"I could hold you in my arms... I could hold you forever..." - Ray LaMontagne

Joe and Leanne both unexpectedly started working at Embrace home loans in 2016 after some pretty large life events/milestones. Joe began working in the IS Department as a level 1 Application Developer while Leanne started working in the Compliance Department. If you have any knowledge of the Mortgage Industry, you would know that these two teams work together quite frequently to assess and implement changes within the system so you would think that we met that year, hit it off, and ta-da... here we are getting Married! Not so simple... You see Joe didn't know Leanne as anything more than the loud girl in Compliance that one time needed an unnecessary demo of a very small change, and Leanne only knew Joe as the quiet/weird Developer kid that she would see in the lunch room or hallway (picture Todd from wedding crashers...IYKYK...) Our paths wouldn't really cross until 2018 when Leanne switched departments and took on a new position as a Business Analyst which was housed within the IS Department. Now being in the same department, Leanne would frequently talk to Joe about day to day changes, new ideas, and would often visit him and his teammates that she had now considered new friends. So much so that they begin finishing each day by waiting for each other to finish up their work day and walk out to their cars together. Now mind you, this was still a group event of decompressing and chatting on the 3 minute walk out of the building to the parking lot...

The holidays quickly approached and as Leanne does... she baked goodies for everyone in our department but felt really bad that Joe couldn't enjoy them due to his severe laundry list of food allergies. So what did she do? She contacted one of his teammates, got a list of his allergies, and went to work figuring our a way to make him something he would truly love and yet feel safe to eat. This is where the famous "Love Muffins" were born (as many family and friends call them). A simple recipe for Lemon Blueberry Muffins, made just so, in order to not use anything that might kill her coworker. At this point Leanne was just being friendly to ensure everyone felt included. She also went into the holiday knowing very well that Joe may not eat them at all based on not knowing her or trusting her enough to do so, and that was ok. However... That day, Joe decided to take a chance and trust her, not only by eating something made by a coworker later on or when home, but by eating MULTIPLE of them in office and thanking her personally. This moment truly changed the relationship that we had. We had gone from co-workers and acquaintances to actual friends. Chatting daily, getting to know each other and feeling more and more comfortable together.

One day soon after the holiday, Leanne came into work and was told that Joe would be taking a full week off for vacation. Making a joke as usual, Leanne said to Joe, "What am I going to do without you for a whole week!?!?!". To which a co-worker replied "Just text him while he's out!". To which Leanne came back with a quick witted remark of "Well if Joe would man up and give me his number already, maybe I could..." This was the sentence that changed everything... Once again, Leanne was only making a joke, and Joe was completely oblivious to the fact that Leanne was starting to really like him as friend and as a person. By the time that Leanne got back to her desk, Joe had sent her his phone number as well as had begun texting her in their first real non work conversation. Needless to say, the texting never stopped over that week long vacation Joe had. We learned more about each other every day and Leanne really started to fall for the quiet/weird kid in development. Oh and did we mention the Haircut?!?!?! Now if you knew Joe back before 2019 you would know that he had long hair... NOT typically Leanne's type. but she was willing to put that aside since she was beginning to crush on him. Then it all changed... Joe came in that Monday after his week long vacation with a fresh new haircut (completely unprompted by Leanne, I might add...). This completely changed everything. Leanne's interest went from being a small middle school crush to a head-over-heels infatuation within an instant. Leanne still to this day mentions how handsome he is with this new haircut! Not to mention the Beard! and that was when Leanne decided to make a move...

Leanne had asked Joe to come out with some friends for a drink after work, knowing full well that she was interested in Joe and wanting him to feel the same. After meeting out for a few drinks and talking all night long while saddled up at the bar, it all finally clicked with Joe and he made his move. Nothing says romance more than talking, laughing, sneaky leg touches and ending with our first kiss outside of the Tavern in a parking spot on Broadway! From that moment on, it has been a whirlwind of Life, Laughter, and most of all Love!