A Perfect Portland Engagement Story: Congratulations Courtney + Miles!

A Perfect Portland Engagement Story: Congratulations Courtney + Miles!

Vicky K
A Perfect Portland Engagement Story: Congratulations Courtney + Miles!
A Perfect Portland Engagement Story: Congratulations Courtney + Miles!
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There are many great engagement stories, but this one is one of our all-time favorites! From how they met, the challenges thrown at them and finally, the proposal, it is a story which hopefully will inspire the making of a movie! Miles and Courtney were so fun to work with and Miles’ creativity kept us all going. He has graciously shared their story below. A must read! Thank you both for choosing Malka Diamonds for this wonderful moment in your lives. We are truly honored.

“Courtney and I met in an airport.  Cliche, as I’m a pilot....  I was waiting for my commute home from SFO to PDX and noticed a stunning lady in the boarding area.  Shortly after she caught my eye, they changed gates for our flight, and during the ensuing walk I made sure to stay far enough away so as not to seem creepy, but I didn’t want to let out of my sight.  Once we arrived at gate 82, she sat waiting to board, and I perched myself a few seats down and tried to act natural.... which is not my strong suit.  Being in uniform, I thought it inappropriate to make any sort of move.  

With boarding almost complete, Courtney looked up at me and said the most romantic words anyone could hope to hear: “Are we supposed to be in that line?”  I didn’t need the door to be opened any wider than that to engage in conversation.  During the boarding process I stealthily noted her name on her ticket, and tried to offer her my first class seat.  She politely declined (trust me she would never decline THAT offer again).  Upon landing I raced off the plane to make sure I would be ahead of her and greeted her as she disembarked.  We chatted on the walk through the terminal where she was meeting her Mom who was going to have knee surgery the next morning.  I greeted her with: “Hi, I’m Miles.  Your daughter and I got engaged on the flight up here.”  

The next five years were filled with wonder and challenges, large and small.  As Courtney lived in San Diego, a long distance relationship ensued which neither of us figured would last.  Through the challenges of life (an ever-so-slight age difference, the loss of loved ones, 3 heart surgeries for Courtney, cancer and the sudden removal of one of my kidneys) a love and devotion was cemented between us that formed the foundation for our world together.  

Courtney moved to Portland in June 2018 as our relationship continued to bloom, and discussions of a future marriage became more frequent.  When I arrived home from a trip to find 6 pregnancy tests (all positive) lined up on the counter, the calculation of tummy size to wedding dress fitting accelerated our time frame from 1-2 years to 1-2 months.  

By the time I came into Malka Diamonds and Jewelry, we had a wedding date and venue picked.  Being non-traditional was our new tradition.  Despite the rapid fire wedding, I wanted Courtney to have the princess day she had always dreamed of, so Dave and I carefully designed an engagement ring that I hoped she would cherish as much as I cherish her.  The only thing left was the proposal.  

It’s hard to surprise someone with something they know is coming.  I asked the incredible photographer we hired to shoot our wedding if she would take some engagement pictures for us, and we set a date.  Mun Li Gee is not your average wedding photographer.  She has a huge heart and the talent to match.  So when I told her my plan; she instantly jumped on board.  I was going to arrive at the day of our engagement shoot and break the bad news to Courtney that I didn’t have the ring yet; however we had already booked Mun Li and couldn’t back out at the last minute.  We would turn the “engagement shoot” into a “couples shoot” since we didn’t have any professional pictures of us.  There was only one problem.... Courtney (on heightened ring alert) wasn’t buying it.   I needed help.  

A frantic call to David and Ronnie was placed, and I warned that Courtney was coming in to ask why the ring wasn’t ready yet.... when in fact I had picked it up 3 weeks earlier.  Dave greeted us warmly and graciously fabricated a story about some sort of platinum casing issue that neither of us could understand.  It worked perfectly, and Courtney was satisfied, though disappointed.  We left Malka and headed to the photo shoot.  With Mun Li in position and aware of my intent, I finally was able to ask the love of my life to marry me.... and she was genuinely surprised.  She’s so enamored with the ring, that she forgives us both for tricking her, Dave!  Our wonderful engagement shoot held the title of “best day of my life” for a very short time, before being replaced by a beautiful, magical wedding at the Portland City Grill on October 27, 2018.  Little Kinsley Morgan will join us in March, and we can’t wait to share our story with her. “

Photos by the talented, Mun Li
http://munliphotography.com/

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