It’s been a while since I’ve blogged, & it’s the first time E V E R on my updated & rebranded site! (YAY!!) :) Sadly, a couple blogs were deleted in my new launch… :( WOMP. But I’m excited to share this story & hopefully I’ll revive the lost few!! :)
A couple years ago, I had the privilege of photographing Thao & Jeremy during my Christmas mini sessions I used to have! They were incredibly sweet & just so cute together–it made me so happy to see that three years later, they’re still just as sweet-if not sweeter! & They’re MARRIED! :) Woo! In fact, in just a couple days, they’ll be celebrating their 1 Y E A R anniversary! :) YAY!
Thao contacted me a while ago to take a couple photos of her & Jeremy for her birthday, and with their anniversary coming up, we decided to combine it as a celebration of her life & their marriage, which I found super sweet! So what’s their story?
In 2009, Thao met Jeremy in Downtown Fullerton during a mutual friend’s birthday celebration!
“I remember meeting Thao for the first time at Downtown Fullerton and I remember seeing her beautiful cute face for the first time. Her smile was so sweet and cute, and I just had to find out if she was single. Unfortunately, I found out from our mutual friend that she wasn’t and so our love story would not begin until two years later when she was finally single again.”
I’m going to pause to interject this: the way Jeremy looks & talks about Thao just sincerely oozes both love & adoration for his beautiful wife. It’s seriously almost sickeningly sweet–I LOVE IT! ;) & You’ll see it soon!
Of course, at the time, Thao was rightfully not interested, but she remembered his smile & his friendliness. In due time, Thao couldn’t help but notice how attracted she was to Jeremy. She made sure to say, “he’s really good looking.” Haha! But of course, as she discovered more of his qualities, her attraction & interest deepened. :)
A couple things she mentioned:
“His sense of humor. He can make me laugh out loud at any given time. No one can make me laugh as much as him.
How loving and compassionate he is, not only towards me, but towards others as well.
How hardworking he is. He works so hard to make sure we live a comfortable life.
How supportive he is of whatever it is that I do in life and he always encourages me to never settle for less and always chase after my dreams.
He works so hard on making our marriage stronger every day, and I can’t thank him enough. I truly can’t imagine my life without him.”
Before I go on with their sweet quotes, a little bit about this session! We headed out to Newport Beach & grabbed a good ol’ cupa joe from Kit Coffee, which is DELICIOUS by the way!! It was an on and off cloudy day, but as we grabbed our lattes, the sun peaked out beautifully!
Now back to their story, we heard what Thao found attractive in Jeremy, so now let’s hear from him! :)
“Everything single thing about Thao attracts me to her. From her cute smile to her wrinkled nose when she smiles to her hair. She has the most perfect hair!!! Everyone always compliments her on her hair! Aside from her looks, she has so many great qualities that I love so much. She may be small in stature, but she has the biggest heart and always put others first before herself. She is so kind, loving, and compassionate towards everyone she meets. She is also so quirky and so silly!! I can sit and watch her talk for hours because she has the cutest mannerism and she so animated when she talks!!! It’s so funny!! I love how great of a cook she is and that she’s always cooking for me!! I also love how hardworking she is and I love how determined she is with chasing after her dreams. I love how supportive she is of me in whatever I choose to do in life. I can just go on and on about all the things I love about her, but the one thing I love most about Thao is how she has made me into a better person. And for that I am forever grateful.”
The story of their marriage started on December 21st of 2014, when Jeremy popped the question after in Laguna Beach at the Rooftop Lounge!
“I actually planned the proposal since August of 2014 after me and Thao came back from our Bahamas cruise for our 3 year dating anniversary. I knew that I wanted to propose to Thao at the same exact spot where I had asked Thao to be my girlfriend 4 years prior. It’s a somewhat secluded beach in the city of Laguna Beach. The breathtaking view of the ocean would be the perfect place to ask Thao to marry me, but I knew it would be nearly impossible to bring her back to the exact place without her knowing something was up since I planned on proposing to her in the middle of December, it would have been a big dead give away if I took her back to the beach in the middle of winter.
So I quickly came up with a plan. I called up our two friends and asked them if they could help me plan this out. My plan was to somehow get Thao to plan a hangout with our friends. So our friends, knowing Thao was originally from Orange County, they texted her and asked her if she knew of any good places to eat that was near the beach. Thao quickly fell for it and suggested that we should all go have lunch at one of her favorite restaurants in Laguna Beach and then maybe after we could all go check out her favorite beach.”
– Jeremy
The plan worked out so smoothly! Thao had no idea! As they walked along the beach, they decided to snap a picture or two! Thao initiated photos, but her friend insisted on taking another photo of them first, and here’s why!
“She told me pose for one more picture then we’ll switch. So I stood there next to Jeremy posing for one more picture, then the next thing I know, Jeremy grabbed my hands and turned me towards him and started talking to me. At this point I remember being really confused and didn’t quite know what was going. Then as Jeremy continued to talk that’s when it quickly hit me that HE’S PROPOSING!!! Then he got down on one knee and took out the ring and asked me to marry him and I quickly said “YES!” through my happy tears. And soon after that, that’s when I realized that everyone was in on this proposal except for me. That day is easily one of the best days of my life!”
They took a little over a year and a half engagement before they said their heartfelt “I Do’s” at the alter. :)
After fueling up, we headed to a park Thao & Jeremy had taken photos at before–Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park! Clouds started hiding the sun a bit, but their sweet love kept things warm & cheery! :)
“Our wedding day was the most perfect and best day of my life! We spent about 17 months of prepping and planning, and I remember throughout those 17 months all I wanted was for the day to go as smoothly as possible. But on the day of the wedding, I remember not caring how perfect the wedding needed to be. All I cared about was to marry my best friend. There were some hiccups throughout the day, but I didn’t care because I was just so happy and excited to be married to Jeremy. The day flew by so quickly but what I remembered most was just being able to share our joy and happiness with our family and friends.”
– Thao
Thao loved planning her wedding so much that she actually recently started a wedding planning business! You can take a look at it here! :)
I can’t even tell you how happy it made me feel to be around these two love birds. Everything they did just screamed how much they loved one another! But of course, behind every couple is a story of growth & work. Thao shared with me one thing she grew in during her relationship with Jeremy that she let me share with you all!
“Before meeting Jeremy, I was the most stubborn person ever!! But after being with him, I learned that it’s okay to admit you’re wrong when you’re wrong. And it’s good to apologize first. I learned not to be so prideful, and sometimes it’s better to let the small things go and not dwell on it and fight over it.”
Yes! I love that. Learning to apologize & own up to your own mistakes first is always incredibly tough. It takes so much hard humility, and it’s something I think most people learn to be better at doing while dating. It not only requires humility, but also grace from the other party. :)
In tune to how Jeremy saw selflessness & compassion in Thao, Jeremy shared that he learned to be more understanding & selfless towards others through their relationship!
“If I have to describe Jeremy in 3 words, it would definitely be: FUNNY, HARDWORKING, HOPELESS ROMANTIC. He is seriously the funniest guy I have ever met in my entire life. He makes me laugh so much and so hard every single day. There really isn’t a dull moment with him. He’s very hardworking and is always thinking about our future and always making sure we live comfortably. He is also the biggest hopeless romantic guy ever! Like he would be the one to suggest watching movies like The Notebook for movie night. And he’s always taking me out on dates even now after dating for nearly 6 years and being married for almost a year, he still takes me out on dates!! I’m such a lucky girl!!”
In the few moments together with Thao & Jeremy, I could definitely tell these things to be true! His actions & words definitely back her 3 words, and if I had to pick which stood out the most during our session? Hopeless romantic. If only you could hear the sweet things he’d say to Thao during the session! :)
“To describe Thao in 3 words, I would say: CUTE, LOVING, UNDERSTANDING. Thao is the cutest girl I have ever met in my life. Everything about her is so cute!!! Her smile, her laughs, her quirky mannerism. She’s just a really cute girl. She’s also a very loving girl. She’s so kind and generous and is always willing to lend a helping hand. Thao is probably the most understanding person I have ever met. She doesn’t judge you, and she’s always there to listen and understand where you’re coming from. She really is just the kindest person!!”
– Jeremy
Also so true! Of course, she’s beautiful! But through interactions with Thao, you can definitely feel her love & warmth almost instantly. :)
“There’s never a day that goes by where Thao doesn’t remind me that she loves me. I feel loved by her every day, and I feel even more loved by her when she’s there to support me and encourage me to chase after to dreams.”
After a while, we took a couple individual portraits of Thao for her big 3-0! And when I say only a couple, I mean it! It didn’t take long before we heard Jeremy, from the side of my camera, proclaim under his breath how beautiful Thao was, which made her squirm, and me squeal & pull him back for more photos of the two of them to end the session!
We ended the session with the sun set over the hills already, but I just couldn’t stop photographing their love & joy together!
One word of advice from this lovingly sweet husband & wife?
“Never ever go to bed angry. Never ever stop dating. And always forgive.”
Again, YES to all three things. If I could interject a two handed high five emoji right here, I would. :)
From the bottom of my heart, Thao. Jeremy.
HAPPY 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY (almost) !!!!
& a Happy Thursday to you all! :)
Hair & Makeup // Luong Lasting Makeup
Thao’s Top // ASOS
Thao’s Skirt // Morning Lavender