We're getting married!

Amber and I first met in 2016 working together for our favorite hockey team at The Rinks Anaheim Ice. During our first week of work together, I trained Amber on how to skate guard the public sessions. The sessions were two hours long, and I didn't want to be that annoying coworker that talks non-stop the whole time. So, I showed her the basics and then left her alone for the rest of the session. Amber still gives me a hard time to this day for how boring I made that shift for her because I didn't talk to her... Needless to say, Amber and I quickly became friends and grew our friendship over the next year. I eventually got a promotion to Ice Technician which relocated majority of my work to the back of the facility in the zamboni room. Amber often went into that room to warm up after being on the ice for too long. She had told me a story about one of her friends accusing her of going into that room to "hook up" with someone instead of actually warming up. We both thought it was a strange accusation, but pretty funny at the same time. Well, this eventually led to us having our first kiss in the zamboni room... and the rest is history.

After spending the past four years together, Amber had become my best friend. We decided to move in together in January 2021, and shortly after I decided to propose to her. After getting approval from her dad and grandpa, the preparation began. I wanted the proposal to be perfect and everything she had ever dreamt about. I decided to surprise her with a duffy boat ride in the Newport Beach harbor. Over the next three months, I had made arrangements for all of the little details that would make this day special for us. Everyone that knows Amber also knows how hard it is to keep anything a secret from her. So, I tricked her into thinking we were just going out to a nice dinner at a restaurant right next to the duffy boat dock. When we got there, I asked her if we could walk around for a little bit just to check out the boats. We approached a private dock that said, "do not enter." As I lead Amber onto this private dock, she became very confused and started to panic. She ensured me that we weren't allowed on the dock and that we were going to get in trouble. I ignored her and continued walking ahead. A worker approached us and asked if we had a reservation, to which Amber quickly answered "NO!" I laughed and told him that we did. He lead us to our boat that was decorated with roses, candles, and Amber's favorite wine. We spent the next two hours cruising through the harbor watching all the boats and enjoying some wine as the sun set. A song came on the radio that Amber had always talked about being a perfect wedding song. I knew that was the perfect moment to get down on one knee and ask her to marry me.