We first met at a mutual friend's going away party. Cliff opened a gate for Claire to the patio of Gordon Biersch. Claire remembers thinking he was cute, but they didn't end up talking that night. A few weeks later, we met again at Cowboys Red River while out dancing with friends. Once we started dancing, we clicked and did not stop dancing until they turned out the lights! When someone asked if we were together, Cliff thought, "No, but I wish we were!" Claire thought that dancing with Cliff felt so natural and exciting at the same time. She loved how he sang to her and added his own flair to the dance moves. This night left an impression on both of us, but we didn't exchange numbers. Then on New Years Eve, Cliff and Claire ended up at the same Watermark party. Claire immediately saw Cliff and ran over to say hi, then when he struck up a conversation, she felt shy and soon ran away to help pop confetti balloons for NYE. Cliff did not let her get away this time. After making his friendly rounds, he came over and asked her to dance, this time he got her number while they danced! Two and half weeks later, on January 18th, they had their first date at Cafe Brazil in Carrollton and talked for 5 hours! They were so wrapped up in the conversation they forgot to get coffee and ended up ordering dinner 3 hours into their date! They knew they had something special! More dates followed and Cliff and Claire became inseparable. They ran 5Ks together, played softball, soccer, went on snowboarding trips, cooked together, went to church together, created epic Halloween costumes, and got to know each other's families. They had so much fun together and a special connection that people in stores would stop to tell them how lovely and great of a couple were. We are so excited to spend the rest of our lives together!

Cliff texted Claire a little after 2 pm telling her that tonight was the second of a series of surprise dates and gave her instructions for what to wear and when to be ready. She got ready, then while waiting for Cliff, she was excitedly texting her bestfriend Alexa if this was it! Cliff texted about the time he had said he would pick her up and said he was running late. When Cliff arrived, he didn’t seem nervous or flustered, instead acted completely normal, not in a hurry, even going to the bathroom before leaving. This really threw Claire off - she thought "he's too calm for a proposal!" They walked to his car, and Cliff told Claire to stand there for a minute. While waiting Claire saw two bandanas sitting in the front seat and when Cliff came back to open the door for her, he handed her a pair of earplugs, told her to put them in, then double blindfolded her! Cliff drove Claire a short distance - although with the ear plugs and bandanas and light conversation, Claire was disoriented and unsure of where they were going. Cliff parked the car and told Claire to wait there, then he came back and opened the door for Claire. Still blindfolded, he held here hand and walked her along an uneven path, then they stopped on a flat surface. He removed the blindfold and earplugs and their song started to play and Cliff asked Claire to dance. As they danced, Claire noticed the lights around the trees and suspended above them, the rose petals all around, and the privateness of the lake overlook. When the song ended, Cliff proposed on one knee! Claire said "YES!" The surprises didn't end there, two friends, who had been hiding and taking photos and videos came and congratulated them and took more photos! Then when they went back to the car, Claire grabbed her phone to start calling her family, but Cliff stopped her and asked her to put the blindfold back on! The next stop was a surprise engagement party with their closest friends and family in a nearby park pavilion!