We met when Megan interviewed for her job at BDO USA, LLP. Megan ended up getting much more than a job! We went on to work together for almost three years there. It was far from love at first sight, though, as we barely knew each other for the first year we worked at the same company. It was only by chance that a year later we were assigned to the same summer client in Florida. John tried hard to not be on the job as he had just returned from several months working for BDO in the Cayman Islands and hoped to spend his summer in Michigan, but ended up on the client anyway. A few weekends of postponing trips home and a friendship was born. As the friendship grew, Megan tried to set John up with several of her friends, but strangely none of them worked out. Eventually John convinced Megan to go on a 'surprise' trip with him across the state that turned into a date with the Trans Siberian Orchestra - unbeknownst to Megan. This ended up being the first of many surprise trips. Soon an impromptu trip to New York City was arranged and Megan slowly - and probably reluctantly - began to see John as more than a friend. Travel has been a theme ever since. Throughout our many trips around the world together, Cuba stands out as one of our favorites. The culture, the people and the scenery are unlike anywhere else and the trip we took there together in 2014 allowed us to truly unplug and fall in love. Ups, downs and adventures have happened since then, and we were so fortunate to get married there with a small group of family and friends in December 2018 and now are able to celebrate with all of you!

We dated for a long time...a very long time. Early on, Megan said she felt two years was a reasonable amount of time. John countered suggesting five years. It ended up being the sum of the two. To say the heat was being turned up would be a bit of an understatement. After the majority of friends were married AND many had kids, things reached a boiling point. Luckily, John already was hard at work scheming the ultimate proposal. After John surprised Megan with a trip to England and Scotland early on in the relationship, the bar was set far too high. Several different ideas were considered, many that Megan is still unaware of today. Eventually, however, the perfect plan was hatched. Since we first really got to know each other while working together near Orlando, this would be the perfect location to do it. One of the first weekends we ever spent working together in Orlando we did what almost everyone in Orlando does and went to Disney World. Megan had also voiced many times her dream to go on an African safari. Those two things were put two together and the ultimate proposal was born! A VIP safari experience was booked at Animal Kingdom, complete with a private dinner on the savanna watching giraffes, rhinos and lions graze. The nerves were intense, but Megan's shock made it all worthwhile. Following dinner, we took a horse and carriage ride while watching fireworks through the resort we both stayed in as kids at the same time. That night we stayed at the same hotel we stayed in while working in Orlando nearly seven years earlier. It's crazy how much can change in such a short (or long) time, depending on who you ask.

Wedding #1 We were married in Havana, Cuba on December 20, 2018. With John's grandfather officiating and Megan's father delivering the message, we had a beautifully low-key day exploring the city together and then a wonderful evening celebrating that lasted until the morning! Mother Nature threatened to ruin the whole day with a massive storm (and not much went according to plan because of that), but luckily things came together to give us an unforgettable day! Wedding #2 We were legally married December 26, 2018, since we needed a legal ceremony in the U.S. to have the marriage recognized. We had a few days back in the states around Christmas before leaving on our honeymoon and we scheduled our courthouse wedding for the morning of the 26th with plans to catch our flight later that afternoon. (Being CPAs, we wanted to make sure we got married before year-end to take advantage of the tax rate!) However, John fell ill on Christmas night, so the morning of the 26th saw John in the ER. Luckily, Megan's mom's cousin, Sherri, is a pastor at a local church and agreed to perform our ceremony. And as if that wasn't enough, she agreed to meet us at the hospital to perform the ceremony since that was the only way we could make our flight! Thank goodness for Sherri and the ER doctors and nurses who got John back on his feet. With their help, we made our flight that afternoon with 5 minutes to spare! Here's to hoping this June ceremony goes off without incident!