I like to say our love story began in Bhutan. While visiting a famed Bhutanese fertility temple, I was supposed to pray for a baby, but instead I prayed for a husband. I remember making that deliberate choice as several monks watched the odd redhead traveler. Eleven days later, I met Anibal online. I still keep the monk-blessed prayer flags from that trip hanging on my porch as a reminder of the solo journey that felt like my last single hurrah—one I was meant to take before meeting him. Around my Bhutan trip, I had pressed pause on online dating - unintentionally leaving Anibal waiting to hear from me. I wanted to fully soak in the experience without attaching those memories to someone temporary. But a week after I got home, I was watching tv one night and decided to play a little game on Bumble. I asked more than a dozen men who had already “swiped right” on me what good thing had happened in their day. Then I ranked their answers and shared the results on Instagram for my friends’ entertainment. Little did I know, the only man who earned a perfect 10/10 in my little game would one day become my husband. My friends quickly nicknamed him “PTA Dad” because the first thing he talked about in his message was parenting. After a few facetime dates, we met in person, and it instantly felt like we had known each other forever. On that very first date, I remember thinking, "I could marry this man". I tried to temper my excitement (since I’m known to get carried away), but I remember looking across the table and thinking, "oh my gosh oh my gosh where the heck have you been?" From the beginning, we were thoughtful and intentional about getting to know each other. Especially since he's a package deal. With intentionality in mind, exactly one month after meeting, over a hot dog picnic on the National Mall, I asked him to be my boyfriend. I couldn’t bear the thought of him talking to anyone else—I knew we had to give this a real chance. The years that followed were filled with work, growth, and joy as we blended our families and cultures and built a life together. On August 3, 2025, in a beautiful garden, Anibal officially asked me to be his wife while his son looked on. We giggled our way through the proposal, and after a small photoshoot, we celebrated with cake pops—another milestone in our family’s story. I’m endlessly grateful for my sojourn to Bhutan, for the years I spent on my own, and for every twist and turn that eventually brought me to Anibal. Because when this kind, gentle, patient, and good-hearted man showed up, I finally saw what true partnership looks like. Love was truly worth the wait. One day early on in dating, I asked him how he would describe our relationship, he said simply: intimate friendship. And that’s exactly what it is. And here we are—intimate friends, saying yes to forever, and knowing without a doubt that the best is yet to come. Thank you to Bumble and Bhutan! Let's get married!

They say, “Love can be found anywhere, if you have the intent to see it.” I was definitely looking—but I never imagined I’d find it just fourteen miles from home, through that little jack-in-the-box we call an iPhone. From the first time I saw Jessica in that little jack in the box, her personality jumped through—especially that amazing smile—and instantly grabbed more than just my attention. I knew then that my search had come to an end. But like any great love story, ours came with a few twists of fate and perfect timing. After swiping right, I waited… and waited. No response. I assumed she had swiped left. I remember feeling genuinely disappointed—I still can’t believe I almost missed out on sharing late nights watching Ted Lasso over a glass of Pinot Noir with a beautiful tall redhead from Tampa, and her two cats (Jessica, can you remind me why the cats aren’t allowed at the wedding?) But then—two weeks later—fate stepped in. Or maybe it’s true that a wise Buddha from Bhutan was listening to our hopes and prayers. Whatever it was, it gave us the nudge we needed to become the loving pair we were always meant to be. From our first exchanges on the dating app, to late-night FaceTime calls (shoutout to matchmaker Maria for her guidance!), to our first in-person date—what began as a spark of loving curiosity quickly grew into something much deeper. Through mutual effort, honesty, laughter, and patience, we discovered that we were both looking for the same thing: a committed, fulfilling, and lasting partnership. Since that first date, we’ve blended our families, gone on adventures, celebrated milestones, rocked matching bright red Santa button-up shirts at Christmas (her idea, of course!), explored the great outdoors camping in West Virginia, and created our own unique traditions. And we’ve been laughing together along the way. Through every high and low, we’ve grown stronger—hand in hand, always choosing one another. Now, two incredible years later, there’s no better way to celebrate our journey than with all of you—our friends and family—by our side as we officially begin this next chapter. Jessica, I love you deeply. I can’t wait to turn our beautiful relationship into an even more beautiful life together. Here’s to all the years—and all the glasses of wine—to come. Again, I love you, let’s get married!