howdy y'all

Who knew you'd get a recipe for love by mixing a football (i.e. soccer)–obsessed Londoner with an American football–loving Texan? Somehow, it turned out to be the perfect combo. We met the old-fashioned way—on a dating app called Hinge (cue the audible gasp from the Boomers). The first couple of dates went well, but what really sealed the deal was our third date at a bowling alley, where we discovered we both have a slightly unhealthy level of competitiveness. Erin walked away with a 2–1 victory that night, and we’ve been keeping score ever since. When we’re not turning everything into a competition, we both love to travel. Ryan prefers the cold—usually skiing down a mountain somewhere (no surprise, that’s where he proposed). Erin, on the other hand, is all about the heat and a beach—probably because she somehow never gets sunburned. Our most recent big trip was a month-long adventure through Bali and Vietnam in spring 2024. It was incredible: we went surfing, swam with manta rays, rode ATVs through the jungle, and ate the best noodle dishes of our lives. We also like to stay active, whether it’s hiking, golfing, or hitting the gym. Sports have always been a big part of our lives—hence the competitive streak. Fun fact: we both grew up doing gymnastics, so maybe don’t challenge us to a handstand contest... unless you're ready to lose. These days, we're loving life in Clapham with our little bundle of joy. Obviously, we’re talking about our cat, Bear. We love hanging out on the Common on a sunny day, and we’re currently trying to turn Bear into a pub cat. TBD on whether that’s going to be a success. Check out the Gallery page for some of our favorite moments!

Ryan's POV: I’d been planning this proposal for months—everything was locked in. My genius idea? Pop the question mid-ski trip: lunch on the mountain, proposal after, fancy dinner that night to celebrate. Flawless plan, obviously. Erin had snowboarding lessons booked for the first few days, so I figured it would be the ideal time to scout areas to propose. We get there, and bam—the weather’s amazing. Sunshine everywhere. I’m thinking, “This is it. Perfect proposal weather.” Erin starts her lessons, but her back’s being a little diva and causing her a ton of pain, so come the afternoons we had to take things slow. That meant less bombing down and more stop and start, I'm in pain vibes. Meanwhile, I’m out there scouting potential proposal spots, trying to find the perfect place, all while nervously clutching the ring in my ski jacket because, like, I wasn’t about to leave it in the hotel room. Eventually, I found the spot: right next to a mountaintop restaurant with incredible views. Fast forward to proposal day, the weather decides to do a complete 180. Total Whiteout. I’m committed. we grab lunch, have a nice meal, and then leave. I’m trying to get Erin to walk to the side of the restaurant where I think the view will be, even though it’s still so cloudy you couldn’t see two feet in front of you. She’s trailing behind, probably wondering why I’m so obsessed with the "view" when all we can see is fog. Finally, she’s had enough, stops to do up her shoes, and as she looks up, bam—there I am, down on one knee. She looks confused for a second (fair), then says yes! We were officially engaged! We celebrated with some drinks at Bar 360 and capped the day with a delicious dinner in town. It wasn’t exactly how I imagined it, but hey, it worked out in the end. Erin's POV: It was 2023 and I had been thinking Ryan might pop the question at some point that year. We had made it to December with no ring so I was getting suspicious in the lead up to the trip. Well, as luck would have it, I injure my back snowboarding on the very first day of the trip, but because I'm stubborn to a fault I refuse to let a back injury ruin my vacation, so I march on. The downside (other than of course potentially having fractured my tailbone) is that I was in so much pain I had completely forgotten about a potential incoming proposal. A few days later, we were having lunch at the top of the mountain during a full-on snowstorm. We go to leave the restaurant – I head towards where we left our snowboarding/ski gear and I notice Ryan heading the opposite direction, towards the edge of the mountain. He calls to me, “let’s go check out the view”. I’m thinking, has this man lost his damn mind, what “view”?! I literally couldn’t see 10 feet in front of me due to the snowfall. I very reluctantly and slowly follow behind him, but I’m in no hurry. Eventually, I give up and leave him to his own devices, figuring I’ll use the time to lace up my boots and get ready to head down the mountain. I’m completely in my own world—so you can imagine my shock when I finally look up and see Ryan in front of me, down on one knee (god knows how long he’d been there). In the middle of a snowstorm. On a mountain. Somehow, it was still perfect. And the rest is history.