Dan, who had been serving in the US Navy and stationed in Hawaii, was home on leave. After YEARS of hearing about each other, but never meeting, we finally met at an Ugly Sweater Party in December 2012 (All God's doing in our opinion!) Having similar senses of humor, use of sarcasm, and wit, we hit it off right away! When Dan returned to Hawaii, we kept in touch over phone calls, texts and Skype. During his next leave home in July of 2013, we spent a lot of time together. Dan met Daniel on this leave. (They were instant buddies, and today the best of friends.) This trip home for Dan also included going on what would be the first of many camping trips together to Gooseberry Falls! On the car ride home, we talked about how much we cared for one another and how we felt our connection could survive the distance and wanted this to be official! Soon after, we starting planning our future together. It would be about two years before Dan separated from active duty and moved home for good. :-)