"When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." - Harry Burns

I was at the end of a rocky relationship with Bumble, a dating app. After a few uninspiring dates, I told my best friend, Kelli, that I was ready to live out the rest of my days as a cat mom. Ready to delete the whole thing, I was erasing the conversations I had had with potential suitors. Delete, delete, delete....wait a minute - those eyes, that smile.... ok I have to give this guy a chance. We chatted a bit about painting, and rather than dragging out a virtual talk I suggested we meet. We first met at a wine bar, and I knew that there was something different about him right away. I felt a care and interest for him that I wasn’t familiar with. The date kept jumping to new locations as the night progressed and we didn’t want it to end! We ended up at the White Oak Music Hall for a concert by Beatallica (yes, a Beatles and Metallica tribute band) and the Okilydokilies (Ned Flanders tribute band). I didn’t care that it was the strangest line up because I just wanted to spend more time with Jason! I instantly felt not only at ease, but like I was with an extraordinary person who made me feel extraordinary in return. The next day I could not stop smiling and I knew this was it. We were inseparable for the next week and it was official - we would never part.

Lauren and I met on a blind date. The moment I saw her, my first thought was "Wow, she is way out of my league." But I decided to give it my best shot. She was wearing a light blue dress and I was coincidently wearing a similarly hued shirt. The first words she spoke to me were "We match!" I didn't realize at the time, but those two words would prove to be so significant and so true. We spent the next couple of hours drinking South-African wine and chatting over a plate of meatballs. We talked about art, music, our families, our careers, her cat, and everything that we're passionate about. We then decided to go to Presidio. We sat outside and let our conversation, and our connection to one another, evolve faster than either of us expected. I remember a moment when her demeanor turned very serious as she told me that she definitely wants to see me again. I felt a rush like no other and I knew we had something very unique and special. It was at this same exact location, 11 months later, where I asked her to be my wife. It seemed like neither of us wanted the night to end. We both felt so comfortable with each other it was like magic. We have been inseparable ever since and have fallen more in love every day.

I think I have laughed more this year with Jason than I ever have in my entire life. He is constantly surprising me, challenging me, and sweeping me off of my feet. I cannot pinpoint the moment he became my best friend. It was so natural -- we immediately challenged the dating "status quo", we found an easy and open honesty, and we dared to trust and love each other completely. We have already taken so many trips together, and each time we visit a new place, I love seeing it not only with my eyes, but with his. Jason's joie de vivre is infectious. I also love the serious and more sensitive moments. I love how complex he is, and I am so excited to share a lifetime with him. I know Jason would do anything for me -- I will do everything in my power to do just the same for him.

When you fall in love it’s like everything changes. You feel like a new person with a new purpose. Everyone imagines what falling in love will be like before they actually do. But I had never imagined that the person I would fall in love with would be someone so incredible, so stunningly beautiful, so compassionate, so strong, and so talented. Lauren is astronomically better than anything I was even capable of imagining before I had met her. She is so caring and she loves me in the most exactly perfect way. I am the luckiest person in the world.