Allen and I met when he was a freshman and I was a sophomore in high school. We had gym class together and that's when we hit it off. I was the only girl on our volleyball team and we became friends instantly. After a couple weeks of getting to know each other we decided to get together for "not a date". The next day at school he asked me to be his girlfriend. Well, actually he didn't ask me, he turned my Irish claddagh ring around to signify we were in a relationship and the rest is history!

When the COVID-19 pandemic started, Allen’s last semester converted from in person to online. After a day or two of wanting to be quarantined together, Allen drove through the night and arrived in CT specifically at 3:31pm. Yes that’s important, trust me. He arrived on March 31st, 2020, for those of you who don’t have Allen’s brain… 3:31pm on 3/31/20. That signifies that day he proposed. He proposed to me 8 years after we started dating, 31-20-3 = 8. And the plan all along was to have a 1 year engagement, 3+3+1+2+0 = 9. (I know, he is such a nerd, but he will be my nerd before too long!) When Allen and Val got out of the car he asked if I noticed Val's new tag on her collar. Low and behold it said, "Mom will you please say yes to dad!" He them came up to me and said, "This is the start to the rest of our lives." He got down on one knee and asked if I would marry him. I now get to spend the rest of my life with my best friend!