Last month, my wife Amy called me up to see if we could drive up to Shreveport on Easter weekend.  She had received a call from Jeff, her sister Amanda's boyfriend.  He said that he was going to propose to Amanda that weekend, and he wanted me there to take photos of this once in a lifetime event.  Of course, I said YES!  I was very honored to have been chosen for this wonderful responsibility. 

In order to keep this a surprise, we told Amanda that we were coming into town to take family portraits of her parents, her brother Emile's family, her daughter Amelia, Jeff, her, and my family.  Lynn and Loretta Geneux, Amy's parents, are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary this year, and she wanted to have a family portrait as a gift.

The initial plan was to go to Norton's in Shreveport to take the photos.  The weather forecast predicted a 40% chance of showers on Saturday and a 70% chance of thunderstorms on Easter Sunday.  Unfortunately, the weather on Saturday did not cooperate with rain and thunderstorms, and we didn't want to take our chances for waiting until Sunday with the weatherman predicting the worse.  Therefore, we had to quickly change the plan to take the portraits at Emile's house.

Portrait of Grandparents	Portrait of Mother and Daughter
Portrait of Mother and Two Daughters	Portrait of Geneux Family

So after taking the BIG group family portrait which consisted of 7 adults and 5 grandchildren with two who are 3.5 years old and three who are 2.5 years old, the BIGGER event was about to happen.  The Surprise Engagement!

I asked for Jeff, Amanda, and their beautiful daughter Amelia (who is my goddaughter) to come up so that I could take their portrait.

Family Portrait of Father, Mother, Daughter

After taking some portraits of their beautiful family, I had Amanda sit down with Amelia while Jeff got down on one knee.  Unfortunately, the ruse was so convincing that Amanda remained a true model and continued to smile right into my camera.  The beautiful diamond engagement ring hadn't blinded her yet.

Surprise Engagement Portrait

Needless to say, Amanda was quite surprised when she finally comprehended what was going on.  Before Jeff could slip the beautiful diamond engagement ring onto Amanda's finger, Amelia had to inspect the ring and ensure that it was worthy of her mother.

Surprise Engagement Portrait

Luckily for everyone involved, Amanda exclaimed a definitive, "YES!" and sealed her answer with a kiss.

Kissing Engagement Candid

Engagement Ring Unfortunately, my son William had his heart broken.  He's had a crush on his Aunt Amanda for some time.

Upset Toddler I think Amanda had better keep that ring in a safe place when she isn't wearing it.  Amelia seems to like it A LOT!

Admiring the Engagement Ring

So, what are you thoughts?  Please leave a comment (or two) below!  Thanks!