It's the Okhovats Y'all

She swiped right and so did he! Not as romantic as meeting your future spouse at a grocery store in the canned bean aisle, BUT their choice was written in the stars. With Laura attending the University of Oregon in Eugene and Sebastian 45 miles north at Oregon State University, both of their "love" parameters had to be the same. She wanted a graying Beaver and he wouldn't mind a younger Duck. What makes this match even more serendipitous is that they both redownloaded the app THE SAME DAY after a hiatus (she was in a relationship and he didn't understand the whole pick-up line thing). Little did Sebastian know that Laura and her "flock" (Lindsey and Savannah, bridesmaids) were going HAM on the app the night before, when they ended their quest on Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome...then they proceeded to vino into the night. The next day, after a good pump at the gym, Sebastian logged into the app, reviewed Laura's profile, swiped right (Millennial version of a thumbs up), and success! They matched. Now back to that whole pick-up line thing. Inspired by the endorphins pulsing through his heart, he made the first move of introducing himself with: "You seem like a Pinot Gris kind of woman: light, flavorful, and worth every sip" Laura did NOT have any of that...yet after some back and forth banter, she eventually agreed to meet in person for The First Date!

Sebastian, wanting to impress Laura with his local Portland roots, scoured the internet for the most hipster area in the 503 with a good coffee shop. Woodlawn Coffee & Pastry. Neighborhood community garden down the street and backyard chickens round the corner. With the sun shining, they took their coffee and tea to go and started walking around the designated Hipster Zone. Conversations were centered around her recent trip to Las Vegas to celebrate her father's birthday and food (everyone knows that's all we ever talk about - we're working on it, ok?). Sensing that things were going well and learning that Laura had not been on a majority of Portland's bridges, Sebastian suggested they go on an adventure across as many bridges as possible before she had to head down to Eugene. (In hindsight, not the best idea Sebastian's ever had considering that he and Laura just met in person...1 hour before this suggestion. But we digress.). He drove and she navigated. The true test of any relationship was upon them so early in their budding romance: communication. They drove across 6 bridges and only got lost once. They have been working together ever since.

Sebastian and Laura went to Half Moon Bay just outside of San Francisco for Laura's birthday. They ate oysters, relaxed at the spa, and had a sunset dinner. Sebastian had suggested that they go to the beach and watch the sunset after dinner. Walking to the beach was FREEZING (neither of them were prepared for the cold) and the sky was completely overcast. Sebastian was adamant that they go to the beach despite Laura's logical and reasonable concerns that there would be no sunset to see, less they freeze before it happened. Despite this, Laura was a good sport and played along. There was no one on the beach (I wonder why...) except a guy in a white track suit and two people taking pictures. Odd to say the least. They walked down to the sand, Sebastian started talking about how engineering and nutrition are more similar than people think. He made some weird acronym to relate the two disciplines, and then told Laura he had a present for her. Sebastian took one step back, bent one knee, and asked if she would join House Okhovat in their pursuit of the Throne! Or was it something like "will you marry me"? Either way, Laura said "Yes!". All of a sudden, two people rushed towards them. Turns out those two people were the same ones taking pictures and were hired by Sebastian to capture the candid moment. What a surprise indeed!