We're getting married!

Hinge got the best of us. We started chatting on a very gloomy and rainy Thursday morning, bored from our rigorous and monotonous routines. Believe it or not, Mary made the first move by liking one of Emmett's prompt responses. The exact prompt was "I'll introduce you to my family if..." His response: "You're smart". ;) Within minutes of liking Emmett's answer, Emmett chatted Mary saying "Hi". Now...Mary was not 100% impressed by this response, but decided to give Emmett a chance. Unbeknownst to Mary, conversation flowed perfectly. Replies and responses were paragraphs long and, before we knew it, we had moved on to exchanging phone numbers and texting just hours after meeting each other on the app.

The year 2020 brought a lot of "unprecedented" events - one being the year of virtual hangouts. So, we had a virtual Facetime date at 9 pm on a Monday evening!

The virtual date must have went pretty well! Some might say we are absolutely crazy, silly, or a little psycho, but after knowing each other for a short week and a half, and only a few days after our virtual FaceTime call, we decided to go on our REAL first date... in-person. AND since all restaurants were closed in Chicago, Emmett had a wacky (or brilliant) idea to road trip to Bristol, Wisconsin together, where we enjoyed a fancy steak and lobster dinner at a quaint steakhouse.

It wasn't long after our first few months of dating that we both knew this was it. We did so much together and loved every second of it. From spending time with family and friends, celebrating life events together, going to church, brunch and the occasional shooting range, to starting to talk about baby names (much of the list was vetoed by Emmett), planning a future together and preparing for a lifetime of all God has to offer us. Then came April 10, 2021. This day is hard for Mary, as it is her late Dad's birthday. Emmett always knows how to make her day better, but she had no idea he could make it THAT much better and lift her spirits beyond what she could have ever imagined. They went on a fancy date at Tavern on Rush and then Emmett mentioned how he wanted to stop by St. John Cantius to talk to the priest about "something". Mary thought nothing of it because she knew he was always in contact/guidance with one of the priests. Emmett pulled up to the church and we started walking up the steps. Mary noticed there were candles and rose petals and asked Emmett, "Oh is today a holy day of obligation or something? What's with the candles?" (oblivious). Then, more rose petals at the top of the steps. This time, in a shape of a heart. He got down on one knee and asked Mary to marry him. Her heart was filled with the most pure of joys and still is. We are beyond ecstatic to spend eternity together, living and growing in love for each other. Edward Karda was indeed looking down on us that day, and I know he gave the ultimate stamp of approval. Happy birthday Dad! I (we) miss you!