Let's set the scene. Carl was working in Deerfield and Sam had just graduated from Northwestern with her speech pathology degree. Sam was in Evanston packing up her apartment getting ready to move back home. Call it fate or luck, but Sam and Carl both "swiped right" on the dating app, Bumble. For those who are unfamiliar with the app, it uses location to populate the app with potential dates. Sam and Carl were messaging for a few weeks before meeting up for the first time since both of them were going to be out of town traveling. On July 15, 2017, Sam and Carl went on their first date at Fiammé, a pizza place, in Naperville, IL. The date went off without a hitch and the two were eager to meet up again. Date, after date, after date...they realized this was something special and decided to make it official. Since the summer of 2017, Sam and Carl have lived in the city, started new jobs, and eaten a lot of meals together. The two are always eager to try new restaurants and coffee shops. In August 2020, Carl and Sam moved in together in Elmhurst and shortly after adopted a nine-month-old golden retriever, Willow. Since then Sam and Carl have enjoyed being paw-rents and trying to live pandemic life to the fullest. Most recently, Sam and Carl moved to Glen Ellyn in the summer of 2021 and have been eagerly awaiting their big day on 7.16.22.

On February 26, 2021, Carl officially popped the question in downtown Elmhurst on a beautiful, sunny day. Carl's parents, siblings (Nathan & Christina), and significant others (Gemma), as well as Sam's dad, helped pull off the engagement and were able to celebrate at a local restaurant afterward. The two cannot wait for this next chapter in life. You could say it was love at first swipe.