We're Getting Married!

How it began: Spring/Summer 2020: Abbi was hard at work finishing her PharmD degree in Missoula, Montana and was solely focused on getting a residency. Nate was living in Salt Lake City and was busy starting his career in renewable energy, all the while making a great group of friends. Little did he know that some of those folks were Abbi’s best friends growing up. As fate would have it, Abbi landed a residency at a hospital in Salt Lake and was on her way back to Utah for a while. Introduced by their mutual friends, Abbi and Nate quickly became close. Between long work days for both of them, they found time to explore ski runs across the Wasatch with Nate doing his best to keep up. When the snow was gone, they would mountain bike in Park City and Moab and it was Abbi's turn to try to keep up. But one year of 80-hour weeks in residency wasn’t enough for Abbi. She applied for a second year of residency to specialize in critical care which took her to Denver for a year. Nate was also climbing the ladder at his company so they decided to do a year of distance. Abbi and Nate took turns flying back and forth to see each other, sometimes meeting in the middle for a weekend of camping. At the end of all that work, Abbi was rewarded with her dream job in the emergency department at the Bozeman hospital, bringing her back to Montana. Now it was just up to Nate to follow… Moving North: There was no question for Nate, he and Abbi were thrilled to start exploring a new place together. Plus, following Abbi meant he wouldn’t just be another East Coast transplant moving to Bozeman because they saw Yellowstone (he still claims that he hasn’t seen it). They spent their first year exploring new mountain ranges, learning that the biking in Montana is all straight uphill, and seasoning their skis with a few rocks off the ridge at Bridger Bowl. Their friend group grew quickly into a great community. They hosted Taco Wednesday’s, which was like Taco Tuesday except it happened on Wednesday’s and they normally served pasta, chili, or really anything but tacos; don’t ask. The Proposal: Abbi had booked a vacation for the two of them to go to Belize in May of 2024. Little did she know she was planning her own engagement trip. Nate was working with a local jeweler to make the ring. It was ready the day before they left, leaving Nate to smuggle the most expensive thing he’s ever seen across multiple borders to get into Belize. A bag search at the Belize City airport almost proved fatal to the surprise of the engagement, but much like James Bond, Nate was cool as a cucumber and didn’t bat an eye. Now he just had to plan where and when to ask the question. After 5 days on vacation, at which point Abbi had fully given up hope of a proposal happening on this trip, Nate knew his plan. He went into town to buy a rose, and asked the bartender at the villa they were staying at if he would be able to take a picture of the proposal. Instead, he got three Belizeans who enthusiastically volunteered and went wild when she said yes. They even brought over some celebratory Pina Coladas. Nate walked over to the beach to meet Abbi with a procession of four people, three cameras, two Pina Coladas, one rose and one ring. It’s fair to say that Abbi was confused at first, and then completely caught off guard. The rest is history, as they say. Life now: Abbi and Nate bought a house that year, making Bozeman their home in a more permanent way. The two rolled up their sleeves and put in some sweat equity to make it their own. The ‘family’ also expanded from the two of them and their cat Bee, adding a cuddly and rambunctious puppy named Goose. Abbi and Nate both continue to love living in Bozeman, enjoying their jobs, deepening their relationships with friends new and old, and exploring all that life has to offer together.