 

After we found the perfect spot for us to say our vows, we quickly set up for our intimate ceremony. We finally got to say our vows on our 2nd wedding anniversary! 

We love that it felt like we had the entire desert to ourselves, and we were able to dance and spend time just the two of us on our special day. 

After roaming the desert and visiting the beautiful San Xavier Del Bac Mission, we headed back to our Airbnb for the most incredible meal by Ashley. To this day, we dream of her short ribs and tostadas. While we were having a great time celebrating in the AC, the sunset was just around the corner, and we did not want to miss a desert sunset, so we loaded up and headed for Gates Pass. 

While watching the sun go down, we danced and laughed and held each other. This was our favorite part of the day, we were completely content, and looking back on the photos, we love how much laughter and joy we had on our day, but the day wasn’t over yet. 

As the night continued, we set up a small table with driftwood we found in the desert and candles to cut our cake. Although we did not want to have a traditional wedding, we had to have cake. We basked in the night sky as we celebrated our amazing day. We talked about the future and what a fantastic day we had. 

Our photographers were incredible, we were able to be completely authentic, and they caught those moments to live forever. We are eternally grateful that they were able to capture this day for our loved ones and us.

more-van-anything-saguaro-American desert national park queer lgbt same-sex couple elopement Dancing With Them Magazine

What does the future hold for you both?

Heather’s job always has us on a new journey. In the short term, we will be relocating to Montreal, where we have an opportunity to explore a new culture and live in a place that actually has a winter. We are excited to be completely out of our comfort zone, learn some French, and build a temporary home together with yet another new start. Not to mention, we love to eat, and Montreal is a prime hub for foodies. 

We also long for the day we can have a child, whether we experience pregnancy or adoption. We’re aligned for this to be the primary focus once we are settled in our new home and genuinely look forward to becoming parents. Though we totally disagree on who will be the “fun” one. 

Who knows what the future may really hold, but we know we will be there to laugh at one another through the journey, pick each other up when we fall short, and support one another to be our best selves in the process.

Photography & Film by More Van Anything

 

Accessories Mod + Jo, PDPAOLA, Jack Mason
Cake Mayra Silva
Catering Ashley Cole
Florist Carte Blanche Floral
Gown Designer Grace Loves Lace
H&MU HVH Faces
Rings Diamonds Direct
Shoes Wandering Coyote
Suit Designer Ted Baker