“We met for the first time standing over a human cadaver in a pre-semester anatomy boot camp course.”

UHM WHAT. Zack told me that in his proposal questionnaire and I was SHOCKED! What a way to meet your future wife!

Out of all 16 proposals I’ve photographed (I think that’s what we’re at now!), Zack and Julia’s proposal was by far one of the easiest I’ve had the honor of being a part of! Zack and I started chatting maybe 2-3 weeks ago to put the proposal plan together – he and Julia would head to dinner with her parents in Tulsa while his family and a few of Julia’s friends would sneak in to the house to set everything up for the proposal and party! Everything went perfectly – they arrived home, Zack walked Julia to the back of the house where there was a precious setup of candles and their initials (hand-made with love by Zack’s mom!), he told her all the sweet things, and then dropped to one knee to ask her to marry him! They celebrated the rest of the evening with their closest loved ones!

One of the unique parts about sharing a proposal on the blog is that I get the opportunity to let the guys tell their version of how the relationship began and progressed. Here it is, in Zack’s words!

“We always joke that our first date was five days after we first met, on a Saturday morning, while we were finishing up one of our dissections. That was when I figured out I liked Julia. One of our new friends and lab partner was supposed to show up and help us, but he ended up sleeping in so we spent three hours in the lab alone together. We learned quite a lot about each other during that time and it was really fun. This was in July and we didn’t actually start dating until September because I didn’t know that she was interested.

I love Julia because she is bright, and fun, and passionate. She brings me life and happiness, but also really challenges me in ways that I have not experienced before. I love her because I see a good partner, a great spouse, and someone I can trust with every aspect of my life. We make a good team because we have such different personalities and backgrounds but similar core beliefs and values. We are able to have very deep hard conversations, but we’re also able to just sit in silence and be with each other. She is everything that I have hoped and prayed for in a friend, a girlfriend, and in the near future, a wife.”

I am thrilled I get to share the photos of their sweet night with y’all today! Congratulations to the future Pierces!!

I love the look of disbelief on Julia’s face!! Cutie little Winslow getting in on the love! What a stunner! ALLLLL THE HUGS – one of my favorite parts! Sweetest friends!!