Brooke & Dave

It's no secret that Winter is my favourite time of year, but what is more of an unknown is the reason why. So much about Brooke and Dave's relaxed winter engagement shoot knocks it on the head. Cosy cups of hot tea and coffee, snuggly jumpers, long walks in the cold crisp air. There are so many beautiful parts to this season. Lara & Susie Photography joined Brooke & Dave one Winter's day to celebrate their engagement.

The couple headed to a local cafe for a hot coffee, before returning home for a walk with their littlest family members.

Brooke remembers, "Our engagement story probably sticks out as one of the funnier moments in our relationship. He bought the ring about a month before dropping the question and apparently showed our dog, Teddy, before hiding it in the spare bedroom. For about 2 or 3 weeks before it happened Teddy would go into the room, sit on the floor and bark which is so unlike him. I kept going in there trying to figure out what was making him bark which made Dave a bit nervous. Teddy was trying to tell him to just hurry up and do it I think. Around the same time I also had stumbled across search history about "best vantage points Kangaroo Point Cliffs" on the Ipad which had me thinking he was up to something but popping the question was seriously the last thing I thought he would do! I think at the time I was terrified he had organised a rock climbing day."

"We went out for a nice romantic dinner on Valentines Day, He had planned to pop the question at Kangaroo Point cliffs after dinner but didn't, we just sat there looking at the city lights and I remember feeling a nervous vibe off him, I also still hadn't put all the clues together! It happened at home later on, which was perfect."

On what she loves about Dave, Brooke tells, " I love that Dave is supportive of my creative endeavours and business pursuits and has helped me realise some dreams in that area of my life. I think we make a really good team. I love that he has fit into my crazy family clan so effortlessly. I love his optimism in life he never seems to worry about anything which is a good balance for me."

For their engagement photos, Brooke remembers, "We wanted our dog Teddy involved in some way so we initially thought of a park setting but the photographers suggested a bar or café for something a bit different. I knew of a cute place just down the road from our house with lots of handmade timber furniture and mismatched chairs so we were able to get some great photos there. The rustic setting at the café suited us really well as we like that style. Then we all went back to our house to get some with Teddy and our newly adopted dog Bubbles. We have an overgrown secret garden at the back of our property which worked really well too."

On what he loves about Brooke, Dave tells, "She makes me feel comfortable and safe. She keeps me in line because I tend to be impulsive and go off and a tangent, for example I'll go to the shop for milk and come home with $100 of junk... and no milk. After a long day's work she will get me a beer and help me relax.

Her cooking is amazing, she should be on Masterchef I think. And then there is Teddy, well I'm a dog person and he's my best mate now. Brooke's family is very similar to my own and they are both nuts! So I fit right in."