A Surprise Proposal at Calcareous Vineyard | Braden & Gionna
It’s not everyday we get to partake in a marriage proposal,
but when we do, you can be sure we’re feelin’ realllll excited about it. When Braden’s sister, Courtney, reached out about us capturing his proposal to his ~ now ~ fiancee, Gionna, we didn’t care how busy we were, it was an absolute YES from us.
Braden’s plan involved pretty much all our favorite things, wine tasting, taking photos, and witnessing two people take the first step to one of the best commitments someone can make, so saying yes was about the easiest thing we’ve done in a while.
On a sunny Saturday morning, we headed up to the incredibly scenic tasting room at Calcareous Vineyard in Paso Robles, where we began the process of becoming fully incognito. Hiding our telephoto lenses and bulky cameras with jackets we did not need in Paso in August, we approached the * incredibly * hospitable tasting room staff and told them what was about to go down. They helped us to a table right next to Braden and Gionna’s, and gave us a little pour of their GSM to make it look like we weren’t there to be totally creepy.
Meanwhile, Gionna thought she and Braden were simply coming to Paso Robles for the weekend to celebrate their first dating anniversary, and that they’d spend the day wine tasting and reminiscing and exchanging gifts. A marriage proposal was nowhere on her radar, even though she ironically had a dream Braden proposed to her the night before. * cue some intense nerves from Braden *
So there we all were, enjoying the morning sun, acting like nothing life changing was gonna happen.
Wrong.
Braden and Gionna made their way over to Calcareous’ stunning viewpoint overlooking the Salinas Valley to exchange their anniversary gifts to each other, Braden’s providing the perfect segue into his proposal. The day he and Gionna began dating, he started writing down every little thing Gionna said she loved. He turned these statements into a book, ending it with the date of their proposal and the hopeful “I love that this is how you proposed to me.”
As we hid in the nearby bushes, Braden presented the handmade book to Gionna, and had her read the first page, an introduction to the content, before flipping it to that special last page. As she read, Braden dropped to one knee and took Gionna totally by surprise. At this point we closed in on them and captured all the shocked, tearful, joyous emotion that ensued.
Now that you’ve read the synopsis of how Gionna and Braden’s surprise proposal went down, we invite you to watch the story unfold through the photos! Keep scrolling, friends!!!
