Rachel was headed to California for a weekend stay at her friend Pam's cabin near the Bixby Bridge in Big Sur. Matthew decided to join her, thinking they would take a road trip down the coast to LA together. The cabin was in a remote area at the base of the mountain with private access to Bigsby Beach. It was the perfect spot for a romantic getaway and an idyllic location to propose. Good thing Matthew came prepared...(as usual!) On Tuesday, after breakfast at Big Sur Bakery, the two intrepid lovebirds decided to take a trek out to the beach before leaving Big Sur. It was a beautiful morning. The walk led them down a dirt road (one that Jack Kerouac famously walked on his way to the same beach, where he penned the opening chapters of his book, 'Big Sur'), then through some bushes and over a babbling brook. The stream met the ocean right under the Bigsby Bridge. They walked under the bridge to the expansive and completely deserted beach where waves crashed on magnificent rocks, and seagulls dove headfirst into the ocean hunting for breakfast. Matthew wanted to check out some caves while Rachel found a sweet little spot among the rocks to sit, breathe and take it all in. Soon after, Matthew came to find Rachel and sat down beside her. He pulled her close and they started daydreaming about their future. It was the perfect moment for Matthew to pull a beautiful diamond from his pocket and ask "will you go on this adventure with me?"

We owe it all to our amazing friend, Danielle Bergh. Matthew and Danielle have been friends since their early 20’s, when they both were working and surfing in Atlantic Beach, FL. Life took Matthew to Santa Cruz for nearly a decade, but he stayed close to his incredibly tight network back home. Meanwhile, Rachel had moved from California to Jacksonville and met Danielle through friends. One crazy summer weekend in Montauk, Rachel and Danielle celebrated with friends, played a mean game of foosball (D beat everyone in the joint), shared a lot of laughs and left that weekend fast friends. Later that fall, Danielle said she had someone she wanted Rachel to meet. After a few weeks, a blind double date went down at Mezza in Atlantic Beach. Rachel, Matthew, D and her hubby Johann sat at an outside patio table and enjoyed a few martinis, appetizers and laughs. Over the course of the night, Rachel and Matthew realized they were not only in California at the same time, but were likely in the same acupuncture clinic in Santa Cruz more than once, and knew many of the same people. This included Rachel’s old housemate in Sedona, Renee, whom Matt went to school with! They texted Renee from dinner right then and said “Guess who met in Florida?” She texted back and said, “Awww!! Two beautiful souls!” Matthew and Rachel exchanged numbers that night, and the next day Matthew called her to say he had really enjoyed meeting her. After a few weeks and a few more dates, the holidays rolled around and they took their first trip together to Asheville for New Year’s Eve. It was on.