I had just finished my first year of teaching at Winegard Elementary and I decided to attend our school's end-of-the-year celebration. I only planned to spend about 30 minutes at the celebration, but once I arrived, I started talking to Jermaine, a 3rd grade teacher. A half hour quickly turned into a couple of hours. And by the end of the event, we decided to continue the night dancing at Universal City Walk. We talked about our college experiences at the University of Florida and I shared all of the places I wanted to explore around Orlando. A few nights later, he invited me to dinner and throughout the summer, he showed me around Orlando. We quickly became best friends and he made my first summer in Orlando one I will never forget.

Every Saturday, Jermaine and I go to the Winter Park Farmers Market and this weekend was no different. That morning, we got to the Farmer's Market a little later than usual because I decided to do some cleaning and laundry. Unbeknownst to me, my parents had been in Winter Park since 9 AM waiting to surprise me after the proposal. Once we got to the Farmer's Market, we got a cup of Kombucha (always our first stop) and Jermaine said he needed to go back to the car to get a surprise that he had bought me. I didn't think much of this since the weekend before was my birthday and he is always surprising me. He got the shopping bag out of the car and we headed down Park Avenue. He guided me to the Central Park Rose Garden. We had been to this garden before and I always admired the beautiful roses and water fountain in the center. There he got down on one knee and asked me to be a Lamar. I was so overjoyed! He then signaled for my parents to come out from behind the trees. My parents mean the world to me, so it was extra special that they drove early that morning to support Jermaine and I as we embark on the greatest adventure: marriage. We then went across the street to The Wine Room to celebrate. We're so excited to start this next chapter in our lives with you. See you in Winter Park!