Amy, like every good Arizonian, went to the Grand Canyon for the first time when she was ten. Jordan, on the other hand, has lived in Arizona for 23 years and had never been! Until this weekend. And, friends, it was worth. the. wait! You see, we live in Scottsdale (just outside Phoenix) in the middle of the Sonoran Desert. Think brown mountains, tall green cacti, rattlesnakes and howling coyotes. Also, think golf courses, luxury resorts, and plenty (and we mean plenty!) of shopping. We love it so much in our little corner of the world! But we also love exploring the world. We’ve traveled A LOT in the past year. Here, there, and everywhere in between. And for as many times as we’ve been two hours north from our house to the world famous red rocks of Sedona, we’ve never — ever — in our adult lives driven just two more hours (two more hours!) to one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World: The Grand Canyon.
Maybe we figured we could always just go. Maybe part of us (well, part of Jordan) thought, It’s just a big hole in the ground. But, friends, we can tell you, and Jordan will tell you, that walking to the railing for the first time and looking out at God’s great big creation was something he’ll never forget; and Amy will tell you that seeing it as a child was one thing, but experiencing it as an adult was something special altogether. We just held our breath in pure awe. This is something you’ve gotta see in person!
You should’ve seen Jordan when we pulled up to the ranger station to pay for parking and get our tickets. He was like a kid as Disneyland. He rolled his window down and before the ranger in the green jacket and brown-brimmed mesh hat could say, “Welcome to the Grand Canyon!” Jordan blurted out, “It’s our first time here and we’re so excited to be here!” It was really, really cute.
Once we parked and got our bearings, we met up with Mai and PJ, and instantly remembered why we’d fallen in love with them at the coffee shop so many nights ago. Their big, bright, infectious smiles and their huge hearts. We hugged and spent a few minutes catching up in the parking lot, and that’s when Mai pulled out her perfect tulle skirt and PJ showed us his black bowtie — and Amy had to catch her breath again! We were obsessed with their style! We spent the next few hours together, exploring our own little nooks and crannies in one of the most beautiful and breathtaking places on Earth with two people who would be appropriately described with the same adjectives. We talked on the shuttle rides from one stop to the next, got in trouble with a bus driver for asking a question he had already answered while we were talking away, and helped Mai over rocks and boulders in her brand new Louboutins, which was so worth it!
We laughed a lot, explained to more than a few tourists what exactly we were doing, avoided the park rangers gazes because of exactly what we were doing, and said to Mai and PJ on more than one occasion, “Nobody’s dying today! Does everyone understand?!” Those cliffs are no joke! It was also really cold, but they shivered through their whole session with big smiles, a trait we love about our AJ Brides: they’re hard core! “Whatever it takes for the shot!” they tell us. “We’re up for anything!” And boy, are we glad they were!
Mai and PJ, thank you for making Jordan’s first Grand Canyon experience, in a word, grand. We loved every minute with you and your happy smiles, and feel so proud of excited to share some highlights of our time with you to the world.
If you love Mai & Pj’s Grand Canyon engagement, you might also love Kathleen & Aaron’s Ireland engagement.
the GEAR USED for this session…
Canon 5D Mark III
Canon 50 1.2
Canon 70-200 2.8
Canon 24-70 2.8
Entire Gear List
