We're so excited to celebrate with you!

Maria and Matt met the first day of their sophomore year at the University of Maryland. Matt moved in with his friend Connor, who invited over some of his friends from freshman year. It turns out that Maria was one of those friends. After getting to know each other, they started dating about a year later, and have been happily together for the 7+ years since. They moved in to their home in Columbia, MD in August 2020 and adopted their dog Hobbes in January 2021.

While Maria wasn't expecting a proposal until far after graduating from her Master's program, behind the scenes Matt was planning otherwise. He asked her dad for his blessing in January 2021, and started outlining his next steps from there. He bought the ring and planned what seemed like an ordinary trip in April 2021 to go horseback riding in West Virginia with Maria, Maria's sister Isa, and Isa's boyfriend Riley. He took care of all the details, including booking the trail ride. When they got to the ranch on Saturday morning, they started out on the trail with a bigger group, but then a guide pulled the four of them to another trail. Maria was still unsuspecting. When they got to a clearing, the guide motioned for them all to dismount and take a break. Matt asked Maria to take a picture with him, and if there was any specific angle she liked. Maria, still unsuspecting, said that anywhere would work. Matt decided that this was the time to propose, and got down on one knee.