We're getting married!

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Dana, a Michigan girl at heart finally got tired of snow and moved to California March 4, 2020. She previously lived 5 years in DC attending Howard University before going to work for the United Nations in NYC. After 10 years of living in NYC, 1 year in London and Dubai getting her MBA, 2 years in Sydney, Australia working and traveling to almost 40 countries, she was ready for a slower pace of life. Brian was born in Tustin, California but very familiar with snow from his time attending Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. As if that wasn't enough cold, he added wind to his winter experience and lived in Chicago for 10yrs, working as a consultant after college. He has been fortunate to travel to almost 45 countries. In 2015 he returned to California to finish his MBA at UCLA. After graduating, he left his job as a consultant and pursued his entrepreneurial calling. He took a job with a company based out of Chicago in December 2019 and moved back to The Windy City. Meanwhile, burned out from the rat race that is NYC, Dana decided her time there had come to an end. Within 3 weeks she packed her stuff, finished her work contract and left The Big Apple on a one-way ticket to sunshine in Orange County, California on March 4, 2020. When the pandemic hit, Brian's company went fully remote and he didn't want to get stuck locked down in Chicago for it's brutal winter, so he moved back to California April 2020. At the recommendation of a friend, Dana decided to give online dating a try. Just before she gave up on virtual matchmaking, she came across Brian's profile and was intrigued. Although his profile was bare, with just the essentials to describe himself (34, Entrepreneur, Self-employed, MBA, Christian)...Dana saw something in his eyes...Needless to say, Brian and Dana matched on Coffee Meets Bagel July 14, 2020. Their first date was July 31, 2020 at Jinbei, in the Orchard Hills Shopping Center’s outdoor plaza. They have been inseparable ever since. Dana remembers Brian's kind eyes and genuine conversation. Because he lived in the Midwest for so long, Dana felt as if she were at home with him. He was down to earth, humble, kind, educated, well traveled and authentic. They talked for four hours straight and didn't realize they were the last ones left in the outdoor plaza when they looked up to check the time. After that first date, they went out weekly and no longer needed the app. Lesson learned...love has it's way of finding you, even during the most challenging times in our world. With the ups and downs of the past few years, Dana and Brian leaned on each other. They laughed a lot together, cried some, rejoiced a ton and found ways to adventure together without even leaving the country. For these two travelers, that is a miracle! Everyday holds something new and they are experiencing it all together.

We celebrated the 2 year anniversary of our first date on Sunday, July 31, 2022. Brian drove 2 hours to take me to a surprise dinner at a farm to table restaurant in Malibu, CA. It was so beautiful and the food was delicious! The view of the ocean from the Malibu pier where we sat right next to the water was stunning. We then visited my brother and sister-in-law in LA. The day was so full of joy, peace, love and even time with family. I had such a full love tank when we arrived at Brian's house to exchange anniversary gifts that evening. It was just before midnight and I was very tired. Brian eagerly waited for me at the top of the stairs. I wondered how he had so much energy after driving back from LA. When I walked up the stairs to the living room, my eyes barely open, I was utterly surprised to see a huge bouquet of vibrant, colorful roses on the counter! Brian was standing there patiently waiting for me. My eyes immediately brightened and I was so pleasantly excited to get such beautiful flowers. I quickly started smelling the breathtaking roses and delighting in their lovely scent. After a minute or so, I looked down and noticed the delicate ring box in front of the vase. My eyes grew even bigger and I looked at Brian, then back at the ring box in awe and shock! I asked him a rhetorical question aloud, "these can't be earrings right?" He chuckled and said, "open it." It was then that I slowly removed the ribbon and opened it up to find the gorgeous engagement ring, which was exactly what I wanted. I was already crying tears of joy! He then asked me to marry him. I said “Yes”✨ He sat me down on the couch and read me the letter he wrote and sent to my parents two weeks earlier. With the letter, he also sent a photo of us from a captivating mountain landscape hike in Big Bear, CA that we went on for my birthday in September 2021. The letter left me speechless. He shared his love and gratitude for me, his hopes for our future and that he cannot imagine his life without me. I was blown away! We both basked in the newfound bliss of being engaged!!! We couldn’t wait to share the news with our parents and because Brian’s parents were delayed in the London Heathrow airport we called them and shared the good news! Their excitement brought us so much joy! We called my parents the next morning and they were also ecstatic! My parents had already framed the photo Brian sent of us with the letter. I then understood why my Mom had been playing phone tag for two weeks, they did a great job keeping the secret. With both of our parents’ blessing, we planned our big announcement. August 2, 2022 was Brian’s birthday and I had planned a huge birthday party for him. This is why I was so distracted and didn’t see an engagement coming. His birthday party that Tuesday also turned out to be when we announced our engagement to his siblings, our local friends and his neighbor. We spent the rest of the week on Cloud 9 and went to Tijuana to serve local kids, followed by a relaxing trip to Cabo where I had planned to surprise Brian for his birthday. The trip doubled as an engagement celebration and perfect timing to bask in the excitement of our decision to spend forever together. We had an incredible time in Mexico with our Zion Church community as well, enjoying the time to give back and recharge for the coming wedding planning season. What a gift we have in each other and our community, near and far, that we are blessed to be a part of. However you are able to celebrate with us, whether virtually or in-person, you are welcome to join us as we share our love.

Ask Brian about it!