it's all happening!

We met at a dive bar in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. I had been a regular there for years, but hadn't been there for a few months. It was happy hour on a Friday and one of the first sunny and warm days of the year, so the desire to belly up at the bar with some friends crept in as I got off the train from work. Rich had recently moved to the neighborhood and was roommates with one of the bartenders. He walked in after me, saying "hi" to everyone. I thought to myself, "who is this cute dude everyone knows?!". He, of course, sat at the end of the bar with his headphones in, being too cool to talk to anyone. As the sun set and the liquid courage crept in, Rich finally let go of the headphones, sat down next to me, leaned over and said, "you're cuuuuuuute". Our fate was sealed. The day our son Urban was born, Rich stopped by that dive bar and carved R + A = U into the side of the bar. Proof that you can meet the love of your life in a stinky and dirty dive bar.

Unconventional as we are, the road we've taken to get to this point may be backwards, but it probably wouldn't have happened any other way for us. Rich's mom likes to joke that she never thought her son would become a husband or a father. My mom says she thought I'd be a career woman who'd never settle down. In our truest fashion, we surprised them both! We look forward to celebrating our wedding with all of you at "Grandma's House" in Grand Rapids, Michigan!