We met eleven years ago the Month of our Wedding when I started working at Sals Italian Ristorante in Delray Beach, FL my senior year of High School. On my first night of work I unknowingly met for the first time some of the most important people in my life. I met one of my best friends, Marilyn, my future sister in law, Kathryn; Aunt Pam and my future husband, Michael. I remember Michael walking past me asking his sister if she could drop off ketchup (his least favorite condiment on the planet) to one of his tables, #20 I believe, but it was a long time ago ;). Kathryn agreed but then gestured towards me asking if we had met yet. I learned then, one of my favorite and most constant things about him, his friendly smile and constant gentlemanly demeanor, the rest is history :)

Several days prior, I had a text message from an old friend of mine saying that he was in town from Atlanta and going out with his buddies in downtown Delray this weekend and wanted to know if we could catch up. Typically I closed at the restaurant on Friday nights and any fun I had was with my roomies Bayli, Cody, Vanessa & Brad once I got home. I said I would try my best to make it. Towards the end of my shift I checked in with the roomies who were having a quiet night, and a text arrived from Michael "I hope I get to see you tonight, we're heading to the Ave now". Something in me knew, I went home, freshened up and met them at the Blue Anchor. It was a truly cheerful evening! As it wound down Michael and I caught up with what we had been up to the last four years, shared some Pizza Rustica on the steps of a lifeguard stand and jammed to the new Taylor Swift album '1989'. That Sunday we went on our first date at Boston's on the Beach, and decided that we would keep in touch and try to make plans to visit one another as often as possible.

I hopped on a plane to Atlanta and we took off on a camping trip to Madison, FL, nearby Tallahassee. This is when I met Jeffrey Phillips, who asked only 1 question of me, "if Michael has a sore tummy, would you rub it for him?", drank Whiskey, tried skeet shooting for the first time, hijacked a Kubota (Side by Side ATV) and sang every country song I knew in the some of the best company I've had the pleasure of knowing. On our trip back to Atlanta, Michael asked me to be his girlfriend, I missed my flight and got to hang out with my boyfriend one more night.

After nearly six years of dating all I could think about was 'When are we going to get Engaged?!?!' and somehow missed all of the little hints. Our families together for the first Holiday in our house, Michael and my sister, Erica, each double-checking that my nails were done. Michael being scatterbrained...like what could possibly be more important than this meal...(he almost forgot the GRAVY!!! On THANKSGIVING!!) Then it all made sense, amidst a toast after dinner I see my two sisters each with a phone out pointed at me and then he was on one knee.