After moving to Austin at the end of November, I reached out to a few wedding vendors to pick their brain about the new area I am now in. One of those vendors is none other than Foxglove and Grace‘s Mabry. With Covid-19 and her crazy schedule, we felt it was best to do a virtual coffee date. As we got to talking, I felt instantly comfortable with Mabry. So much so, that I asked her if she was interested in doing an engagement session at Shiraz Garden. She was as excited as I was and said, “yes!”

Shiraz Garden

When I was scouting for wedding venues in the Austin area, I came across Shiraz Garden on Instagram. It was love at first sight! After speaking with the director of the venue and getting permission to photograph on property, I made arrangements with Mabry and her fiancé for their engagement session at Shiraz Garden.

Mabry and Jacob’s Love Story

Mabry initially “met Jacob in February 2020 at a college ministry retreat. We were in the same morning bible study but to be honest, I had had 4 hours of sleep the night before and as you can imagine, I didn’t remember a thing the following day.”

And Then …

In May of 2020, during a socially-distanced worship night, Mabry was singing and Jacob “heard my voice and looked for the person it belonged to and it was me. He claims his first thought was ‘wow, she’s pretty.'” Can we all take a moment and just say ‘awwwww?!’

“Later in the night, my friend and I hosted a campfire night at her parents house in College Station. Jacob showed up. However, at this time I liked another guy in the same ministry who will not be named. Jacob flirted it up with no avail, as I was oblivious and infatuated with another. He stayed that night until 2:30am with me and a few others. The next day, he slid into my dms.” 

For two weeks, Jacob stays persistent in dming Mabry while she’s pining away for another man. But then there’s a shift!

Fate Would Have It…

Mabry decides to invite her entire college ministry to Austin for a day trip to Mckinney Falls Park. She also convinces Jacob to drive from Houston to come! “Again, I’m just being friendly and this man just likes me a lot so naturally he made the three hour trip and stayed with a friend. It is at this point that I begin to talk with him more eagerly. I’d be willing to bet most of my Instagram time was spent messaging him. Nevertheless I am still in like with the other boy from my college ministry so my heart is just not available.”

Well, the park is closed due to Covid, but never fear, Mabry is here! She shifts the plans to allow them to still hike in Austin and then meet up at her parents’ house later in the evening. When everyone leaves for the night, Jacob stays behind.

Meet the Parents and then…

“He talked with my parents and listened to stories about me and I started to catch a crush, so to speak.” At this time, Mabry’s parents catch wind that Jacob’s internship fell through because of Covid. Mabry’s father “mentioned that he was in need of workers and that he and my mom were willing to host him if needed.”

Long story short, Jacob did just that. And even abided the one rule that while living under her parents’ home, they were not allowed to date. Luckily, only a 1-1/2 months later, Jacob’s internship was back on. So he packed up and left, after making sure Mabry was now his girlfriend!

“Living with someone you like is hard. But also a blessing in disguise. My family got to know him in a way no family gets to know a boyfriend. We saw each other mad, heartbroken, happy and excited and I would never take any of it back. There is no other way I would have liked to get to know the man I now love. Because when you’re that close to someone and I mean close, you get to see every beautiful part of a person and Jacob is the most beautiful to me.”

How He Asked

Jacob “proposed on January 23rd in the backyard of my friend’s house. The same place we said ‘I love you.’ There is a back garden gate that he took me through and the path was strung with fairy lights. We walked up to this projector and it started playing a slideshow. Each slide has pictures and a date of significance such as ‘June 19th, The day we started dating.’ At the very end the last slide said ‘January 23rd, The day we got engaged,’ and I turned around to see him on one knee and he asked ‘Mabry will you marry me?’ I freaked out for about a minute.”

“And then I said ‘yeah, I’ll marry you.'”

The Engagement Session at Shiraz Garden

Their love story is not quite conventional. It’s even more romantic and sweet! So wouldn’t it be perfectly unconventional and fitting to do an engagement session before they were even engaged?! I mean, they already knew and know they are each other’s forever …

So that’s exactly what we did … see below for their photos from their engagement session at Shiraz Garden:

Tips from One Wedding Vendor to All Brides and Grooms

Wedding vendors are by far the best to talk to about wedding planning, especially if they’re brides themselves.

“My tip for brides is to GET AHEAD. There are twice as many brides booking things this year because of covid, so plan ahead and start meeting with vendors.”

You heard it, ladies and gentlemen! From Foxglove and Grace‘s Mabry herself … don’t procrastinate! Get ahead and start planning!!! The earlier, the better!

Love this engagement session at Shiraz Garden? See more engagement sessions here!