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Nathan Abplanalp Photography

As told by Danielle:

We actually met in the eighth grade on a field trip to Discovery Place. He became my first boyfriend, which means we held hands for a couple of months and then broke up. After that, we were friends for a long time only to lose touch for a few years during college. Later, our friend arranged for us to meet up when UNC played in a 2008 bowl game in Charlotte and the rest is history.

When it came to the proposal, Houston caught me off guard. He had been promising me that we would go ice-skating sometime, and after some delay, we did. It was right before I was to leave for France to visit my sisters for Christmas. He chose to take me to the outdoor rink downtown. We had fun skating around, but I knew it was not his favorite thing to do, so after an hour I told him we could go home whenever he wanted. After we got off of the ice, we sat and talked for a while. He kept taking these long pauses and looking at me, but we were interrupted a lot by a loud group nearby. I finally suggested that we leave.

As we walked to the car, he kept looking around – I found out later that he was looking for a place to propose that seemed just right. Finally, we arrived back at the car. For some reason, he would not let me get in. Instead, he told me how much I meant to him and how wonderful his life had been with me in it over the past three years, and finally he dropped down to one knee and asked the question!

After a brief moment of confusion (I had no idea it was coming), I said, “Yes!” and we laughed and jumped around. We then hurried off to tell our parents who had been waiting the whole time.

Danielle and Houston will be married on December 8, 2012

Continue reading real wedding stories! Up next: ’Sweet serenade’