James and I originally began talking to each other online In November of 2021 prior to meeting in person. Our relationship began with a few notable dates as we were just getting to know each other. James was working long hours and I was still in college. We agreed to meet each other for the first time in-person at a coffee shop in downtown Tacoma, WA. James watched me attempt to parallel park for several minutes, then finally giving up to find a new parking spot prior to ever seeing him face-to-face. As I began walking to to coffee shop, I was greeted with a text message that had a how-to video for parallel parking. Our second time meeting each other was a little unconventional; James agreed to be a patient for me while in dental hygiene school! While not exactly a romantic experience, we learned a lot about each other. Washington soon declared a state of emergency and closed all non-essential businesses, effective the day of our next date. James became creative and determined we would still have a formal, candle-lit dinner. I was instructed to meet him that evening in a parking lot, wearing formal attire for our dinner date. From there, he picked me up and took me to a conference room on the Army base, where his coworkers served as our valet, host, and servers for the evening. We had a five course meal and of course it was candle-lit. From that point on, James and I began seeing each other quite frequently, and spending as much time as we could with his daughter, Amber. It was the beginning of something beautiful. Early in our relationship, James received orders that he would be getting stationed at Fort Bragg Army Base in North Carolina the following summer. We soon decided that I would go with him. August of 2022 James and I drove to Fayetteville, North Carolina where he began working as a military instructor and I began my career as a dental hygienist. We rented a house in Fayetteville for a year, before buying a house in the small town of Raeford in the summer of 2022. James proposed in February 2023. He coordinated with my dental office team to set up the surprise and even flew my parents in to witness the event. At the end of my work shift on a Friday evening, my manager pulled me into her office. Unbeknownst to me, James was already in the building and getting people in their positions. After a few moments, my manager led me out of her office and into a hallway. Songs from Michael Buble and Tyler Hubbard began to play. To my surprise, my coworkers lined the hallway, each with pictures of James and I, with a short story of our relationship. As I made my way to the end of the hall and behind the last door, James was waiting in the middle of a rose petal heart, where he asked me to marry him. In the past three years we have known each other, we have created our own family with the two of us, Amber, and two dogs! On June 30th, 2023, James and I went down to the court house in Raeford, NC and became legally married with Amber, James' father, and stepmother as our witnesses. We did this knowing that we would later have a ceremony where we could celebrate with all of our friends and family!