The couple met and got engaged on season 7 of 'Bachelor in Paradise.'
Mari Pepin and Kenny Braasch are planning to celebrate their love twice! ET's Denny Directo spoke with the engaged couple following Bachelor in Paradise's season 8 reunion taping, and they revealed why they plan to tie the knot twice.
"We're gonna have two [weddings]," Mari told ET. "I'm originally from Puerto Rico, so we're gonna have our main wedding there. The big ceremony [will be] there with our family and closest friends and then we'll have the big celebration in Chicago and all of Bachelor Nation is invited to that one. I think it's a good middle ground."
As for the most important part of their big day, for Mari it's all about good lighting and plenty of photo ops. "I want a good photo booth. I want the nice backdrop for everybody to take pictures," she said.
"I'm good with that," Kenny agreed, before joking, "That's one of the least expensive things you could've said, so I'm good with that."
While they work to plan their two ceremonies, Mari is busy competing in pageants with her proud fiancé's full support.
"It takes a lot of time away from our relationship. I've been traveling a lot 'cause of the pageant," Mari said. "That's one thing that can make or break a relationship, is having that distance and that time apart, so to know that he's always in my corner and supportive and wanting me to go after these goals that I have, it means a lot."
"I'm not gonna hold anybody back from doing anything. She wouldn't hold me back," Kenny noted. "I've got a lot of stuff that I've gotta do, be traveling and a lot of shows and stuff, so I'm all for whatever she wants to do. I'll always be there for it."
After witnessing the drama of BiP's eighth season, the couple, who met and got engaged on the beach last year, are glad to be where they are in their relationship.
"I'm glad that we had the season that we did and we are where we are now, because I don't think I would've wanted to be a part of this season. There was so much drama and lots of competition too," Mari said. "... I’m glad that we are where we are on the other side of it and getting to watch them. At the same time, I kind of feel like we're mentors almost and we get to help them out a little bit, give them advice, which is cool."
Season 8 of Bachelor in Paradise airs Mondays and Tuesdays on ABC. Follow along with ET's coverage of the show to stay up to date on all the drama on the beach.
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