The makings of a perfect love story: working out together, sliding into the DMs, and one hell of a grilled cheese sandwich.

Jarratt and Maddie met when their matchmaker, Julie, suggested that Maddie try her favorite fitness class in Santa Barbara, Bond Fitness. Little did Maddie know, Julie had her own agenda for Maddie to meet the “cute” trainer named Jarratt. Maddie tried the program and loved it, and ended up signing up, still unaware of Julie’s master plan. A few days later, she took Jarratt’s class for the first time.

Jarratt noticed her warming up on the bike with a Nantucket sweatshirt on. Since Nantucket isn’t a widely known place and Jarratt had been once before, he took it as an in to go talk to her. Their conversations slowly grew over time and a connection was starting to form. *side note: this whole time Maddie wasn’t sure if he was flirting with her or just being the nice friendly trainer. But then, Jarratt ended up making the ultimate move and slid into her DM’s, to tell her “Way to kick some ass today in the workout!” She figured he didn’t personally message every single one of his clients!

After several more weeks of friendly banter, they decided to set up a group date (outside the gym) with mutual friends. It was almost like their friends weren’t even there because J & M ended up soaking in every moment together and talking all night. At the end of the night Jarratt gave Madeline a ride home and ending up coming inside, but not for what you might be thinking….he had been bragging about his grilled cheese skills, and made her a late-night grilled cheese sandwich. Needless to say, it was one hell of a grilled cheese and that pretty much sealed the deal for Maddie. They’ve been together ever since.

Maddie has an incredible work ethic and leads by example. She’s absolutely beautiful inside and out, and has a calming and poised presence. She also is an amazing athlete, with a competitive nature you wouldn’t want to cross. Her bountiful love for her family, her acceptance and support of Jarratt’s nerdiness and cooking, are just a few of the things that Jarratt loves about her most.

Jarratt wears his heart on his sleeve, and shows kindness to anyone he interacts with. He’s unapologetically himself, and has an infectious positive nature that brings energy into any room he walks into. His unconditional love for Maddie is something she loves about him the most. And we love that they BOTH said “I’m excited to marry her/him because they’re hot!” They’re two of the most genuine and attractive humans we know, and we cannot wait to celebrate their marriage!

Their proposal story intertwined so many things that are special about their relationship. Jarratt gifted Maddie a trip to Big Sur one year for Christmas, and took that opportunity to plan the most beautiful proposal. Despite waking up to rain, the proposal day did start to clear and they were able to get in all of the activities they wanted: yoga, hiking, jacuzzi. When the sun started to go gown, the clouds completely lifted, and Jarratt knew it was the perfect moment to put his plan into action.

Jarratt took her out to a bluff to watch the sunset where he surprised Maddie with a notebook they shared. He had written several pages in it about their relationship up until that point and where it was going in the future. At the end of the notebook entry, he dropped to a knee and asked Maddie to marry him. After both of them blacked out and hugged each other, he continued the surprise with a gift of a beautiful handmade cribbage board that had a personalized poem he had written himself on it.

                Fifteen two, fifteen four,

                It’s impossible to cherish you more;

                Fifteen six, and a pair is eight,

                Forever with you? There is no debate!

                Whether it’s your crib or mine, we love to play,

Let’s keep this up till we’re old and gray!

Isn’t that SO SWEET!? She obviously said yes, and we were beyond excited for them! Jess got to hear the proposal story from Jarratt at the gym a few days later, and we immediately started talking about wedding photography! We are SO excited for their wedding and cannot wait to see everyone shake it on the dance floor!!

For their engagement session, we wanted to do something special and unique to them. They are both such beautiful humans, and love the outdoors, so we wanted to end at the beach! We loved everything about spending the afternoon with them and capturing their sweet sweet love! These two have some serious connection and they brought the HEAT!!! We love them dearly and we are thrilled for their wedding!!