We met on a blind date (thanks again, Dez!). Our first date was the local Astoria taco truck (Vendy award winner by the way so you know the food is superb). We ordered our tacos and sat on a sidewalk bench and chatted for 2 hours(!!) before going our separate ways. One week later we met again at a local restaurant serving Balkan cuisine (foreshadowing an upcoming trip we would later go on together). We realized then we might have something special between us and promptly bought tickets to a monster truck rally in Syracuse a month out. THIS is when we realized (after spending 5 hours traveling upstate in the car you see below) this relationship might be different. But ask Ben when he truly fell in love with Samantha and he’ll tell you it’s when she Stone Cold Steve Austin’ed him into a friend’s pool! And ask Samantha and she’ll tell you it’s when Ben pulled the longest, blackest, grossest hair out of a bowl of our beloved čorba in Bosnia and barely flinched. (Ha! And barf!) We got engaged on Samantha’s birthday on an island off the coast of Marseille, France in 2019. With a picnic of prosciutto sandwiches and rosé wine - it was the perfect day! And for those wondering…..The taco truck is still a frequent date night for us ;)

We were legally married by Elvis in Vegas last Halloween! It was an awesome and fun weekend! We wouldn’t change a thing ….except the guest list! Covid-19 kept our guest list short. Now that the country is opening back up and vaccines are readily available we feel more than comfortable throwing the wedding we really wanted! We are so excited to share our commitment to one another with all of you attending our “sequel ceremony”!