After a year and a half of dating and over eight years of friendship, it was beyond clear to me that I wanted to spend the rest of my days with Nicole Cosner by my side. The only problem was finding the right time and place to pop such a life changing question, that only gets asked once (hopefully). The 4th of July has always been a very special holiday to Nicole and myself, and it felt like a day that we could celebrate even more than we did before as we look back on all the 4th’s we have spent together. Likewise, some of our earliest memories together come from late night adventures around downtown San Diego with some of our best friends. We would walk the waterfront, explore hotels, and sit on rooftops all over the city. Piecing together these details about our relationship, it became obvious to me that the only option was to propose on a balcony at the Marriott overlooking the Independence Day Fireworks on San Diego Bay. So to keep up appearances, my mom and I concocted a plan to make it seem as though my parents had rented a suite, and wanted to invite our two families to celebrate together. After much planning and struggling to keep the secret, even from our own family members, the night went off without a hitch. On July 4th, 2021, in front of our families and with a backdrop of fireworks and patriotic music, I asked Nicole Elizabeth Cosner to be my wife. As we continue and plan, and pieces fall into place, we cannot wait to celebrate this occasion with you all on May 7th 2022.