“Not love at first sight, but curiosity at first glance. The need to know more, to learn everything. An inability to look away.” That perfectly describes how our story began. More like my story, (Erika, haha!) We first met at the girls’ kindergarten open house. It was only a quick hello and a couple smiles. something about him stayed with me. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but I was intrigued. Then I saw him again at the girls’ friend’s Halloween party. There he was, and something in my mind kept telling me, “Go talk to him.” So I sat at the same table and made small talk. Afterwards, I convinced myself he probably wasn’t interested. But then came more run-ins — school events, birthday parties, little hellos here and there. Every time I saw him playing with the children and then my kids, I found myself wondering, “Why do I feel this way every single time I see him?” Maybe it was his handsomeness. Maybe it was his gentleness, his playful spirit, or the way he was with the children. Whatever it was, I tried to ignore it and push it out of my mind. Until the night at Northstar, when the magic finally happened — with a little help from friends. I was out at Northstar with good friends, having a great time like always, until Brian walked in. The second I saw him, I told my friends, “He’s here! That’s him — the guy I’ve been telling you about!” My crazy self decided to wave like an idiot trying to get his attention. Of course, when he noticed me waving, he looked behind him, thinking there was no way I could possibly mean him. So I pointed right at him and signed, “You. Come here.” He laughed and said, “Me?” When he walked over, I introduced him to everyone and bought him a beer. Finally, we started having more than just small talk and quick hellos. Meanwhile, I had butterflies practically flying out of my body. I remember whispering to my friends, “Oh my goodness… I like him. What do I do?!” Then my friend’s husband secretly pulled Brian aside and told him, “This girl really likes you, so don’t screw it up!” (Haha!) When Northstar was closing, I wasn’t ready to say goodbye, so I invited him to go with us to a friend’s house for a bonfire. That night brought hand-holding, a sweet kiss, and sparkled the feelings- the man I had been waiting to fall in love with. We’ve been inseparable ever since. What makes that night even more special is that Brian later told me he hardly ever goes out because of work schedule, or he has his daughter. That night, he had originally planned to stay home, but at the last minute he thought, “Why am I staying home on a Saturday night? Maybe I should go out for a couple drinks.” So he did. Funny how Northstar brought us together — at the same place, at the exact same time, once again. We truly felt like it was a sign. So thank you, Northstar.