The timeline is blurry, but sometime late-summer of 2016, after talking online for a while, they finally made plans to meet for lunch. Insisting on going to his favorite quick food place, Wilda's, a place closed on random days, and on this random day, she was left to pick somewhere. Feeling anxious, she recommends her favorite taco spot "Jaimito's" to which he annoyingly stated "I've never had good tacos in Redding, but we can try..." The tacos WERE good, despite his judgmental pessimism. The conversation was easy, he complimented her red short-shorts, and upon walking to their cars, she accidentally missed his attempt at a kiss, having no idea it would be another 2 years before they'd get the chance to kiss again.

The timeline from first date, to radio silence, to reconnection is full of details too juicy to share. But in January 2019, Amber moved back from a detour to Arizona, they found themselves single at the same time, during the Redding Snow-pocolypse, and the feelings were mutual. She had a huge crush on him and didn't think she had a shot, but she played it cool, he played it too cool, and next thing they knew they had spent just about every day together for several months. They took their time, soaked up all the stages, and didn't rush a thing. They knew it was love. He met her kids. And one day she looked at the calendar and realized she was still paying rent in a house she hadn't slept in for 2 or 3 months and in the summer of 2020 they decided to seal the deal with a house key and a war over the closet space that has never been settled.

They rode the waves of learning to parent together, covid lockdowns, a nearly fatal car accident, protests and activism, starting businesses and projects, losing people they love, facing mortality of those around them, and then came the day in 2021 when they took a trip to visit family, and she had a strange craving for cheetos, and just to be sure took a test before having a glass of wine with thanksgiving dinner. They thought they were in love before, but those two pink lines brought everyone so much closer together. Sunny was the thing they didn't know they were missing, but brought true completion to the family. And the rest is history.

Mother's day 2024, what was seemingly a normal trip to visit family, a morning surf run on the beach, she was completely unsuspecting as she watched her kids build sand castles on the beach. He pointed to the ocean, saying "what's that over there?", and as she squinted looking for dolphins or whales, she turned back around to find him on one knee. Before he could say a word she gasped "Shut up!" His mom pulled out champagne and glasses, and the kids were so excited that it finally happened! The best surprise.