Our Story
.
.
Paul and Alexandra's love story starts way before Alexandra and Paul... it starts with both of their moms, Merle & Linda. Merle and Linda became fast friends in their town of Wallingford, spending lots of time together with neighborhood girlfriends and taking their children to Delco gymnastics lessons together (shout out Paige + Andrew).
.
.
Every year, the Manwarings and the Gillespies (and the Hollyers- hi Hollyers!), went on a family ski trip together in Stratton, Vermont. Alexandra and Paul were two grades apart at Strath Haven High School..... and definitely weren't dating (or thinking about dating) each other while in high school. However, every year, they went on this ski trip together. The Stratton ski house trip became a weekend treasured by all the families- every year, they skied the same favorite runs, ate Merle's lasagna with 17 people crammed around a dinner table meant for 6, played (highly competitive) boys vs girls games of catchphrase by the fire, and built snowy jumps on the hill in the backyard that they would barrel over on tattered sleds and trashcan lids repurposed as sleds after dinner on the last night. Every year, the Stratton trip was something both Paul and Alexandra looked forward to... and as the years went on, they began to look forward to it for another reason as well- it meant they got to spend time together. As the years grew, so did their interest in each other (and so did Merle and Linda's behind-the-scenes excitement). However, the timing (and their relationship statuses) had never been quite right. Then, one day, Alexandra got a text from both her mom AND sister: "Paul Manwaring is SINGLE."
.
.
Paul and Alexandra went on their first date to get drinks in Philadelphia. The date went so well that Paul ended up sticking around for Alexandra's plans later that night, which included bowling with her 3 siblings. So after a successful first date with Alexandra......and the rest of her family.... their relationship officially began. They quickly fell in love, driving weekly from Hoboken to Philly, exploring each others cities, spending time with each others friends, and going on lots of ski trips. They did long distance while Alexandra travel nursed in San Diego and Salt Lake City, with lots of fun visits in between (Paul drove Alexandra cross country both ways). They moved in together into a little apartment in Hoboken in 2020, where the stay-at-home COVID rules didn't seem so shabby after spending time being long distance. They then moved back to Philadelphia together in the fall of 2021.
.
.
Then, on one perfectly sunny October day in 2022, an unsuspecting Alexandra thought she was going to the beach in Stone Harbor to celebrate a different friend's engagement. However, when they got to the spot where she thought the party was, there wasn't anyone else on the beach. Alexandra thought they must have gotten the time of the party wrong. But then, Paul reached in his pocket, got down on one knee, and proposed (and Alexandra said yes!). He further surprised her with both their families waiting for them at the Watering Hull, a local Stone Harbor bar, right after the engagement.
.
.
And now........ it's time to get married!!