Aristide | Mansfield by Walters Wedding Estates

Wedding Day

Ceremony

Reception

Our Wedding

It was the beginning of summer 2024. Japera was coming off her high from the Chris Brown concert (her first and favorite experience). She decided to scroll on Facebook dating to see what prospects could be available this time. Would there be more disappointments, or could there be an actual match? Scrolling through the likes was pretty quick, but one guy caught her attention... some random guy with a fun pickup line. Curiosity made her respond because who doesn't love a fun pickup line? A day or so later she went back to read the response for the guy's intro only to find a message from Roderick waiting.Roderick was looking for love in all the right places, but it hadn’t shown up for him just yet. He kept hearing that he needed to move to Texas where he may find his wife. Date after unfulfilling date showed very little promise for Rod finding the true love he craved until one day after 4 years of waiting he finally received access to Facebook dating where he took a chance and put himself out there. 2 weeks later he saw that he matched with Japera and the conversation began.The initial conversation talked about traveling and places they've each been. Interested in more about this guy, Japera agreed to a first date. Galloping Ghost Arcade was the outing of choice. It’s an arcade with only old school games and unlimited play. From Roderick's perspective, Japera showed up with the meanest face on as if she was ready to kill with her looks. He was a little nervous to start the date, but proceeded anyway. They had a great time playing all sorts of games. Roderick had no idea Japera was such a great gamer and wasn't prepared for the whooping he received. That was probably the moment he realized he wasn't ready for such an intense, but complimentary partner. He might have also fallen in love at that moment, but he’ll never admit it. The first date continued with dinner at Rod’s favorite restaurant… TGI Fridays. Not Japera’s first choice, but she was open and loved that Rod was a down-to-earth kind of guy who wasn’t doing too much to try and impress her. The night continued with a deep car conversation that led to a night drive along Lake Michigan. The night ended with each person looking forward to the next time they’d meet up.The next date was two days later and they kept spending as much time together as possible.Things just felt right and safe in the relationship and the two cared so much for each other. Since Japera had just moved to Chicago in January, there were still many things left behind in Texas so she planned a trip to go back for her things. Driving was the best option to transport the items and since she did it before she was going to do it again, but Rod said NO. It was sweet of him to take the weekend to fly to Texas and drive back and Japera’s family (mainly her dad) was extremely grateful and respected the decision. From there the relationship only grew and Rod knew that this is where forever would begin.Rod plotted and set up a beautiful proposal where both families were together to witness the initial commitment to each other. He said that it doesn’t take forever to know that what you’ve prayed for is right in front of you. The engagement happened on a snowy Valentine’s night, their first Valentine’s together. What a way to set the tone, right? Japera was never big on reactions or excitement so Rod will forever hold her less than enthusiastic response over her head. Nevertheless SHE SAID YES!Our relationship, like all others, is filled with ups and downs and so many amazing adventures. We’ve traveled together across the world already and are looking forward to all the upcoming adventures, explorations, excursions, and everything else to come. Now we are excited to share with our friends and family as we celebrate the union and promise to ourselves and God. There’s so much in store for the future and we can’t wait to go on this journey through life together, no matter the ups, downs, obstacles, or roadblocks. God’s got us and that’s all that matters.See you at the wedding!

Japera + Roderick

Japera + Roderick

Photos