Bret and I met through our mutual friends - the Tapanainens. Bret is friends with Nik from high school and was at the Tapanainen's house almost every Friday night. I grew up a few houses down from the Tapanainens. My family has been friends with the Tapanainens for many years. My sister, Kathryn, and I grew up with Nik and Val. Shockingly, Bret and I did not meet until we were in college, despite being in the same house on many occasions. We finally met at Val's high school graduation party. Bret was the "bad boy" who rode his motorcycle over to the party, so needless to say, he caught my eye. Although we felt an instant connection that summer, it wasn't until about 6 months later that we began to connect while watching the Mandalorian at the Tapanainens over winter break. One conversation lead to another, Spotify usernames were shared, a hockey game was attended, a ski trip was taken, and our bond continued to grow. Once we watched the extended editions of the Lord of the Rings movies together during winter break, we were sure that we were meant to be. We have been inseparable ever since. - Emma

The ring was delivered and from the wise words of Gandalf I kept it secret and safe from Emma. It was a Sunday morning when my plan began to unfold. We planned to do a nature walk and some grocery shopping ahead of the work week. The errand running was not romantic in hindsight, but it did help act as cover for what was really going to happen. The destination for our walk was the Hopedale Parklands. Hopedale is Emma’s hometown and the parklands was a common hiking spot for us early on in our relationship. While preparing to head out, I snuck the ring box into my pocket. It was very apparent that there was something resembling a ring box in my pocket, so I knew I had to cover that up. I was saved by Auroras treat pouch which kept what I was hiding in my pocket out of sight. We made it to the parklands and at this point I was feeling very confident. As we walked through the woods, this “confidence” was fading. I started to ask silly questions. Asking Emma if she ever “kayaked or swam in the pond.” Somehow these did not blow my cover. We made it to a small stone bridge deep in the woods. This is where it was going to happen. Unfortunately, a fellow dog owner was crossing the bridge as we got there. He stopped and we were stuck engaging in conversation. The whole time I was in my head telling him to “Hurry up and move along.” As he and his dog disappeared in the trees, Emma and I were left alone on the bridge. I turned and handed her Aurora’s leash, asking if she could walk her back to the car. While she was distracted by Aurora being cute, I got down on one knee and presented the ring. In my head I was planning on saying something romantic and powerful, but the emotions and nerves hit me all at once. I really don’t know how clear my “Emma, will you marry me?” came out, but if you are reading this, then I think we all know what she said! - Bret