We’re tying the knot!

August 2008 - First day of highschool, 7th period AP bio. Matthew sat right next to me. I didnt think much of ANYONE that first day, but I do remember when he first made impact. He stood up for me. He always made sure when anyone was talking to me, they were doing so respectfully. Three years later he was my prom date, and that night was one of my favorite nights to date. Two years later would be when we finally hit our stride and I can honestly say it’s been the most fulfilling, peaceful, and amazing journeys of my life.

So let me set the scene for you. First day of high school, honors biology, last class of the day. The teacher starts telling us to find our assigned seats and that they should be in alphabetical order. I walk to the first row thinking my name would be there, and there she was. First thing I saw was the shirt, blue with flowers, and the jeans (a bold choice blue on blue but she pulled it off). The new girl from acushnet. Instant crush. As the year went on I got to know her in little tiny moments and even got lucky enought to get paired with her for a project (and doubly lucky to do the entire thing for her). I'll always be thankful that B is close to D in the alphabet.

I always knew Dee was the one I wanted to marry, it just had to be the “right time”. I kept telling myself that and finally in the fall of 2018 I decided it was time. I gathered all the money I could find between the couch cushions, and with a little input from her best friend Sarah I found the perfect ring. Fast forward to June and we're off to her family's vacation home in North Myrtle Beach, our favorite vacation spot. We went with her dad, his girlfriend, and a few of their friends. It was planned for everyone to leave on the Friday which would leave the last day all to us. The week we were down there was absolutely amazing, perfect weather, margaritas on the beach, couldn't have asked for more. On Friday before everyone left I got lucky and found Ricky all by himself on the couch and got my chance to ask for his blessing. I remember being so nervous to ask him but he brushed away my nerves when he said of course. The next day came and Dee woke up and was INSTANTLY in a bummer mood since it was our last day. I was praying all week for the weather to be nice and OF COURSE the one day that's crappy had to be this one. We went upstairs and had breakfast. I had a super gross leftover beer to try and calm down my nerves because my hands were literally shaking I was so nervous. I set her up with a bath and bath bomb and I packed everything up. After she got out, I convinced her to go to the beach one last time before leaving. As we were sitting in the tide with the waves hitting our bums, the sun finally came out. This is it I told myself.. I looked over and told her how amazing this week with her had been, how every time we come down to Myrtle we make such great memories, and before leaving I wanted to make one more. I knelt down in front of her and finally asked the question. Then out of left field this lady starts screaming “OHMYGOD HES PROPOSING!” Dee started tearing up, said the magic word, and the the rest is history.

One of my favorite places in the world has always been Myrtle Beach. My family has owned a water-front property down there since I can remember. The first time I brought Matthew to Myrtle was 2015. I had never in my life seen someone as happy as Matthew was down there. He reveled in the heat, appreciated the rainstorms, and slurped down his very first (and second and third) daiquiri. In 2019 we were planning on going down for 9 days. The week was amazing like any other time. We beached, we went wine tasting, we perfected our summer playlist, and we never wanted to leave. We knew the whole time we were down there we would have the last day to ourselves. But here’s the thing about last days - I hate them. This day was no different, you could say. Matthew heated up my breakfast, poured me a glass of white wine (9 AM) and put a bathbomb into the soaker tub. I didnt even notice that he was shaking. I was starting to feel better when he suggested we go to the beach after the storm clouds pass. We were in normal clothes because all we wanted was to dip our feet in, grab some seashells, maybe shed a tear or two (always on my part), and leave. I was feeling so upset and dreading work in less than two days and I was SULKING. We put our beach chairs on the shore line and just sat in semi silence. I honestly forget how it all started but I do remember him saying, “we have made so many amazing memories down here and now I wanna make one more.”