
I’m going to be honest here: my proposal to Charlotte wasn’t the most… shall we say, thoughtful or… romantic, if you will. We were driving in the car back to our house from the mountains, and I essentially said, “Baby, I love you, and I love spending time with you, and I want to be with you the rest of my life, and we already share a checking account… do you want to just go ahead and get married?” No ring. No plan. Nothing.
Amazingly, she said “yes” without missing a beat, and the rest is history. But it was more like we were planning a camping trip than a proposal. It was very matter of fact. No points for style, but I guess I get (at least) a point or two for the fact that we’re married in the end, right?
Well for any other guys out there with a “less-than-stellar” proposal under their belts, I present to you, for your guilty conscience and viewing pleasure: the Guy Who Makes the Rest of Us Look Like Turds-on-a-Stick Compared to Him… Ethan.
Did he have a well thought out plan? Check. Did he include an element of surprise? Check. Was it romantic? Check. Was there an actual ring and not just a promise of one (*ahem*)? Check. Did he secretly travel across the world to surprise his missionary fiance in Israel? Check… wait, WTF?!? Israel! He flew all the way to Israel to surprise propose to her?! Allright, that’s going too far. No man can possibly live up to that kind of high bar, but at least nobody else is gonna find out, especially any wives, and our loved one will still think our cliched idea of her finding ring in her glass of champagne was a creative and unique idea….
There’s video? Aww, crap.
Fellow men of the world: I apologize, but you’ll never be able to live up to this, ever.
So here it is, in all of it’s adorable glory: Ethan’s surprise proposal in Jerusalem, (overlooking the Temple Mount for !@(*&!@ sake…)

And how do I know about this video? Very simply, it was played for the entire church right after the couple walked down the aisle after their first kiss. It was extremely powerful, and there was not a dry eye to be seen. It really stuck out to me, and I begged them to let me show it here, and they obliged, and even put it in easy to use YouTube format!
Thank you both for being such an amazing couple, and sharing your special day with Charlotte and I. It was truly an honor to capture your wedding for you, and it was a blast!