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April 22, 2023
Los Angeles, CA

Danielle & Graham

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Stem with leaves

Graham Stephenson

and

Danielle Brabender

April 22, 2023

Los Angeles, CA

Welcome

We are thrilled to share our special day with you! Our wedding will be held at Marvimon's Valentine in Los Angeles on April 22nd. Please see the tabs above for additional details on how to best coordinate travel and stay.

How We Met

Irvine, Medical School

Dani and Graham met in medical school. Not in the classroom or the anatomy lab, but on the dance floor. During school socials they couldn't ignore the others energy and enthusiasm for dancing. They quickly became unofficial dancing partners and began to get to know one another. Their love took time to blossom with more than two years after their first meeting before their first date (which was out dancing). There was more than just spinning and shaking between them as they found common passion in food, travel, culture, and medicine. To make up for lost time they spent their second date in Chicago where they walked through the architecture of Daniel Burnham, scurried into the Chicago Art Institute to avoid the rain, and ate deep dish pizza. At the comedy club Second City, Graham learned that Dani had been an extra in Little Miss Sunshine and began to worry that he may be too Steve Carrel for this young beauty. Thankfully, her free spirit and depth of personality prevailed providing more than enough reassurance that this was a match that would last.

The Proposal

Tulum, Mexico

One of the hardest parts of a surprise proposal is choosing the right size ring... Graham and Danielle had not spoken about marriage at any great length, but Graham knew that he had found his partner. He wanted to extend the memory beyond the question and create a moment that would be some thing that Danielle wouldn't forget. After meeting with a jeweler, stealing a few pieces of Dani's ring collection, and sketching up a few ideas, an engagement ring was born. They had a trip coming up to Tulum in Mexico that would provide the perfect romantic backdrop for the grand gesture. After a few unexpected turns involving beachfront permits and photographer scheduling issues, Graham had to come up with a creative way to bring Dani back to a hotel that they had already left, and do so wearing an outfit that she would not be upset to take engagement photos in. Tulum is notorious for a high volume of social media influencers taking pictures and videos everywhere. Graham took that to his advantage and told Dani that the hotel was offering them a free dinner if they took a "couples photo session" to encourage additional tourism to their spot. The front desk, photographer, and support staff all played a huge role in making sure that the surprise was well concealed. Ultimately, Dani got the surprise of her life and quite the traveling souvenir.

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