Tell us how you first met? Who, what, when, where, and why?

Gwen: I was out shopping with one of my girlfriends, when we were freshmen in college, and we decided to get ice cream. The guy behind the counter was cute so I gave him my number, which I had never done before! We went on a double date with him and his friend and the whole time they were talking about their best friend, Jordan. The first time we hung out with him, he didn’t say a single word! But, once I got to know him, I knew beyond a doubt, he was the one for me. Now, 4 years later and were happily married!

Jordan: It was common for me to hang out with my best friends after I got out of work, almost everyday. One night, they invited me to hang out with them and some girls they had recently met. When they picked me up, I got in the back of and bumped straight into the attractive woman who would turn out to be my wife. My nerves got the best of me, and I proceeded to do what I do best and make exactly no conversation. I ended up coming around and striking up a conversation while we were in the common room at a point in the night. We chatted a long while and I was briefly able see who this woman really was. She showed herself to be a sweet, kind, and nurturing person, hiding behind the adventurous mask of a college freshmen looking to fit in somewhere.

 

When did you know he/she was the one? Was there something he/she did?, etc.

Gwen: I went through a hard time over the Christmas break during my freshman year in college, just after we met and before we had officially started dating. While I struggled with two consecutive deaths in our family over the holiday break Jordan was there for me and knew exactly what to say to easy the pain of the losses. I often say I don’t know how I would have made it through that month without his support. I have found that loving support in every moment of our lives together. He brings a laugh when my heart feels heavy and turns average chores into fits of giggles. The joy alone, that Jordan has brought to our lives has been completely life changing. So if you’re looking for one moment, I don’t have one, I have millions, but you really had to be there…

Jordan: I like to think that I’m good at reading people, and that I can see things about people just from how they present themselves. At the time when Gwen and I first met, I was working as a security officer at a hospital, and had to be good at reading people to predict their actions before they carried them out. Through this experience, I observed that Gwen was acting funny, as if she had something to hide. I decided to pick at this mask to uncover who she really was. From the surface, Gwen appeared as a very attractive, blonde college freshman. She wanted adventure and new experiences, yet scared for the unknown, yearning for a place to fit in to this new crazy perspective of the world. I could see a side of her no other person could, including her. I saw a genuine person, someone who had a strong bond to her family, her support group. I saw a loving, caring person; a kind soul, with this fire of endless effort to achieve a desired vision. She has an immensely strong yet, elegantly beautiful personality. I almost instantly fell in love when I saw who she really was and seeing her blossom, into the woman I have now married, has been my greatest joy.

 

 

Tell us about the proposal. (Did you see it coming, how long was it in the planning?, how did you feel? nervous, excited, freaking out?)

Gwen: I had been waiting, hoping, for over a year by the time he ponied up! We were entering a big couple months of holidays as it turns out, Christmas Day, New Years Day, Our Anniversary (Jan 19th), My Birthday (Feb 4th) and then Valentines Day! As we started going through the dates, I was hoping he would pick one to propose! I was thinking, “He hates to be predictable, so there is NO way he’ll propose on Valentine’s Day.” But as my birthday passed with nothing but a lunch with my parents (which I later found out was to ask for their blessing) I was a bit sad. As Valentine’s Day rolled around he asked to go to ‘our beach’, where he asked me to be his girlfriend. We often made the short drive for a little peace and quiet on our beach, this time he was much more nervous, but I hadn’t even notice. So convinced, was I, that he wouldn’t propose on Valentine’s Day! But as we gazed in the infinite blue ocean and heard the soft waves crash, he whispered the poetic words, “You know I love you, right?” I almost burst into laughter, but held it together and nodded. After a few more jumbled words and fountains of happy tears from me, we had agreed to spend eternity together. That moment was the second happiest of my life, my happiest moment came less than a year later when I became Mrs. Alber.

Jordan: I like to be traditional, so naturally I had to ask her parents for their blessing in person. However, this proved to be a challenge as we were living in Rhode Island, and her parents are from Maine. Finding a time where I could ask her parents without her being present proved to be difficult. One day, we decided to meet half way in northern Massachusetts for dinner, I knew I had exhausted all other opportunities. While Gwen and I excused ourselves to use the bathroom after a long drive, I circled back around and surprised her parents by sitting back down. It was then I hastily and anxiously asked for their blessing. This being said, I’m someone who waits till the very last minute… for everything. I received the engagement ring with only a few days to spare, as I had decided to pop the question on Valentine’s Day. This in itself would be a surprise, as I knew Gwen would expect it any other day, except for that very predictable day. I had the day off from work, and was going to take her to ‘our beach’ when she got home from class, later in the day. I almost had too much time to build up nerves and anxiety, to the point where I thought I was going to spoil the surprise. When Gwen finally got home, she was not in the best of moods from a hard day; this did not make asking any easier. I convinced her to go to ‘our beach’ anyways, and we set off. We arrived to a very windy beach, and I was nervous as could be. I had originally planned a long, emotional, heart-felt speech that would flow into me asking her. All I was able to get out was “You know I love you, right?” It was clear to me that this was all I could conjure up, so I had nothing else to do but go on my knee and ask her to marry me. All aside, she turned into a water fountain of tears and joy, vigorously moving her head up and down, trying to communicate the “Yes”.

 

 

Tell us the one thing you love most about each other.

Gwen: One, is quite the restriction! His soul. Truly the person I see every day, underneath it all. Despite the exhaustion, stress or distraction of everyday life, his soul shines through and it is the core of him that I love most. The soul that guides his choices and his words so carefully, is truly remarkable.

Jordan: I love how easy she is to love, and how much she cares about even the littlest of things. She has always been there for me, even during the roughest of times. She’s been a beacon of light for me to show me back, when I go emotionally adrift. She has always shown an unconditional love for me and she is most certainly my best friend. We always have a fun time, with what ever we do. I know that was like eight things, but its very hard to pick just one thing!

 

 

If you feel comfortable, share with us something silly or quirky the other person does.

Gwen: Well you’ll think were crazy, but we never call each other by our first names. We often call each other anything from Buz to Buzzar to Boozaroo! Goofy, I guess, but it often softens a tense situation with a smile.

Jordan: We have our own language that we’ve found that only we can really understand. It essentially consists of replacing every vowel in the English language with an “O”. It’s actually hilarious when we say full sentences aloud, and we almost always end up in a laughing fit.

 

 

1. Besides getting married – what’s the one thing you are looking forward to on your wedding day?

   Gwen:  I am very excited to see the families all together. We are spread across the world, and it was fun to bring everyone together.

   Jordan: I’m looking forward to the joining of our families, and obviously to see Gwen as my bride. I feel as though there is endless planning to how she will appear on our day.

 

 

What’s your favorite trend for weddings right now? 8) What inspired your décor or theme?

Gwen: I have always dreamt of a winter wedding, and finally got to design my wish! I loved that our wedding included modern touches like up lighting, extremely tall centerpieces and personalized everything; but I also enjoyed the old traditions and religious influence we had over our whole wedding.

Jordan: Guys don’t really think about our wedding day. That being said, I really want whatever Gwen wants, I trust her judgment. I do value the classiness of a wedding, I really like the venue we choose because it the perfect example of a classy sophisticated wedding venue.

 

 

What’s one thing you wish you would have known earlier in regards to planning?

Gwen: Just how many pieces there are. It seems so simple until the month before and everything comes down to the wire. I also appreciated how personal the whole day and wedding was, changing little things creatively to add special details was the best part.

Jordan: I really had no clue how evolved the planning would be. There are so many choices and parts of a wedding that I didn’t even know existed.

Vendor List

Florist | Jardiniere Flowers – Kathy
Ceremony Location |Wentworth by the Sea New Castle, NH
Reception Location | Wentworth by the Sea New Castle, NH
Reception Venue Coordinator | Abigail Lajoie
DJ | Music Man DJ – Lori D
Dress Salon | David’s Bridal; Portland, ME
Other Details/Vendors | Pink Tie Productions – Matt