Dan & Caitlin met in Saratoga Springs, so it seemed only fitting to revisit the town where their romance began for their engagement session.

We wandered around downtown Saratoga, strolling around all their old haunts, from Congress Park to Uncommon Grounds Coffee to James & Sons Tobacconists to visiting the the exact spot where they first met at Wheatfields, where Dan was a server and Caitlin was the hostess!

“When I met Dan I was on my first day of training as a hostess at a local Saratoga Springs restaurant, and he was running his usual 10-15 minutes late for his shift. As this very tall, handsome guy with dark features and an impressive beard sauntered through the front door, I had this intense gut reaction – impossible to ignore followed by an overwhelming sense of calm. Though our love story wouldn’t start for a few more months, I knew I was on to something significant, and that it was imperative to keep him in my life.

It’s funny thinking back on it now, but I wasn’t even supposed to be working downtown that summer. My friends and I were all back from our semesters abroad, and had the plan to live and work locally leading up to our senior year. Originally, I had everything cued up so that I could work as a summer tour guide at Skidmore. However, a few weeks before my move, I got the news that those carefully laid out plans had fallen through.

Cue my friend, Alana, who suggested I work with her at a little Italian place called Wheatfields. I was reluctant to enter into the restaurant industry (hilarious thinking back on it now), but Alana was able to sell it to me. She described a fast-paced environment, full of friendly people (for the most part), and all of the fresh pasta I could dream of. She gave me the skinny on my potential new co-workers: who to seat first, who to be wary of when they were having a bad day. She also went on to tell me that there was one coworker who I would absolutely hit it off with; a guy who everyone called DFly. Needless to say, she hit the nail on the head with that assumption.

Thanks in part to this change of plans, a book recommendation, months of flirting, and a spilled beer, I was able to keep this “DFly” around. Over the last seven years, Dan has challenged me to be better, brought wonderful people into my life, stood by me through all of the rough patches, and loved me fiercely the entire way. I couldn’t have dreamed up a more warmhearted and supportive partner if I tried, and I can’t wait to marry him and continue building a life together!” – Cailtin

”When I first met Caitlin we quickly became friends but I could never have guessed at that time that we would grow to become best friends and decide to get married! But I count myself among the luckiest people alive that we did. In addition to her rakishly good looks and winning personality we had so much in common. I could immediately tell we shared a sense of humor; one of the more important qualities for me. We grew close so quickly that others in our circle thought a romance was underway before we even knew it ourselves. Clearly they could see our forest while we were preoccupied with each other’s trees. In fact, because we weren’t yet dating it took much pressure off of a classically daunting moment for many a boyfriend- meeting her father, Bill.

One of my favorite qualities about Cait is that she surrounds herself with quality people. So naturally, after we became an official couple I had to pass vetting by her friends-which I managed to do, whew. However, we decided to keep our budding partnership a secret from our shared workplace as a precaution. That we were able to is a minor miracle, trust me (or ask anyone who has worked in a restaurant.) This gave us a great opportunity for a staged reveal whereby we made coworkers pass messages for us all night as though we were too shy to do it ourselves. Think passing-notes-in high-school level of cutesy and coy. Imagine their collective surprise when at the end of the night we give up the game and kiss in front of everyone. They could tell it was not the first time. While no relationship is without its hardships, being with Caitlin has always been fun and naturally easy. Although I didn’t predict this turn of events 6 and half years ago when I invited the cute girl from work to discuss a book recommendation over coffee where that first date would lead, I’m so grateful for all the wonderful people she’s brought into my life and that I found a lifelong partner in Caitlin.” – Dan

You might recognize Dan & Caitlin from our wedding party and Caitlin from this Boston Portrait Session. I am so delighted to be part of their upcoming wedding!