When JC reached out about taking photos of his proposal to Amanda, I was mildly concerned about many things -- the lighting, getting the right angle, not being the one to ruin the surprise, etc. What I should've been more concerned about was the heat. Set on a rock outcropping in Central Park, the Summerhouse at The Dene lived up to its "summerhouse"moniker. Y'all... it was hot. When I reached out to JC with his sneak peak photos, he borrowed a phrase that has become near and dear to my heart over summer: "I’m excited and nervous about the swimming pool I became shortly thereafter."

I met my helpers for the evening about an hour before JC and Amanda arrived, and we set about hanging lights and putting out candles to set the mood. Moments before they were to arrive, another couple came through and one of them remarked, "oh look honey, there are candles and someone left champagne here!" I really hope that I didn't ruin an evening when I pointed out "they weren't just left... I'm waiting on a couple and he's proposing tonight!"

We had a small and out-of-the-way audience when JC & Amanda arrived. They set to dancing (something I could never do in public) and shortly thereafter JC dropped to his knee to ask the question. For those wondering, Amanda said yes. They proceeded to dance more, enjoy each other's company, and let me make photos of their evening.

In the end, we went our separate ways -- all thankful to get back to the cool and de-swimming-pool embrace of AC.