Brandon and I met when we were 14 years old. We were two kids from rival high schools flirting at an Antagonist concert at a Skateland in our hometown of Whittier, CA. Sparks flew, and continued throughout the next several years, but it took us awhile until the timing was truly right.

As we connected and reconnected from the day we first met, we kept a close eye on each other over the next 10 years. As we graduated high school and both went away for college, we always found ways to check-in with each other. When I studied abroad in Paris in 2008, Brandon was the first person I spoke to most days, sharing my adventures. In July of 2012, Brandon and I both found ourselves back in Los Angeles, after I returned from a year teaching in Prague, CZ and Brandon graduated from Chico State in Northern California. We made one date to meet up, and that was it. We just knew. We spent the next 10+ years growing up together, creating a future together, building careers, moving cities, moving states, becoming dog parents to our beautiful Chow Chow, Zoya, and buying a home together.

In the highlands of Sonoma, in a yurt in the woods, by candlelight, Sade serenaded us as Brandon asked me to marry him. I said yes under the stars. It took us awhile, but we are so excited to celebrate our love with the ones we love most in destination so close to hearts. See you in New Orleans!

You may ask, why New Orleans? Well, we have been envisioning a destination wedding from our early days together. What was important to us was choosing a destination with rich history and ancestral ties. Most may not know that Clarissa’s paternal grandmother, Joan Ann Curo, came from a long Creole line, generations upon generations, born, raised, and married in New Orleans, parishioners of Saint Augustine Catholic Church in the Tremé. We are excited to honor this history with our nuptials in this most special of cities.