Two people wanting love but are too introverted to go out and actually be available for the opportunity to present itself. Cue online dating! Mark and I matched on the dating app, Bumble. Bumble is an app where it's designed for women to reach out first. So Mark loves telling people that I slid into his DM's. LOL! ~Initial Reactions~ April 11, 2022 Delencia: I loved Mark's simple tagline on his profile, "Don't laugh, you're here too". It made me smile, giggle and oddly enough feel at ease. I proceeded to scroll through his profile and admired that he was open enough to say that he was a Christian and that he had a child. I also liked that he was humble enough to post photos that weren't GQ-style photos. They were day-to-day photos. One of the photos was him just sitting in his car and another was him sitting outside. In both photos, he was looking directly at the camera making me feel like I was sitting right next to him. This too made me smile. So I reached out to him and we haven't stopped talking since! ***Granted, now, Mark definitely starts more of the conversations. LOL! The man can talk!*** Mark: I was hesitant to start online dating because I had seen that show Catfish. I remember opening my Bumble app and seeing Delencia had liked me. I went to look at her profile and as soon as I saw it, I thought to myself, WOW! This girl is BAD! Then I read her bio and as soon as I saw that she puts Jesus first, I thought, somebody who looks this good and follows Christ is too good to be true. So I immediately, swiped right! Not long after, she hopped in my DM's and it was magic ever since. {We talked every day from sun up to sun down. Chats, text messages, phone calls, and video calls.}

Mark: I tried to be different when setting up our first date. From the many hours of conversation that we had, I knew that Delencia really enjoyed taking walks. So I asked her to meet me in DC (the fact that she showed up means, that it was meant to be because she HATES DC.) When she arrived, before getting out of the car, we locked eyes and she flashed the most beautiful smile I've ever seen. After she got out of the car, we hugged for the first time and it felt like the most natural thing I've ever felt in my life. But then, I realized, where we were parked and we were going to have to move the cars if the date was going to last more than an hour. (Getting her car towed would've been a bad look on the first date.) I was hesitant to ask her to go to a different location but I showed her where I was thinking of going and offered her to follow me in the car and she agreed. When we reached our destination, (Georgetown Waterfront Park) we walked and talked for four hours. I think I fell in love that day. Delencia: Mark and I have been having such great conversations throughout the past few days, I happily accepted his request to go out on our first date. Unbeknownst to me he would have our date consist of two of the biggest things that I don't like. Driving in DC and parking garages! While I was unhappy about driving to DC, I was excited to be meeting him in person. I pulled up to the location he first provided and there he was, cheesing! LOL! We got out of our cars and hugged as if we've already met. There was no hesitation on either side. The hug felt like peace, I can't describe it any other way. I'm exhaling with happiness just thinking about it all over again right now. It was such a beautiful day for a walk. We didn't even realize that we were walking and talking for four hours. We did NOT eat. It all just felt so comfortable. We talked about all the deep heavy stuff, nothing surface level. Exactly how I had hoped. If anyone knows me, you know the conversation had to be good because there was no food involved and you KNOW that I LOVE food. Mark: As the date was starting to come to a close, I couldn't stop thinking about how I didn't want the date to end. The date went so well, that I asked Delencia if she wanted to date exclusively. Well, I must've done something right, because she kissed me on our first date. And during that kiss, I just remember feeling like I had fireworks going on inside of me. And when we parted ways, I remember thinking to myself, I am going to marry this person. Delencia: Mark loves to tell people that I kissed him first. I did. But only because he was too chicken to make the move. LOL! It was a great day. I remember Mark asking a couple of strangers who were walking by to take a photo of us so that we could remember this first date because he knew that we would have many more. (The photo is in our gallery.) Looking at that photo, you wouldn't be able to tell that we had only known each other for six days and that it was our first time ever meeting. I guess the saying is true, when you know, you know because after the date, as soon as I pulled out of the garage, I called my best friend Samantha and screamed, HE'S GOING TO BE MY HUSBAND! Two years later, my statement is coming true.

Throughout the past couple of years: One of the things we have enjoyed is traveling together. We have traveled to Florida, South Carolina, Mexico, Bahamas and Honduras. We're looking forward to exploring more of the world together. Another thing we love to do is serve together. We have served at our church, Cresthill Church at countless events. Our favorite events to volunteer for is Night to Shine and Everyone Belongs Camp. Both of these events are for people with disabilities. It is a passion that is near and dear to our hearts. We can't wait to see the many more things that we'll learn and be able to do together in the years to come. We appreciate you guys for coming along the ride of love with us, and can't wait to celebrate the joyous occasion of our union. See you soon!