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Nick and Alicia shared the romantic story behind their marriage proposal with us!

How They Met

We met in sixth grade in middle school in 2005. We quickly realized we had something special in common and became friends. As time went by we became best friends in middle school which continued on to high school. Through our friendship we grew closer and we always held a special place for each other. We were friends but more than friends, our friendship was put at the highest regard, a friendship we had never known before. Through high school our friendship developed into an interest in each other and before we knew it, we were dating the summer before our junior year.

Alicia: I was first attracted to Nick because of his caring nature. As a best friend, Nick was always going the extra mile for me. Whether that was being a shoulder to cry on, making a special sweet sixteen present for me, buying me a calgdah ring for a “fake” marriage ceremony for charity or coming to my choir concerts, dance practices and dance shows/competitions. Nick was always there to support, comfort and just be there for me.

Nick: Alicia first caught my attention with her infectious smile. Her smile lights up the entire room with a matching personality. Alicia is one of the most caring and thoughtful persons who always thinks of others before herself. She always goes the extra mile and can find the good in everyone. Our relationship started out as friends but through the years that friendship sparked in to high school sweethearts and then into our engagement!

How They Knew:

Alicia: I knew Nick was the one when I realized that being with Nick meant having a partner, an equal to journey through life with. The longer our relationship progressed and the more we grew together I realized that I had and was going to have everything I could have asked for in a husband. All of this realization came hand-in-hand with various emotions that overwhelmed my being because up until that point I had never experienced any relationship that exposed me to such raw and truly amazing feelings.

Nick: I knew Alicia was the one when I realized she completed me. She made me better. When I first met Alicia, I was a reserved and kept to myself. However, Alicia brought me out of my shell and I owe so much to her. I look up to her in so many ways and I can’t imagine my life without her. She is always there for me and just be seeing her face my day instantly becomes a 1000 times better. She knows every aspect of me, accepts me for how I am and loves me for being me. I am truly myself when she is around. She truly is my other half and soul mate. My life without her wouldn’t be complete and I would be the true me without her.

The Chicago Marriage Proposal Idea:

Nick: Alicia and I have always loved the city and have always felt at home there. We both go to school in the city and it is where our love deepened. Alicia is a true romantic and loves the little touches or just a simple surprise or date. Alicia has always loved the culture of Chicago and the different aspects that unfold during the different seasons/holidays. The Christkindlmarket is a staple of Christmas in Chicago, and Alicia had never attended it, so I knew I wanted to start our day there. After that we went ice skating at the new Maggie Daley Park because Alicia has always wanted to go ice skating in the city and that experience brought us back to when we would go ice skating in high school for recreational gym class. After ice skating we headed over to the Historic Chicago Water Tower (where I proposed). The water tower is the only building that survived the great Chicago fire. That being said, I thought that this would be the perfect spot to propose because if one building could survive that fire it would be a symbol of our relationship and how we would be able to with stand anything that comes our way.

When we started discussing plans to get engaged we both decided that we wanted to get customized rings. Alicia, one day after classes, decided to go to Jeweler’s Row (in the city) and just take a look to get some ideas about the various aspects of engagement rings. Ethan Lord really stuck out for Alicia and after she met Erika Stein, a sales executive, she had literally every aspect of the ring picked out (at the first appointment)!

And after our photographer secretly snapped their beautiful marriage proposal, he joined them for the remainder of the hour for a wintry wonderland holiday engagement session! Watch the moments before, during and after Nick’s proposal in their full engagement slideshow.

The post Chicago Marriage Proposal | Nick and Alicia appeared first on Paparazzi Proposals.

When the pair moved in together last year, he bought her a wicker picnic basket as a housewarming gift, and they used it every chance they got!  So when it came time for him to pop the question, he knew it would be the best place in Chicago to propose— private, scenic and meaningful to them both!

How They Met:

The happy couple met back in 2007 as new members in a business organization at the University of Illinois.  Mickey was a sophomore, and Jackie was a freshman, and the instant she walked into the room, he was captivated.

They became friends and the next year, she sought out Mickey as an accounting tutor.  He says despite having to work with quite a few students, he would always tend to gravitate towards Jackie and she would often dismiss the other tutors in favor of him.  Their friendship continued to progress until Jackie’s senior year when she was taking a semester to travel abroad.  Although she didn’t know it at the time, Mickey was about to ask her out until he learned about the trip.

The pair fell out of touch for a few years before crossing paths.  This time, Mickey asked her out to dinner and the rest was history!

As they spent time together, it became apparent that even after being apart for several years, they still shared the same sense of humor!

“Not a day goes by without us breaking down into some type of laughing fit!” Mickey gushed.  “From terribly awkward reality television to silly impressions or inside jokes, we find the humor in everything possible!”

How They Knew:

For Mickey, the realization that he had found The One became apparent one night while they were at home watching a movie.  He thought about their future together, how compatible they were, and how he could see himself relaxing on the couch with Jackie one or fifty years from now.

For Jackie, it was when she introduced Mickey to her family and saw how well he fit in that she knew.  That day, she told her dad through a giggling smile that she had found The One!

The Proposal:

Mickey’s thoughtful proposal contained many elements that made it unique to the two of them— and Paparazzi Proposals was able to discreetly capture the whole proposal day with surprise engagement photography!

Mickey filled us in on the behind-the-scenes prep, involving their friends and family!

Mickey’s brother Richie picked out an incredible bottle of Dom Rose and arranged to have it engraved with a special message and the date of their engagement by their dear friend Mike, a glass-blowing teacher at New Trier.  He also picked up a bouquet of flowers from Flora, their favorite flower shop, and drove the two items to a restaurant where they met up with friends and family after their post-proposal portrait session.

When Mickey told Jackie’s sister Brittany that he was going to propose, she helped him with picking out the perfect ring, acting as a liaison between Mickey and Jackie to find out her preferred style while still keeping his proposal plans secret!

Mickey decided on this stunning design, a custom ring from Ethan Lord!

View more photos of their big day in their full proposal slideshow.

Ready to plan and capture your own incredible proposal? Paparazzi Proposals specializes in taking the stress out of your engagement!  Contact us today for a free consultation.  With hundreds of engagements planned and photographed nationwide each year, there’s no proposal idea we haven’t heard of!

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