We first met at a friendly group dancing event where we shook some tailfeathers and briefly chatted during cool down breaks out on the sidewalk. At the time it didn't seem like it would be much more. A bit later, we encountered each other again at a BBQ where we bonded over our shared interests of travel, pocket flasks, and competitive games of corn hole. (For those unfamiliar with the game, you stand right next to your opponent while throwing corn sacks into a target across the lawn, thus making for lively banter and athletic pomp.) Our friendship grew as we kept discovering a plethora of common interests and hobbies, filling up conversations with our beliefs, humor, and values while urban hiking the local neighborhoods and parks. It wasn't long before we realized that we had a special bond and that we had too much in common to be "just friends".

Her exuberance. Her smile. Her face. Her big ol eyeballs. Her thirst for knowledge. Her soft heart. Her silly nature. The life we are building and living together.

His balance of wise responsibility and child-like playfulness. His appreciation of the little things. His everlasting engaging eye contact. His love for themes. His strength and agility. His love for the outdoors and sunshine. His confidence to be silly or weird. His desire and support for me to be my best self.