We met a Shorty's at the end of the fall semester visiting a mutual friend that was bartending. We both drank Utica Clubs and talked about our shared love for sweet potato sushi and dogs. We kept in touch over winter break and quickly became an item over the spring semester. The rest is history.

Planning a proposal is stressful business. If you've ever planned one, or known that one was imminent, you know what I'm talking about. First, picking the ring: cut, carat, clarity, style? It's a lot of choices, especially knowing that it could be a very expensive mistake, should you get it wrong. Thankfully, we have both been guided by some truly great friends, Michelle (who I had do some covert research), Cec (who managed to get Julia's nails done before the big day), and Chris and Amanda (who have been allowing us to tag along on their family vacations for years). When I had questions about diamond shopping, I asked Chris, so it only made sense for me to pop the question when we were on a trip to South Carolina with Chris, Amanda, and their wonderful daughters. So I had the ring, and I knew that I couldn't hold onto it for very long before my impatience got the better of me. On our third night in South Carolina we went to a delicious dinner, followed by a walk along the pier. I had stashed the ring in Amanda's purse (knowing that it would be obvious if it was in my pocket), and at my signal Amanda dropped the box in my hand behind Julia's back. I had this whole beautiful speech planned, about how Julia has been my North Star for more than five years, steady, constant, always there for me to guide me home...but if you know Julia well, you know that she genuinely hates being the center of attention. About five seconds into my planned speech, she let out an awkward giggle, tears in the corner of her eyes, and pulled me up from my bended knee in mid-sentence. I asked her, "Does that mean, yes?" and she nodded and the rest of the evening was a whirlwind of celebration and happiness.