A LOVE STORY

We were supposed to get married on August 16, 2020 at a retreat center nestled in the coastal redwoods outside of Santa Cruz.

But the pandemic forced us to reconsider our destination wedding plans. The subsequent West Coast forest fires didn’t help. We cancelled the ceremony, with the health and safety of our guests in mind.

The days of quarantine gave us time to reflect on how and when to celebrate our commitment to each other. We decided to stick with our original wedding date and commemorate it in our own special way.

We left the confines of Los Angeles and traveled up the coast to the wide open spaces of Big Sur, to our favorite campsite at Treebones Resort.

We set up a tent overlooking the ocean as the sun went down. We cooked dinner on our portable stove. All was calm and quiet.

As our eyes adjusted to darkness, we exchanged our vows and rings in private, under a canopy of stars.

The Milky Way was our witness.

 the photo shoot

The morning after we exchanged our vows, we packed our would-be wedding attire in the back of our rental car. We drove straight to Sand Dollar Beach and changed into our clothes behind big rocks, facing away from each other. Nader promised to keep his eyes closed, so he wouldn’t see what Erica had been hiding in her closet for months! When he finally opened his eyes, Erica’s red wedding dress was revealed for the first time.

Our official wedding photographer had bailed on us, so Nader took matters into his own hands. It was a blessing in disguise.

We spent the rest of the day driving up and down the Pacific Coast Highway, taking pictures of each other against the beautiful backdrops of nature—a secluded beach, a forest trail, a sunny canyon.

We wanted to share our celebration with you. Barefoot, alone together, and feeling the love of our friends and family from afar.

Here are our favorite shots from that day.

Photo credits:

Dress: Flor et.al
Photographer: Nader Husseini (with some help from Erica and a tripod)
Hair & makeup: Ocean water, salt air & red lipstick

sand dollar beach, 10:56 AM

 Soda springs trail, 2:07 PM

As the sun burned off Big Sur’s morning mist, we drove along the coast in search of Soda Springs Trail. We were determined to revisit one our favorite hiking trails—a place we had stumbled upon the year before in May, during Nader’s annual birthday getaway to Big Sur.

Our search was halted by a dangerously low fuel tank. We made a pit stop in the small town of Gorda, a few miles down south, to fill up with some of the most expensive gasoline in America, at around $7 per gallon.

We continued onwards and let our memories guide us to a small pullout on the inland side of Highway 1. We found it!

We climbed uphill and reached a clearing. Now at the height of summer, most of the wildflowers had dried up. The sun was harsh. The grass, brittle. The overlook did not resemble the lush scenery we remembered, but the west-facing views were still spectacular.

This time, we didn’t need our hiking boots.

PACIFIC VALLEY BLUFF, 6:37 PM

The day was winding down.

We were running out of snacks.

Bugs and heat and shadows defeated our attempts at any photography in the dense forest. Most of the shots Erica had taken of Nader so far were blurry.

We hoped the final minutes of sunset would bring better luck.

We drove to the Pacific Valley Bluff Trailhead, parking across from where we usually notice a “superbloom” of pink flowers in the springtime.

At this hour, the pink sun caught our attention.

the beach with no name, 7:25 PM

We spotted people surfing and sunbathing at a cove below the bluffs. That’s where we wanted to be.

We followed a dirt path down to the secluded beach. It took a couple of false turns to finally find an access point from the steep cliffs to the soft sand.

Once we landed, “magic hour” was upon us.

The day was done.

From Naderica, With Love
💌

🎁 wedding Registry

If you'd like to contribute a gift, we welcome your generosity.

Physical gifts for our home —> https://www.myregistry.com/wedding-registry/erica-schlaikjer-and-nader-husseini-los-angeles-ca/2324298/giftlist

Cash for our newlywed fund —> https://www.zola.com/registry/naderica2020/

✨Q&A

What was your most memorable date?

Our first date was epic. We met at 5:45am to watch the sunrise on Venice Beach, outside of Nader's apartment. After the sun came out, Nader made Erica breakfast (cheesy eggs, toast and coffee.) With full bellies and big smiles, we biked from Venice Beach to Manhattan Beach and ate a seafood lunch at a little restaurant called Fishing With Dynamite. Afterwards, we biked back home. Erica took a nap while Nader watched cartoons. Naderica didn't want the day to end, so they went furniture shopping (Nader needed a new couch for his new apartment.) Naderica finished the date by eating Japanese ramen noodles for dinner in Sawtelle (Erica's neighborhood.) It was the best day ever!

What's the most memorable trip you have taken together?

Within the first two years of getting to know each other, we were blessed with the chance to go on many adventures: Big Sur & Joshua Tree in California; New Orleans; New York City; Kauai (Hawaii); Wadi Rum & Petra in Jordan; and Palestine.

Where are you going for your honeymoon?

Our dream is to take a creative sabbatical and go on an around-the-world trip. A hot springs and bicycling tour through Taiwan (for Nader's first time visiting Erica's motherland) is on the itinerary. For now, all air travel plans are on hold…