I met Leigh and Hayden for their session in Jefferson City, Missouri at the capitol. Neither of them had been to the state capitol before, so we made sure to show it off in the background of their session. Leigh and Hayden were cute as can be under a gorgeous April spring sky. Hand-in-hand, they strolled around the capitol grounds taking in the architectural views of the magnificent building. Laughter and giggles filled the evening!
We ventured over to Noren River Access to end the session. As the sun began to set, a beautiful golden glow of light was cast over the grounds just along the river bank. Leigh and Hayden are so in love so it makes capturing their connection easy as ever. We ended the session on a high note as Leigh and Hayden took in the views at the river access and watched the sun begin to dip below the horizon.
How They Met
It was late at night back in March of 2022, where Leigh was dragged out of bed into Hayden’s sister’s room in the sorority house because his sister had “the perfect guy for her” and wouldn’t stop calling Leigh until she came in the room to see a picture of Hayden. It was from there that they added each other on Snapchat and the two haven’t stopped talking since then.
Their first date was during Covid, and since they were both in school it had to of course be, virtual. Leigh and Hayden FaceTimed and had dinner and a movie night where they watched the Cars trilogy, and might have stayed up WAY later than they had planned; but it was definitely worth it! Even though it was virtual, it still felt like they were
right there with each other, laughing and joking their way through each movie!
The One
Leigh’s Perspective: “For me it was after we finally got to be together not over a screen, because seeing
his personality and just how loving he was in person just made me grow even more in love with the man he is.
He can also go out and be silly with me while also being able to be there for me when I need it, which is
something anyone would appreciate, which is just another reason I knew he was the one for me.”
Hayden’s Perspective: “For me it was after the first in-person date, because I finally got to hang out with her in
person for the first time. After that, I began to grow an even more emotional and physical connection with her.”
How He Asked
It was October 2nd, and they had just started their vacation in Fort Lauderdale, FL. It was a very windy morning because it had rained earlier, but the rain and stopped and the wind had slightly calmed down (but not really). Hayden originally planned to propose on October 3rd (a day later than he did) in Fort Lauderdale, FL, but he accidentally made their engagement dinner for the day before (October 2nd), so he had to improvise a little bit. He had to figure out a way to make the proposal happen before their dinner!
Hayden said he had wanted to go for a walk along the beach and Leigh was so excited to be at the beach that how could she say no? Leigh loves the beach so she gets excited whenever she gets to feel the sand between her toes with the water rolling in towards her. Hayden told Leigh to dress up a little bit because they were going to lunch after and it was one of the nicer places around where they were staying . When Leigh and Hayden got down to the water, they saw that the chairs were empty and there was no one else on the beach, so Hayden had suggested that they take some pictures of themselves since no one would be in the background or messing with their stuff.
While at the beach, Hayden was trying to figure out how to get the ring out without Leigh seeing him do so. So, that’s when the impromptu photoshoot began! Leigh was so excited to say yes that she didn’t even think about the fact that he never suggests to take photos, it’s always Leigh asking Hayden to take photos. Leigh and Hayden were having fun taking photos, and trying to make TikTok’s, when Hayden sees a seagull and says, “I know you want to try to catch it, you should definitely try to
catch it.” So next thing you know, Leigh is chasing a seagull. When she got back to Hayden, they took more photos and Hayden told her to look at the ship in the distance, and when she turn back around, Hayden was on one knee! Leigh didn’t know what to do except say “Are you joking?” and start crying. And of course, she said yes!
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