Our first date was at an Italian restaurant in Washington, DC, the second operation to a twin restaurant located in Florence, Italy, where Jay has resided for over 20 years. So, how did we, living on opposite sides of the Atlantic, meet? On a dating website, I noticed he listed Italian as a second language. I studied Italian for two semesters after falling in love with the country, and Florence in particular, following two visits since the early 2000s. I must have “liked” his profile because very soon he messaged me: “Hey sexy.” *Eyeroll* One thing I consistently disliked was unimaginative openers. But his pictures were cute, so I responded, “Thanks, but I’m so much more than that.” I didn’t expect much to come from our exchange, but we chatted about our shared interests, details about my visits, and next thing you know I was sitting across from him in that restaurant in Capitol Hill. Our conversation was a mixture of English, Italian and Google Translate and we were treated so well by the staff there. We enjoyed a summer of dating and falling in love and by summer’s end, we knew we would be together forever. Our planned 10-20-17 wedding was postponed when we discovered Jay needed a K-1 Visa in order for us to get married. During our time apart we met in Canada and had a whirlwind tour of Toronto, Montreal, and Quebec during the holidays. I spent my birthday in Florence. We toured, shopped and ate too much at my sushi birthday dinner. I have to teach my baby how to survive “All You Can Eat.” In March, we took a tour of southern Spain, stopping in Malaga, Marbella, Seville, where we had an engagement photo shoot, and Ronda, where he gave me a beautiful ring! We’ll share our story in pictures on Facebook on our wedding day! 8.1.18! See a sampling under “Photos.” Nine long months passed as we suffered ups and downs and filed mountains of paperwork until his visa was finally approved! The delay is now over; we can finally enjoy being “due innamorati,” two in love!