Our story began at Dish Restaurant in downtown Hartford on a chilly Friday night in early October. Doug and a couple of co-worker friends decided to stop in for one last drink (or two) after coming from a "get out of work early" fundraising event for the local United Way. As fate would have it, Julie and two of her friends were out for a night on the town as well and decided to swing by Dish. After striking up a conversation with one of Doug's co-workers (thanks, Tim!), Julie discovered they worked closely with her best friend (and future maid of honor), Ana, which helped convince Julie that Doug was safe to keep talking to :). Our first date was 2 days later!

We got engaged in Stowe, VT on vacation back in September, 2019. Our vacation week started in NH, camping with Julie's brother and (now) sister-in-law. For 2 days, Doug brought his backpack in and out of the tent, into restaurants and everywhere in between - to Julie's frustration ("leave your laptop at home!") but little did she know he was protecting the ring! After camping we ventured to VT to stay at a now favorite B&B, the Grunberg House. We spent the next days hiking, biking and visiting local breweries. After a day of biking, we went on one last hike to a waterfall where Doug popped the question! Luckily for our story we avoided any sprained ankles or injuries during the treacherous downhill hike!