C OLTON
and MELA NIE
• 7/17/20
Colton + Melanie • 1
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meet the couple MELANIE HANSEN BIRTH DATE: May 28, 1994 HOME TOWN: Garden City, UT OCCUPATION: Speech Language Pathologist & wanna-be entrepreneur DREAM VACATION: Africa or Europe FAVORITE MUSICIAN: Leon Bridges! FAVORITE TREAT: chips and salsa or yogurt FAVORITE HOLIDAY: Halloween LAST SERIES YOU BINGE WATCHED: My Name is Earl WHAT WOULD YOU SPEND $1M ON: Traveling! SPIRIT ANIMAL: Elephant or Manatee
C O LTO N R OW L E Y BIRTH DATE: September 15, 1995 HOME TOWN: Morgan, UT OCCUPATION: Registered Nurse FAVORITE MUSICIAN: Chris Webby DREAM CAR: Audi R8 FAVORITE TREAT: Reeses FAVORITE HOLIDAY: Halloween LAST SERIES YOU BINGE WATCHED: Supernatural WHAT WOULD YOU SPEND $1M ON: A home and nice furnishings. SPIRIT ANIMAL: Panda
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interview wi H OW D I D YOU TWO MEET? H I M : I was hanging out with my
friend Kylee one night and she was playing around on this app called Mutual. She told me it was a dating app like Tinder but for members of the church. I downloaded it out of curiosity and to see who I would match with. I came across Melanie's profile and “swiped right” and we matched. After talking for a few hours, I asked for Melanie's phone number to get off the app and we chatted on the phone for the rest of the night! H E R : Haha! We met in a way I never imagined I would actually meet someone I’d end up marrying! (; We met on Mutual when I was living in Ogden with my brother, Jake. I was in my last semester of Master’s at the U. Colton messaged me and asked for my number and we ended up talking on the phone for hours before we met up in-person.
W H AT WAS YOU R FI R ST I M P R E S S I ON ? H I M : My first impression of seeing
her on the dating app was how attractive she was! After meeting Melanie in person, my impression didn’t change. Her beautiful blue eyes are my favorite. I was very impressed with all of her accomplishments and for graduating with a Master’s degree. H E R : That he was the good stuff for 4 • Colton + Melanie
with the bride and groom sure! I loved his eyes and how much he made me laugh from the get-go. He was so easy to talk to and was completely himself right from the start!
W H AT DID YO U D O O N YO UR FIR ST DAT E? H I M : I took Melanie to my favorite
place- Snowbasin ski resort. I had a truck at the time and filled the truck bed with a couple egg crate mattresses and TONS of blankets to keep us warm while we stargazed. We talked all night about our life and really got to know each other. Eventually, it got too cold and we ran out of snacks, so we went back to her brother’s house. I couldn't say goodbye yet so Melanie invited me in and we turned on a movie and continued talking for hours. H E R : Before we even went on a date, he asked if I wanted to come over and hang out at his house while he was helping his dad work on some basement remodeling. I’m a really awkward person and didn’t want to meet his parents yet, so I said, “Noooo way”. Hahah. I’m glad that didn’t deter him, because then he asked if he could come pick me up and take me to one of his favorite places instead. So he picked me up in his truck and we headed up to Snowbasin. We sat in the bed of his truck stargazing and talking.. laughing..for hours until we were freezing cold and couldn't take it any
longer. So then we headed back to Jake’s house. Neither of us wanted the date to end so we watched a movie at Jake’s but ended up chatting through all of it so I can’t even remember the movie. haha. It was the best first-date I’d ever been on and I’m so glad that it’s how I ended my last, first-date. (:
W HO I N I T I AT E D T H E F IRST K I S S ? H I M : ME!! I did! The mood was just
right. :) H E R : He did. And oh, boy!.. It was a good one. (: haha
W HEN D I D YOU T WO B ECO M E OF F I C I AL ? H I M : hahaha “official”. My family
was having a barbeque with some neighbor friends, so I invited Melanie to come so she could get some food and meet the rest of my family. At the time, we hadn’t talked about whether or not we were boyfriend or girlfriend yet. I had just got off work and was helping to get the food ready. Melanie was driving up separately, so I waited for her call to tell me when she had arrived. She was nervous to come in, so I walked her in and we went outside to get the barbeque going. Ryan was manning the grill right outside the door and he asked me who my date was. The first thing that came out of my mouth, in front of everyone, was, “This is my girlfriend Melanie”.
Hahaha I looked over at Melanie and her face was bright red! Haha. Later on that night we talked and that is when we officially became BF & GF. H E R : We were bbq-ing with some of his family and neighbors and Colton introduced me as his girlfriend to everybody. I was surprised because we hadn’t talked about it, but I was giddy in my stomach when he introduced me as such. Haha. I tried to keep my cool (didn't workI went red) and stepped away to help his mom in the kitchen and that’s when I noticed a picture of me and him taped to his parent’s fridge. Anybody who knows momma Val, knows things that make her happy get taped to her fridge. So needless to say, by this point I was a pile of mush and literally ran to their bathroom to call my sister! Hahahah. After I composed myself, I went back out to join the fun. We had been dating for a few months by this point but later that night, as we were going on a drive, Colton asked me to be his girlfriend and I happily said “OH YEAH!”
W H O WAS T H E FI R ST TO S AY I L OV E YO U ? H I M : Melanie was the first. I had
been thinking of the best, most opportune time to say “I love you,” but I took too long. After one of our many goodbyes from hanging out, I could tell Melanie had something to say. So I asked her what she had to Colton + Melanie • 5
...continued say, but she wouldn’t spill the beans. I pressed until she gave in and that's when she said it! “I love you Colton”. H E R : Meee!!!! Hahah. In my brother’s driveway as we were saying our goodbyes ahha. We’d been dating for several months and I’d been feeling and thinking it for a hot minute but was trying to build up the courage to say it. I was about to chicken out but the words came out, and he was giggling watching me gather my courage because ‘he knew it was coming and wanted to see if I would actually say it first’. Little punk. Hahah. He said it right back to me once he stopped giggling.
W HAT IS O NE O F YO U R FAVO R ITE M EM O RIES? H I M : My favorite memory with
Melanie was our first date stargazing up at Snowbasin in the bed of my truck. Since then, Snowbasin has been our go-to place whenever we want to get out and do something. We always have a good time laying on the egg crate mattresses in the bed of the truck surrounded by tons of blankets to cuddle up with while we chat and watch for shooting stars. H E R : Snowbasin resort has been the setting of a lot of my favorite memories with Colt. During the summer we would always go up there to stargaze or watch ‘Movies on the Mountain’ and I loved cuddling up with him and just enjoying the present moment.
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W H AT ' S S OM E T H I N G I N T E R E S T I N G YOU ' V E L E AR N E D ABOUT E AC H OT H E R ? H I M : Melanie is very
knowledgeable about some of the most random things. I can ask her a question about almost anything and she has an answer. She is very book smart and has a memory like an elephant! She never forgets anything, unlike me- I forget literally everything and she has to remind me hundreds of times. Haha H E R : I’ve learned that Colt is ridiculously good at anything he
tries. He’s one of those people that adapts easily and succeeds at whatever he puts his mind to.. if he remembers it that is. haha. He is a jack-of-all-trades guy; and much to my frustration, he has literally won 100% of any rock, paper, scissors game we play. *eye roll*
W H AT D O YO U LOVE M OS T ABOUT E ACH OT H E R ? H I M : I love how creative and
adventurous Melanie is. She is such an adventurer, and a downto-earth kind of girl. She has
traveled all over the states and out of the country. If she could spend her time doing anything, it would be out in nature or on a plane going to somewhere new. H E R : I love Colton’s drive. He is hardworking, honest, and helpful. It doesn’t take much to keep him happy and he is always so encouraging when I tell him my ideas/wants. I also love his loyalty and genuineness- he has a big heart and cares deeply about things. I also have loved to see how our communication has adapted and changed as our relationship has grown deeper. One of my favorite (silly) things about Colton
is how often he mixes up his words. We have a lot of laughs over it.
W HEN D I D YOU K N OW YO U 'D M E T ' T H E ON E ' ? H I M : I knew Melanie was the one
after bringing her home to meet my family. All my family members liked her as much as I did and we all had a lot of fun together. She fit in like she was the last piece to the puzzle and I knew I wanted to be with her from here on out. I realized quickly that I didn’t want to lose her. H E R : When I jumped out of a plane for him. Hahahahh. For my whole
life, I have told myself (and others) that I would never go skydiving because it seemed terrifying. He told me that he had always wanted to go, so I surprised him with tickets to go. When he asked me if I would go with him and I agreed, I knew that he was the one. Turns out that terrifying things can sometimes lead to great things. (:
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relationship timeline
F I R S T M E T: February 13, 2018 F I R S T D AT E : February 15, 2018 P R O P O S A L : December 21, 2020 W E D D I N G : July 17, 2020
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the proposal
AS TOLD BY THE BRIDE
my life… As Kylee and I came around the bend in the trail I saw balloons and lights and rose petals on the ground. When I saw it the first thing I said to myself was “that is adorable!!” Chewy took off running towards Colton but it still took me a second to register that it was Colton standing there in the roses and this was for me!! I was so surprised and blurted out “Really?!?!” He was supposed to be working. He worked every Saturday at Ogden Clinic and I was so sure in my mind that he was going to propose at his family’s cabin on Martin Luther King day. Then I noticed Colton’s sister, Gina, recording on the other side of the trial. I’m sure I looked like a complete dufus in my attempt to get to him in snowshoes, haha- I’m not the most agile I H O N E S T LY and coordinated person. I was CAN'T REMEMBER shaking so bad by the time I got ALL OF IT to him.
O U R F R I E N D K Y L E E messaged me during Christmas break and asked me if I wanted to go snowshoeing up at Causey Reservoir. I’m always down for an outdoor adventure so we made the plan. I ended up having to raincheck the plans because I had guitar lessons that got rescheduled to that day. So we planned for the next week on December 21st at Snowbasin. We had planned on going around 11am but I figured Kylee would probably be late (sorry Kylee hahaha) so I made myself some macaroni and cheese while I waited. Kylee showed up in the middle of me making my noodles, and me, thinking we weren’t in a hurry for anything, just mosey-ed along making my food and gathering my gear. Haha.
Eventually, we got to Snowbasin around noon and got our gear on. My dog, Chewy, was with us and I had just got a new BECAUSE phone. If anybody knows I WA S S O me, they know that I am G I D D Y. obsessed with my dogs; so naturally, I wanted to try out the new camera/ settings on my dog. So we started onto the trail and found a place where I thought it would be good to test out my camera. So I’m there turning our snowshoeing adventure into a photoshoot, when unaware to me, Colton was around the bend in the trail looking at me through the trees wondering what the heck I was doing and what was taking us so long! Hahaha. After getting ‘the perfect shot’ I got up and we continued down the trail. Little did I know that around the bend was the rest of
He invited me to stand in the rose petal heart. He then gave me the cutest spiel and I honestly can’t remember all of it because I was so giddy. He dropped down on one knee and said “Melanie, will you marry me”. I think I ended up screaming “YES!!” multiple times haha. After I gained my composure and we celebrated our engagement for a few minutes, Colton then said, “I have another important question for you…. Can I go deer hunting tonight?”
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the proposal
AS TOLD BY THE GROOM W E W E R E B R O W S I N G / S H O P P I N G around for the perfect ring. I asked her what kind of rings she liked, and she said that she wanted a simple ring but none of the stores had anything that really caught her eye. We then went to a custom ring shop where she found her perfect ring. I told her that it was too pricey for me and that we should look elsewhere. BUT!! Secretly I bought it right then and there to be designed and made. So next I had to figure out how I was going to ask. I called up my best friend, Kylee, to help me brainstorm and plan the perfect proposal. 12 • Colton + Melanie
Kylee and I worked on the proposal plan and decided to set it up at Causey reservoir. We decided that Causey was a good place to do a surprise proposal because it was secluded and I would have been able to surprise Melanie. Kylee was going to invite her to go snowshoeing and then I would already be up there to surprise her. That didn't end up working out because Melanie had guitar lessons- one thing about a surprise engagement is that she didn’t know what she just rainchecked. Haha. So, Kylee and I planned once more and decided to change the surprise proposal to be at Snowbasin instead because that was our go-to spot. It was winter time and Snowbasin was busy, so we came up with the plan to have Kylee and Melanie go snowshoeing down one of
the hiking trails north-west of the lifts. Kylee was put in charge of getting Melanie to agree to snowshoeing for the next week. Kylee sent Melanie a message asking if she would like to go sometime soon and Melanie's response was of course and that would be tons of fun. The plan had then been set again! I went to the store and printed all of the photos we took over the past 2 years, got some string lights, and then my sister came up to Snowbasin with me and helped clip the photos to the lights and we hung them on the tree branches. I hung some balloons that said “Marry Me” and scattered rose petals on the snow covered trail in the shape of a heart. I then messaged Mel and told her that I was headed to work and to have a good day! She responded that she was going snowshoeing with Kylee. Then I proceeded to wait for Kylee's phone call telling me they were here. I ended up waiting a long time because I learned that Melanie was making macaroni and cheese haha. I felt like my toes were about to fall off because they were so cold from standing in the snow. Once they arrived and started to walk down the trail, I just stood there in a heart made of rose petals waiting for them to come around the corner. Melanie had just gotten an iphone 11 and wanted to see how the camera did and was taking photos of our dog, Chewy. I could see her through the trees but she wasn't even paying attention to what was in front of her just around the corner of the trail. Finally, when she came around the corner and noticed me, she blurted out, “Oh my gosh! Really?!?!?!” She ran as fast as her snow-shoed legs could, which felt like for-freaking ever to get to me. (; When she made it, I invited her into my rose petal shaped heart, got down on my knee and asked her to marry me! :) THE END. Colton + Melanie • 13
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the wedd MARINA HANSEN, MAID OF HONOR
Before there was me, there was Marina. (; She’s been a part of me since the beginning- not just because she’s my big sister and I’ve known her my whole life, but because she is the person that knows every little thing about me and loves me regardless. She’s also got the best laugh ever and the weakest ankles I’ve ever seen! Hahah. If you ever need cheering up, just talk to Mar and you will feel so much better.
SHANI PINTER, BRIDESMAID
Shani is the definition of a life-long friend and has been dependable through it all. She was my first ever friend and the person who has been by my side in every stage of life. She is the perfect combination of sweet and sassy and I love this woman to bits. She also lets me push her nose down to see how flat it will go or trace all the lines in the palm of her hand with a pen! I know.. She puts up with my weirdness! Thanks for being my person, Shan! (:
M O N TA N N A B E L L , B R I D E S M A I D
AKA: Mountain Ram. If you can endure the task of keeping her up past midnight, this girl will 100% do anything you dare her to do. Hahaha. Montanna and I became friends after a hike where we somehow managed to bond over discussions of mountain rams and sheep… hence, the nickname. (; We randomly decided to move into a college dorm together at USU and it is hands-down one of the best decisions I have ever made. Keep sparkling baby!
ALISA SWENSON, BRIDESMAID
This gem is my best adventure buddy! Everybody needs an Alisa in their life.. she is the definition of fun! (: Anytime I’ve needed something or had a ‘crazy idea’ she’s been there. From jamming out to songs in the car, going on a billion hikes, deep discussions, working together, rooming together, and growing up together, this girl has been a part of some of my favorite memories and I’m so grateful for her.
C H E W Y, B R I D E S D O G
“Men with paws like these have a 110% of stealing your girl!” Hahaha. He’s the smartest four-legged friend you will ever meet and is my shadow. Wherever I am, there is a pretty good chance that Chewy will be there too!
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ing party KYLEE ADAMS, GROOMSMAID
Best Friend. I met Kylee several years ago on a trip to Bear Lake for the singles ward and from then on we’ve been the best of friends. Kylee is the sweetest, most dependable person you can count on. Her laugh is contagious and she makes everybody around her feel important and welcomed.
KEEGAN BUTTERS, GROOMSMAN
Brother-in-law. Hunter extraordinaire. The only ginger with a soul. (jokes) And the guy that I can go to if I ever have questions about guns, podcasts, eating healthy, or having good habits. But after all, ‘Butters’ makes everything better. (; I love that he is always trying and learning new things.
R YA N G A I L E Y, G R O O M S M A N
Brother-in-law. I call him the energizer bunny because he is always busy doing something after coming home from a long day of work- whether that’s playing with his kids, building things, or serving others. He’s an awesome dad and a fun person to joke with. In his down-time, you can find him playing his drums and guitar, painting, or being outdoors.
D A L L A N R O W L E Y, H O N O R A R Y GROOMSMAN
Little Brother. Currently serving his mission in Wisconsin, but here with us in spirit, and through zoom chats! Has the fluffiest, softest hair you will ever see, and a heart to match. Used to be “Violet’s favorite uncle” but is now the runner up behind Colton (; ask Violet for proof.
BOO, GROOMSDOG
The Marilyn Monroe of dogs… & a current digger (the dirt kind). However, she is the sweetest dog you will ever meet and loves to be cuddled on. The name, Boo, is not only fitting because of her color, but because she’s our little fraidy-dog.
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who said it?
GU ESS WH I CH STATE ME N T S WE R E MA DE BY TH E BRI DE O R GR O O M: 1. I’m the flexible one. 2. I know sign language. 3. I’ve never been thrown off a water-tube, even with my family’s insane attempts. 4. I once hitch-hiked on a flatbed semi-truck. 5. I can fall asleep mid sentence. 6. I’ve never gone fishing. 7. I’ve been stung by a jellyfish. 8. My favorite chore is vacuuming. 9. I’m the messy one. 10. I’ve been knocked out 4 times. 11. I’m terrified of bears… like insanely terrified. 12. I make the best eggs. 13. I’m the money-saver. 14. I don’t like seafood. 15. I have 3 gold medals in the Utah Summer Games. 16. I carry a water-bottle with me everywhere I go. 17. I can do a backflip standing in place. 18. In one summer, I lost all my toenails. 19. I don’t like caramel. 20. I’m the better driver.
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Colton + Melanie • 19 ANSWERS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.
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magazine design by Unlike Juliet photography by Vienna Glenn Photography
PHOTOGRAPHY • Bella Alder Photography 20MAGAZINE • Colton + DESIGN Melanie • Unlike Juliet
