Mark and Kelly met in the summer of 2016 when they both started their journey through the physician assistant program at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia. During this time, most of their lives were dominated by school. Consequently, most of their conversations were centered around their studies-- riveting conversations (sarcasm) about the various neural tracts of the central nervous system, learning about and identifying numerous similar-looking dermatologic disorders on 200+ page power point presentations, and of course swimming through the seemingly endless workload. While these conversations do seem very romantic, their friendship largely grew out of mutual love for three things: food, hiking, and football. When their heads were not buried in books, they spent their weekends going to their favorite hiking trails in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, eating out at some of the yummy local restaurants, and of course their Sundays were dedicated to football (and enjoying tasty game day snacks). Eventually, they began spending more and more time with one another; most evenings during the week studying in the same study group, then hanging out during the weekend when precious spare time allowed. Unknown to them, this "study buddy" relationship was beginning to blossom into something much bigger...

It was the end of their first semester of PA school, and Mark and Kelly were at a party one of their classmates were hosting. It was a crystal-clear crisp December night and the stars were out in full force. They shared how much they both loved to look out at the stars on night like this one. Being the end of the semester and having nothing to do the next morning for the first time in many months, Mark had the great idea to drive out on a country road several miles outside of Winchester with temperatures below freezing to look at the stars without light pollution. Sitting on the top of Mark's car with a blanket wrapped around them, they watched as the stars seemed to multiply by the minute and the occasional shooting star skirted across the sky. Eventually this night, December 10th, turned out to be the night they had their first kiss and very soon after Mark asked Kelly out on their first date. The first official date was at the National Zoo in D.C. during the Zoo Lights festival which is held every year around the holiday season. After walking through the light show in the zoo, they headed to the Ellipse in downtown D.C to see the National Christmas Tree in front of the White House. What is ironic about both of these stories is that Kelly absolutely hates the cold. The fact that Mark was able to get a second date after overlooking this now very well known fact about her speaks to how patient Kelly can be.

Fast forwarding to December 2020, the final month of a year that was unlike any other. For Mark and Kelly, December 2020 marked several major milestones. It was exactly two years since they had graduated from PA school and now both working as full time Family Medicine physician assistants in Northern Virginia. They had been living together in a two-bedroom apartment in Fairfax, Virginia. During that time together they saw the Washington Capitals win their first Stanley Cup, the Virginia Cavaliers win their first Men's NCAA Basketball National Championship, and the Washington Nationals win their first World Series. Mark and Kelly capped off the year with another major "first" of their own: buying a townhouse together in Chantilly, Virginia. Soon after closing on their new home, they went on a weekend getaway trip to celebrate their homeowner status and 4 year anniversary. On December 10th they went to Filomena in Georgetown for dinner, then enjoyed a walk to the National Christmas Tree, soaking in the great memories of the last four years in the same spot where it all started. The following morning, they drove to central Virginia and stayed in a small cabin on the outskirts of Charlottesville (a place near and dear to Kelly's heart as a UVA alum). That night, Mark set up a campfire just before sundown and there they sat under the darkening sky. One by one the stars began to appear overhead and soon the sky was filled with twinkling lights, a very similar evening to that night 4 years ago when their relationship started. Then out of Mark's pocket came another twinkling light illuminated by the warm flowing fire. He bent down on one knee and said the words he had been saying over and over in his head for the past year: Kelly, will you marry me? Wiping away tears of joy, Kelly nodded her head and responded with a single sweet word: YES