When it comes to love, it’s been said that timing is everything. And with two small children, a stressful move, and a recent divorce on her mind, the stage wasn’t exactly set for Janice to find her fairytale romance. Luckily, that didn’t stop Sadik.
The couple first met by chance at a downtown Sacramento nightclub. Just before midnight, Janice, who was out with some girlfriends, ran into a handsome young man. They started to dance and talk, quickly discovering some uncanny similarities between the two of them. Both had recently ended long-term relationships and both had two daughters the exact same ages.
Stunned by how much they had in common, they agreed to exchange numbers. But when Janice was driving home, she discovered that she’d missed a digit. “I couldn’t believe I’d met this hot guy and I messed up his phone number,” Janice laughs. “I started frantically calling every combination of numbers at 1:30 in the morning, trying to find him…Finally my friend was like, ‘stop waking people up!’”
The next morning, Sadik sent her a text message to say hello. She gave him a call and they arranged a lunch date. After spending the day together, Sadik came over and helped Janice set up her Christmas tree.
The date was comfortable and the conversation was great. But despite the ease and depth of their attraction, Janice was hesitant. “I was going through a really rough time in my life and I wasn’t looking for a relationship,” she explains. “It was just too soon…and I thought it would be too much for my kids.” But Sadik wasn’t about to let bad timing ruin his shot at a good thing. “I told her there was no pressure; we’d just take things as they come.”
The couple decided to keep seeing each other, but on a casual basis. Janice was struck by how respectful and patient Sadik was, and how carefully he took his time in getting to know her. There was no doubt he was unlike any other man she’d met. “I knew she was worth waiting for,” Sadik says of that period. “So giving her something different was my goal. If you really like someone, don’t try the same old things. Do something different than the expected approach.”
Finally, Janice couldn’t deny her heart any longer. “The whole time, I kept thinking I wasn’t ready, the timing isn’t right,” Janice says. “My parents were having a really hard time with the divorce, I didn’t want to rush my kids, and I worried about what people would think – I’d only moved out a few months ago…But then I realized I was thinking about everyone else but me. And to me, it felt right.”
Just a month later, Janice changed her mind and told Sadik she was ready to give a relationship a try. After two months, the couple introduced their daughters. A few months passed and suddenly, their once slow-motion relationship was in double speed. But rather than feeling anxious, the couple was struck by how natural each transition was. “I always say that this is how it should be,” Janice explains. “It should be natural; it should be easy…. And with Sadik, it always was.” “There was no drama,” says Sadik. “She really just let me be me. And I appreciated that.”
Sadik showed his appreciation by showering Janice with affection. He’d bring her flowers for no reason, or remember something that she’d admired in a store and surprise her with it later. The gestures were simple, but they created a foundation of thoughtfulness and romance that brought them closer together. The couple continued to find new ways to show each other how much they cared, and worked hard to prioritize respect, honesty, and romance in their relationship.
As time passed, the topic of marriage arose. Since they had both been married before, neither Sadik nor Janice wanted to rush into something that wouldn’t be right. “I brought it up a few times, but he just said ‘why ruin a good thing?’ So that was my clue to leave it alone; it wasn’t our time yet,” says Janice.
But after buying a house together, uniting their families, and blending their lives, Janice felt that it was time to take the next step. She dropped a few hints, but nothing happened. Then one day, he just said “Let’s go look at rings.” They found the perfect diamond ring that day, but Sadik didn’t give it to Janice right away. He wanted the proposal to be a surprise.
“It became a guessing game. When would he do it?” Janice says. “I thought maybe my birthday, but that came and went. Then Thanksgiving was coming up. I thought, maybe he’s thankful for me? But nothing.” Then, when she least expected it, Sadik popped the question on the morning of the third anniversary of their first date. It was a weekday, and they were getting ready for work. “I was standing there drying my hair and I turned around to find him on one knee. Needless to say I was shocked,” Janice remembers.
But not surprisingly, after waiting so long to be engaged, the couple didn’t rush down the aisle. They knew they wanted an elegant celebration, but they didn’t want to go into debt to finance it. So, they set a budget and outlined a year and a half plan to save.
Next, Janice began arranging the details. The couple wanted a wedding that was fun, trendy, and memorable – and Sacramento’s Vizcaya Pavilion and Mansion was the perfect setting to stage such an event.
They selected elements that would give their wedding impact and ambience, starting with a striking color combination of red, silver, and black. Janice, who loves sparkle, added dazzling touches of rhinestones to the décor – from crystal-studded frames for guests’ place cards, to rhinestone wrapped bridal bouquets, to the diamond detailing on her four-tier wedding cake. Her mother even made shimmering silver fabric overlays to add a touch of sparkle to the table linens.
And when it came to designing their ceremony, Janice and Sadik knew run-of-the-mill wouldn’t be an option. “He’s Muslim and I’m Hindu, but neither of us is very religious. We wanted something that reflected our heritage, but was still very personal to us,” Janice explains. So they opted for a non-denominational ceremony, with vows that Sadik wrote himself, including a touching set of family vows to involve their children. When the bride and groom exchanged rings, they also gifted their daughters with bracelets to signify their new life together.
And to honor their cultures, Janice and her bridesmaids wore the traditional Mendhi – or henna tattoos. During the ceremony, she incorporated the Indian tradition of the mangalsutra, a special beaded necklace given to the bride by the groom that signifies their bond and is meant to protect their union from evil. Even a piece of her grandmother’s sari was sewn into Janice’s wedding dress, near her heart.
When Janice and Sadik’s long-awaited day finally arrived, the couple exchanged vows in a deeply personal ceremony, with their children at their side. Afterwards, guests dined on Indian-inspired appetizers and toasted with the couple’s signature cocktail, The Love Potion, in a shade of bright red. The reception room was set ablaze by custom red up lighting, candlelight, and dazzling gemstones accenting each of the reception tables.
And once it started, the fun didn’t stop. Only pausing for the cake cutting and first dances, guests partied the night away, packing the dance floor while upbeat club mixes played. When the time came to bid the newlyweds goodnight, Janice and Sadik treated their guests to one more showstopper – a gourmet popcorn bar, complete with custom to-go boxes for the road.
It was a night to remember, which was the couple’s plan all along.
“We waited a long time for this day,” says Sadik. “We didn’t want it to just be forgotten in a day. We wanted something unique, something that would stand out, something unforgettable…And I think we got it.”
PHOTOS: Bucheli Photography
