Forever I Do!Forever I Do!

Although we have known each other for over two decades, our paths crossed at a familiar spot we have both spent a lot of time over the years. Erica was in town to celebrate the 4th of July, visiting some friends. She was about to call it a night but Erica's brother Joe and his wife Kati were also in town with friends from North Carolina, Greer and Cole. They convinced Erica to stay out and decided to go to The Swick to watch some live music and a good spot to see the fireworks on the beach. There was a great band playing, a packed dance floor and they happily joined in on the party. Erica recognized the drummer and during set break, Thom came over to say hi. After some quick pleasantries Erica went off to the beach to check out the fireworks. Four days later, Thom slid in to Erica's Facebook DMs and struck up a friendly conversation. We learned we both loved to play golf and quickly planned the first tee time for the following week. Was it a date, we both wondered? In typical Erica fashion when it comes to a 5pm mid-week tee time, she was "coming in hot". Thom was sweating on the tee box with the older couple we got paired with, curious if he was getting stood up. Erica arrived right at 5 and because of the gentleman that he is, Thom promptly brought the cart to the car, loaded the clubs and they were off. After Erica shanked her first drive, she decided to challenge Thom to a putting contest to make the round more exciting. The 9 holes went by too quick and secretly neither of us wanted the time to end. We planned a future dinner, as Erica barely lost the putting contest and had to pay up her debt. Dinner was fun and conversation was easy. We realized how much we had in common and another tee time was booked. After the second date, Thom told selected people he was going to marry this woman. Erica told selected people she didn’t understand how his kind and loving nature hadn’t pushed her away yet (IYKYK). Things were different than anyone who had come before and it’s the love she never knew she needed or wanted. Whether it's playing golf, hanging in the lazy lounge, out on the slopes, being with family and friends, or having coffee in the kitchen (where Thom proposed), life is better with us together. We thank you all for being an important part of our lives and celebrating our love story with us.