| Arizona Engagement |

Have you ever received a “friend request” from someone you didn’t know? Well, in 2004, when Facebook was still only known in college campuses and used by students, Alicia received one. She looked at the invitation to be “friends” of a certain guy she happen to have some mutual friends with and she denied it. After all, she didn’t know him so why did he want to be her friend? A few weeks later, a ding on her phone announced another invite- same guy….Alicia denied it, again.

On the other side of the country, Rodney saw that Alicia- the girl who had captured his attention as he surfed their mutual friends’ FB profiles- had denied his request a second time. He was a little disappointed but this would not stop him from trying one last time. He knew he really wanted to know more about this beautiful woman. There was something so intriguing about her. Something that just enchanted him- so at the risk of her annoyance, he sent his final invite.

When Alicia received this last request, her immediate response was to go for the deny button…but this time something made her think about it for a minute longer. They did have mutual friends after all, he was also in college but she probably would never even talk to the guy as he lived across country and goodness, he was so persistent- what the heck! Friend request: Accepted!

To her surprise they did talk. They actually quickly became friends, chatting online and laughing for hours, talking on the phone till dawn for 4 long years before ever meeting in person. And next year, 11 years after she first received his invitation to be “friends”, Alicia will take Rodney’s last name <3

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I met Alicia a few years back while photographing her best friend Shannon’s wedding. We kept in contact and worked together planning a surprise for Shannon a few months after that and quickly became friends ourselves. I’m convinced she is one of the sweetest and most genuine people out there and when she asked me to come out to Arizona to photograph her and Rodney’s engagement session- I was honored. Spending the weekend with Rodney and Alicia was nothing but fun and laughter. Rodney is an awesome guy- the minute I met him, he reminded me of my husband- sheer smart aleck and hilarious, so I knew we would get along great 😉

I loved every minute of my visit with these two, I got to see first hand their amazing love for each other, the funny way they tease each other and how much happiness they share. I couldn’t be happier for them and love them both to pieces.

Rodney and Alicia- Thank you for allowing me to capture your beautiful memories and love. I can’t wait to see you again- next time you guys come to Tampa, Sushi is on me 🙂 XOXO