A few days before I left to go to Costa Rica for a month to study abroad, I decided to go on Hinge (dating app) and saw that Ralph had liked one of my photos that day. I was drawn to the fact that he had daughter and seemed to be a good dad. I decided to give him a shot and we went on a date that next night. On the date, we had an amazing time getting to know each other through playing bar games, and we both found out that we have very competitive natures! Even though Ralph knew I was leaving for Costa Rica the very next day, to my surprise he never stopped being his kind, loving self. He texted me good morning messages every day that I was away and even helped me unclog a toilet (apparently you’re not supposed to flush toilet paper down in Costa Rica!) over the phone. Once I arrived back home, he continued to win me over by being my personal handyman, helping me take down my Christmas lights and hanging up curtains. He also consistently surprised me with flowers and love notes. In January 2019, he took me to a beautiful beach town (Southport, NC) and introduced me to his aunt and uncle. We then went to Wilmington Riverfront, where he asked me to officially be his girlfriend. Every day since then, he still hasn’t stopped pursuing me with his love and kindness and I could not be more excited to marry him.

After almost two years of dating, our love for one another grew more and more. Our daughters met and loved each other like real siblings. And argued like real ones too! We began to get more serious and I had a feeling a proposal was coming soon! On a Monday, Ralph told me to call out of work on Sunday because we were going to take a weekend for just us. I started freaking out and talked to my coworkers about every scenario possible for the weekend. Everyone encouraged me to get a pretty dress and my nails done just so I could be prepared! Once Friday afternoon came, Ralph and I started heading to an unknown location, at least for me! I tried so hard asking every question as to where we were going. Eventually we arrived at the coast. We were at Atlantic Beach at an oceanfront condo. We spent the night underneath the stars while listening to the waves crash. On Saturday December 5th, 2020, he took me to the aquarium and then to the Beaufort Hotel on the river. We were greeted by champagne and chocolate covered strawberries in the room. He told me to get dressed for our nice dinner that he had made a reservation at. Little did I know, our destination was not a restaurant; it was the beach with a clear view of the most beautiful sunset. You could see the moon rising as the sun was setting. As I watched in awe, Ralph dropped to one knee. I was filled with so much emotion and joy. We had come full circle from him first asking me to be his girlfriend at the beach, to him now proposing to me at the beach. I could not say “Yes!” fast enough behind my tears. We then went to our actual reservation where we spent the night celebrating our love for one another.