We appreciate you taking the time, money, and effort to travel across multiple states for our special day. We know coordinating travel is not easy or inexpensive, so we're doing everything we can to make it easy for you. See more about hotel blocks, flights, and traveling on the travel & accommodations page. We will be traveling to Bluffton, SC on Thursday, June 8th, and staying in Bluffton until Sunday the 11th. On Sunday, we'll be heading to Hilton Head through Thursday. We have no expectation that everyone will stay for the week, however, if you're able to, we would love to spend time with you on the beach! See more about our plans on the itinerary page. Don't forget to let us know if you will be attending on the RSVP page by March 13th.

Michael and Hilary first met in their early 20s. Michael and his friends often visited their high school friends, Brittany and Kara, Hilary's roommates at Kent State University. Life took them down separate roads until a few years later their paths crossed again. Hilary was living alone in Cuyahoga Falls when her friend Kelsey's (then-boyfriend now-husband), Josh asked if he and some of the guys could crash on her couch after the Bridgestone Tournament at Firestone (some golf thing). They were both dating other people at the time, but Hilary remembers thinking "so that's Mike Taylor. He has really nice teeth." Years passed. Their paths crossed occasionally over the years at birthdays, Halloween, Friendsgiving, and the Christmas party where they usually didn't say more than hello. Finally, in December 2018 at their friends Kelly and Trent's birthday party, they said more than just hello and quickly realized how much they had in common. They started spending all of their time together and soon after knew it was love.

For Christmas, I surprised Hilary with concert tickets to one of her favorite bands, Glass animals. They were scheduled to perform the night of her 30th birthday at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, an outdoor music venue nestled between the mountains in Colorado. We decided to plan a week-long trip around the event and started our adventure in Aspen. Hoping to experience everything the mountains had to offer we set out on a day hike to Maroon Bells (an iconic engagement photo location). We got dropped off from a shuttle bus at the foot of the trail that opened up immediately to the "iconic" proposal spot. I was certain that the thought had crossed her mind, and that all her friends had the conversation with her wondering if I would do it there. After setting up a tripod and snapping some photos of us, we packed back up and continued our hike. With the ring burning a hole in my backpack we traveled up the trail, each turn opening up to a more beautiful view than the last. With multiple, multiple stops along the way either from lack of oxygen, or photoshoots, we finally arrived at a real-life Bob Ross painting. Gigantic deep blue lake, set between two 14,000ft reddish colored mountain tops known as the Maroon Bells. I knew right away this was the spot I've been waiting my whole life for. With group after group ruining our chance for a clear picture, the time finally came when there was a glimpse of an opening for a picture. I rushed to grab a stranger that was on their way down trail and asked them to photograph us as I pop the question. Hilary, standing off trail, was surprised when I came rushing over and awkwardly asked her to play Morgan Wallen for us. She put on a song but I was set on a specific song, "Silverado for Sale". A song about a guy who was selling his truck to buy a ring, and ask his girl to marry him. I led her to the spot to get our photo taken, and proceeded to fumble around inside my right side pant pocket to open up the small travel-sized container of dental floss I hid the ring inside during our travels. With what felt like an eternity, I finally opened up the dental floss, dropped down on one knee, and the rest is history.

The beautiful community of Rose Hill is located in the greater Bluffton area of Beaufort County, SC. The historic Mansion at Rose Hill is nestled amongst majestic oak and magnolia trees, lagoons, marshes, acres of open green space, and wildlife. The 1858 Mansion is a two-story, frame, cruciform, Gothic Revival building with a brick foundation, vertical board-and-batten siding, and a steeply pitched gable roof sheathed in standing-seam copper. Construction began in 1858 for Dr. John Kirk and Caroline Kerk, his wife, but was interrupted by the Civil War and not resumed until after World War II. The house was spared ordered destruction during the Civil War after a Union soldier declared "this house is too beautiful to be burned," according to The Ocean Highway, written by the Federal Writers' Project in 1938. After WW2 it was renovated and finished by architect Willis Irvin for John Sturgeon and Florence Sturgeon, his wife. On May 19, 1983, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Shortly thereafter it suffered extensive damage from a fire. The copper roof, porch, entryway, and stairs were restored to preserve the beautiful outer shell and entrance, but the extensive damage to the house interior made the house uninhabitable, and it sat a charred, empty hull until 1996. Today the house is privately owned and available as a vacation rental or event venue. Read more on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Hill_Plantation_House#cite_note-7