We're getting married!

Laura and James met through a mutual friend in 2009 after they both moved to Denver, Colorado. Laura worked with AmeriCorps where she made less than minimum wage, volunteered with various non profits, used public transportation and loved meeting new people in a new city. James moved into a new high rise with his friend from tech school, had a car, worked in the oil field industry and needed a group of friends. James was quickly adopted into Laura's friend circle and they spent a lot of time together as friends enjoying happy hours at Park Tavern, enjoying the Colorado sunshine in Cheesman Park, and sampling local beers and Mexican food throughout Denver. After 6 months of friendship, Laura caught some feelings and noticed that she began to get really excited and nervous whenever James was planning to join game night or drinks after work. In late April of 2009, James and Laura unexpectedly spent an entire day together, a day that soon became known as the marathon date. Within a few days they were dating, and here we are TWELVE years later.

On Valentines Day of 2020, James surprised Laura with a secret weekend getaway scheduled for March 6-7. Laura did not know the location until they were half way to their destination, Plymouth, NH (Laura's college town). Laura was so excited to spend the weekend in a town and area she loved and to show James why she loved it so much. They stayed in a perfect, small, quaint, New England house self-named the "Doll House". The cozy house sat on a familiar street, and was number 37 (!) a sure sign of good luck. They explored the small downtown area, quiet due to Spring Break at the college. and Laura tried to share all her memories of the different streets and houses that were such a big part of her college experience. The next morning they decided to do a small, familiar hike that was one of Laura's favorites, Rattlesnake Mountain, overlooking the squam lakes. At the top of the mountain, James was adamant about setting up his 'new tripod' with his phone, which fell multiple times due to wind, however it caught a very special moment when James got down on one knee. Then it fell again, but James continued with his proposal and we celebrated with champagne and a wonderful view. He told Laura all about his 24 hour journey to Iowa where he picked up his grandmothers ring and brought it safely back to Massachusetts just weeks before.