Though they both grew up in the same small town of Walla Walla, Wash., and had known each other in high school, Megan Locati, 25, and Andrew Remington, 27, didnt have their first date until well after they had graduated. When they did decide, in 2005, that the time was right to give romance a try, it was immediately clear that they were meant to be together. Since then, the two have been inseparable.

Content with their private commitment to each other, Megan, a medical assistant, and Andrew, a correctional officer, never planned to marry. But when a certain diamond ring really caught her eye, she posted a photo of it on Facebook (and on her phone, and their kitchen refrigerator and the bathroom mirror) and waited in hope. Already sure he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her (and not one to miss such subtlety), Andrew happily took the hint and secretly prepared to pop the question.

The night he planned to propose, while the couple was vacationing in Hawaii, Andrew thought he had everything in place a romantic stroll on their favorite beach at sunset, a candlelight dinner for two he knew the right moment would present itself. But just as they were preparing for their walk, he nervously checked his pocket for the ring and realized he had left it at their hotel. Making up a quick excuse to go back (a 25-minute drive), he nearly missed the opportunity hed been waiting for, because when they did make it back to the beach, the tide was changing, the wind had picked up, and a nervous Megan didnt care to linger. But as soon as he started to speak those words, she recalls, everything began happening in slow motion and it was just like magic.

To recreate that special scene, the couple decided to marry on the coast, and picked Cannon Beach for its stunning setting, and also, some sentiment: The bride spent childhood vacations there, with many happy memories, and her parents had exchanged vows in the same spot years before. Admittedly not a big planner, Megan was also attracted to the area for its wealth of experience in the wedding department. I wanted to keep things as simple as possible, she said, and the Surfsand Resort had everything we needed. My dad planned it all for us using their wedding menu it was just as easy as that.

With a variety of mix-and-match packages available, couples renting the resorts facilities can choose anything from a simple champagne toast, to a full-service sit-down dinner with an open bar, in any of several venues. To make things even easier, the resort maintains lists of local musicians, photographers, bakeries and licensed officiants, eliminating the typical legwork involved in planning such an event.

For their special celebration, Megan and Andrew spent five days in Cannon Beach, in a spacious vacation rental right downtown, only two blocks from the beach. They spent time exploring the area, hiking at Ecola State Park, renting boogie boards to play on in the surf and enjoying evening bonfires on the beach. Then on the afternoon of June 22, 2012, exactly seven years after their first date, the couple wed before an intimate crowd of 22 friends and family, with the Pacific Ocean and a magnificent Haystack Rock in the background.

Under a canopy bedecked in royal purple (the brides favorite color), the Rev. Patricia Durkin presided, guiding the couple through their vows and also in the tradition of a Sand Ceremony a ritual of unity in which two individual vials of colored sand, one representing the bride and one the groom, are poured together the joining of two separate lives, into one.

Windy, cloud-filled skies held the threat of rain, and a few sprinkles did fall, but the couple barely noticed: Rain or shine, we wanted to be on the beach, remembered the bride. It was so beautiful and peaceful down there, I didnt care about the rain.

Steps away, at the Surfsand Resorts beautiful Haystack Gardens facility, the newly married couple joined their parents and guests to celebrate with champagne, cocktails, a scrumptious buffet, a bit of dancing and an elegant cake.

With such a lovely event, hosted in such a perfect setting, guessing the next part should be easy: Theyll live happily ever after.