We're getting married!

After a long, fun day at a prior holiday event, my friend Brandi and I decided to get something to eat near the Battery. We were in the mood for some BBQ, so we decided to hit up Terrapin Taproom where Alexander was our waiter at the time. The restaurant was pretty empty inside minus 1-2 individuals sitting at the bar, but Alexander made sure to give us good customer service. He was really nice, very talkative and was pretty honest about the menu. Brandi thought he was flirting with me a couple of times and I thought he was cute, so I asked him how old he was. I learned he was younger than me (too young in my book), so immediately it was a no for me. Once we were done with our meals, Brandi, Alex and I exchanged our social media handles with each other as a network strategy to gain more followers on Instagram. We kept it pretty professional on social media. We showed support for each other's post from time to time. We didn't communicate much with each other for awhile until Alex messaged me again on Instagram a year later. I had recently ended my last relationship and had prayed to God for something different. I told God that I was ready to be more open minded and I wouldn't allow age, height or race to block me from my blessing. Literally days after saying this prayer to God, Alex messaged me on Instagram. I felt like God was testing me because of the age difference and I did say that I would be open minded this time. Alex asked me out on a date. Brandi just so happened to be there when he did it and said "Girl, go for it". He was polite, intentional and direct. I said yes. THE REST IS HISTORY.

It's crazy to think about how I met my fiancée, but it's a story I love sharing. I was working as a server at Terrapin, a restaurant located at the Battery, near the Braves stadium. It was a typical day, with the lunch rush dying down and the dinner crowd yet to arrive. As I was prepping for my next table, my fellow server let me know that I had a new table. I glanced over and saw two women, one of whom caught my eye. But I didn't think much of it, since I was in a relationship at the time. As I greeted them and took their orders, one of the women started asking me a series of questions. I found myself wondering if she was asking for her friend, the woman in the red dress, and if I were single, I would've definitely been interested. Fast forward to after my breakup, about a year and a half later. I was browsing social media and kept coming across Millicent's posts. I remembered how interesting and adventurous she seemed, and I found myself wanting to get to know her better. But I hesitated, thinking to myself, "She wants to be a mother." I wasn't sure if I was ready for that level of commitment. However, my curiosity eventually got the best of me, and I decided to slide into her DMs. Before asking her out, I asked if she was married, noticing a ring on her finger, although it was on the wrong hand. She assured me she wasn't, and I proceeded to ask her out. To my surprise, she agreed, and we went on two dates. Although we realized we weren't on the same page about having kids, I was drawn to her kindness, her values, and her amazing family. After our second date, we decided to go our separate ways, but I couldn't shake off the feeling that I had connected with someone special. So, about two weeks later, I reached out to her again and asked if we could meet up once more. This time, our connection was undeniable. We talked about our differences, but also about our shared values and aspirations. I realized that I wanted to have kids with her, specifically her. I told myself, "If I'm going to have kids with anybody, it'll be a blessing to have kids with her." As they say, the rest is history. We've been together ever since, and I'm grateful for that chance encounter at Terrapin. Who knew that a simple table service would lead me to the love of my life.