Winter Micro Wedding – Celeste and Hannes

02.14.22

Celeste and Hannes – January 27, 2022

Winter Micro Wedding

Celeste and Hannes brought family all the way from Belgium to join us for a winter micro wedding. They dressed the chapel in white fabric with our cream and white florals. She and her family made the lovely bouquets. She looked amazing in her dress, and she brought a cape to play with!! He seemed all aquiver with anticipation, and his face lit up during the first look. Congratulations, Celeste and Hannes!!

From the Bride:

We met in November 2017 on a safari trip in South Africa. It was as if by fate – we came from different groups, him almost going on the trip the week prior, and her debating on going at all. A large group in one van, we still managed to miss each other the first part of the trip as she sat in the front and he sat in the back. But at a stop along the way, she caught his attention when she ordered a spicy chilli chocolate milkshake. From there, they had frequent run-ins and eventually were able to have a few lovely conversations along the way. It wasn’t until the last night of the safari when a small group of us spent most of the night along the beach, watching the starry night sky of South Africa that we got close. But our relationship did not end on that safari. We kept in touch and had our first date just a couple of days later.
Unfortunately, after about a week and a half, we had to part ways with her going back to her home country of America. He stayed in South Africa for another two months but we kept in touch by calling daily and hand-writing letters to each other. Our long distance relationship survived on these frequent calls and letters as well as our open communication, honesty, and trust. We were lucky enough to visit with each other at least twice every year and even were fortunate to have a trip in Croatia for three months together during the pandemic.

Now, we’re done waiting and ready to start our life together in America. We’ll see were our love and journey takes us from here.

Our first date was on Sunset Beach in South Africa. We took a long stroll down the beach as we talked and got to know each other. Along the beach, we chose rocks for each other as a keepsake of our first date, which we both still have to this day. As we made our way back at the end of the date, we managed to lose our way a bit, but we enjoyed the extra time together, and eventually, together we made it back safely and ended the night with one sweet kiss.

Hannes proposed on a snowy morning at Kaaterskills Falls in New York over our four year anniversary weekend. The setting could not have been more perfect, and although the camera battery ran out and did not record the entire moment, we will always have that special moment in our hearts and memories. We staged photos after the actual proposal to document the special occasion for friends and family anyway 😉

We love hiking and outdoors and have had countless hikes together throughout our adventurous journeys around the world. For our next adventure, we were drawn to the beautiful Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee. We thought they would provide some great scenery and hiking as we enjoy time with friends and family prior to the big day. We also love the numerous activities for guests to enjoy while staying the week in a Smoky Mountain cabin.

We are most looking forward to sharing the special milestone in our relationship with our family as well as finally taking the next step in our journey of love and continuing our life together.

Our first date was on the 27th of November. Although our wedding is not in November, we wanted to keep the date of the 27th as a reminder of our anniversary and when our love first began.

Over the past four years of our (mostly) long-distance relationship, we have traveled the world together. Our love grew across three continents, 10 countries, and 9 states. During our travels, we have completed countless hikes, explored countless cities, taken thousands of miles worth of road tripping, and visited friends and family. Aside from our traveling adventures, our dates nights are mostly virtual, consisting of meaningful talks, church messages, movie night and/or binge watching our current favorite TV show.