gettin' married!

Ceremony Live Stream Link: https://youtu.be/TFGLfq5hAOQ

Jay and I met serendipitously on one of the first nights of college. There was an open seat next to me on the link bus, so I naturally invited her to sit down. We chit chatted for the duration and went our separate ways as soon as the bus reached campus. On the following Monday when classes started, I was surprised to see Jay walk into Espanõl101, and again find an open seat next to me. From then on, I spent the entire semester trying to get her attention and make her laugh in class. Whenever I’d get called on to read from the Spanish textbook, I’d make sure I used an impressive accent – that never failed to get her smiling. In time, we realized our schedules were constantly intersecting - between classes, at mealtimes, evenings, and of course, on the link bus; we ran into each other everywhere. We developed inside jokes before we even knew each other that well. I would text her questions on the Spanish homework that I knew the answers to, just to have an excuse to talk to her. Over winter break, she had called me to find something out about an assignment, and we ended up talking for over an hour. So when a mutual friend from class suggested I ask her out, I did. I didn’t waste any time since I knew how great an idea that was. The next Monday was a snow day and our first date. I had used every ounce of four-wheel-drive my GMC Jimmy could produce to get us to Caribou safely. The two of us spent hours chatting and sipping coffee. You could say it went well, because here we are over seven years later! I still try to make her laugh every day, but I don’t have to use an accent. The two of us are muy happy.

I was in Boston for my company's annual meeting, and I was excited because Mike was flying in to spend the weekend. We had a well put together itinerary of sites to see and treats to eat. The day after he arrived was packed full of our favorite things. We spent the morning strolling the streets of Boston and getting way too excited to eat lunch at Regina’s Pizza. At lunch, Mike told me he had a surprise event planned at 2pm. I begged him for details, but all I got was that I had to wear closed toed shoes. When we arrived at an equipment rentals shop, we were given helmets, signed consent forms, and escorted out to our very own tandem bicycle. After some instruction on how to pedal and break, we climbed on and were off. We cruised around downtown Boston in the bike lane, which was in the middle of 3 lanes of 2-way traffic. It couldn’t have been a better relationship building 'exercise' since it required consistent attention, communication, and trust. After arriving back safely without any injuries or getting too lost, we decided we had earned a treat, so we grabbed some cannoli's from the infamous Mike's Pastry. Little did I know, Mike was buttering me up for something. On our walk home, Mike found a side street in Beacon Hill to turn down. We were taking some pictures when I noticed he had something in his hand. I asked what it was, thinking (hoping) he had some leftover cannoli. Much to my surprise, he got down on one knee, said some cheesy stuff about riding tandem for the rest of our lives and I kinda blacked out on the rest. He assured me he was serious, as I was so surprised, and I gleefully accepted. Mike stopped at a convenience store to grab some champagne (and some Sprite) and we toasted the occasion. We spent the evening getting a seafood dinner and attending an outdoor concert – the best we’d ever seen on the best day I’d ever had.