We met for what was supposed to be a quick coffee date, that then turned into seven hours of non-stop talking, laughing, and experiences together. We had coffee at one of our favorite Italian cafes and suddenly we realized that a few hours had passed, so we had lunch. After a couple more hours of talking, conversation turned to a great trail nearby. Alicia was stunned to meet someone immediately on board to go for a long walk on a nature trail with no preparation or planning. Ben's spontaneity was all she needed to know that he was the one for her. Upon entering the park for a walk, there were some kids inspecting something on the flowers lining the sidewalk. Approaching the site, the kids popped up and showed Ben and Alicia two perfect little ladybugs that they had found on the flowers. They held them out and exclaimed excitedly! Ben had no idea at the time what those ladybugs would come to mean in their budding relationship, but ultimately it was the same sign that Alicia's grandma had used to send her love and approval since she had passed years before. Those two ladybugs in mid-September were perfect sign that we were on the right path. As we got to know each other more and learned more about each other, the more synchronicities we found between us and our life paths thus far. This started with realizing that Alicia's dance studio where she spent half of her childhood, was right next door to Ben's childhood taekwondo studio. We had the same favorite order from the Mexican restaurant at the corner of that shopping center: cheese quesadilla, please! We even had the exact same pediatrician throughout our whole childhoods (Thanks, Glenda!). Those are just the major synchronicities we found pretty early on, but there are so many smaller synchronicities we continue to find today. Everything that each of us have experienced individually has been a contributor to our path toward finding each other. We met at a time in our lives when we were ready for each other and every trial that we could ever face together. Each day we are so grateful for the love we get to share and every piece of us that has pushed us to be exactly where we are today. The universe brought us together in perfect timing, and now we have the rest of our lives to love and cherish one another.

We went to the courthouse on 01/14/25 to get the paperwork out of the way. So, while we are legally married, we were just planning for the perfect time to celebrate together with all of our friends and family! It's been a dream for a long time for us to have a great wedding that we've always wanted. Dreams can be albeit, a little crazy, not impossible. We worked hard to have a micro-wedding ceremony in a private villa in Greece, overlooking the Aegean Sea. Now, we invite you all to come celebrate the official wedding reception (just a little bit later than usual)! We're having a full wedding reception on 10/03/25 with a full seated dinner, drinks, music, dancing, the whole enchilada. It's gonna be so much fun and we can't wait to see you all there!