As an opening question in the Bumble app, Ashley requested that Ryan share his best "dad joke" (if he makes you laugh, you're off to a good start right?). Ryan came back with: "Did you hear about the restaurant on the moon? It has great food, but no atmosphere". After a few basic questions through the app, Ryan very quickly asked Ashley to meet up in person (which makes complete sense now, Ryan is a very no-nonsense kind of guy)! They met up at what would be come one of their favorite date spots (Bar Hygge) on a Sunday afternoon. Who goes on a first date on a Sunday afternoon? Ryan was busy spending time with his family that weekend, an honorable reason to request a Sunday date (and another indication that he was going to be a great catch). They met up at Bar Hygge for an afternoon drink to meet for the very first time! The conversation was so easy, you know when you meet someone and it feels like you've known them for years? Like that! Ashley was immediately smitten and Ryan requested that they continue the date over dinner at a restaurant down the street. After drinks, dinner, and a late-night walk (a date that lasted 8 hours), it was very apparent that this was something special. The rest was history - you could catch them spending most of their free time together, continuing to build a friendship to last a lifetime! And to think they were both about to delete Bumble, thank goodness they held out for "just one more date"!

Ashley had one request: "please don't propose on a hike, I'm afraid the ring won't fit". I'm sure you can see where this is going. With a series of trips planned out in the Spring/Summer of 2021, Ashley knew a proposal was coming, but when? On the morning of 5/22/21, they were getting ready to go for a quick hike before meeting up with Ryan's family to celebrate some birthdays. It was a HOT day and any other weekend they might have decided to skip the hike. Ryan seemed really into it, despite the heat, so Ashley was on board too! For short hikes, Ashley typically lets Ryan bring the water bottle and leaves hers in the car to drink afterward (aka she drinks his). This time around, Ryan was insistent on bringing two bottles of water. Ryan packed a backpack with a water bottle in each outer side pocket and (supposedly) absolutely nothing else inside - he thought for sure Ashley would catch on.... she didn't! They were on a hike, after all.... he wouldn't propose on a hike... no way. The hike brought them on a gentle jaunt that frequently popped out to the ocean. Ashley didn't know this, but Ryan was freaking out - they had never hiked here before and Ryan wasn't quite sure where he wanted to pop the question. All he knew was that he had the ring in the backpack and the hike was going to end soon... it was now or never. They decided to take a strange (and a little dangerous) detour down to the water. They ended up on a little secluded beach with a refreshing breeze and a beautiful view. As they were getting ready to go back up, Ashley grabbed one more view of the ocean before turning around to see Ryan right behind her, on one knee. Cue the tears (from both of them) and a very excited "yes, of course, yes"! If you're wondering, the ring did fit, even amidst the heat! Although, Ryan did have to take the ring back to keep it safe while they (literally) scaled some rocks to get back to the beaten trail. An adventure to remember!