Welcome to our forever!

Out of all places to meet, Alek and Sarah met off Facebook dating! They say it was fate that day, February 9th, 2022, when Sarah was home sick from work and stumbled across Alek's dating profile. Sarah was drawn to Alek's smile. He was sitting propped up on his four wheeler, arms crossed and what appeared to be his "nub" resting on the handlebar. Alek at the time, was traveling back from a weekend in PA with his friend Fred. A simple message, "Hi Alek, how is your day going?", lead to a four hour conversation and Alek giving his number to Sarah. The conversation flowed naturally and they learned they shared a lot of the same interest, morals and humor. February 16th, 2022 they had their first date. Alek met Sarah in the parking lot between Church St. and Arnold St. in Westfield. They had planned to eat at the Maple Leaf for dinner, but when Alek arrived, he saw the place was packed, so he noticed the Hangar was across the way and parked in the lot between the two places. Sarah met him there and when they got out of their vehicles, Alek handed her a single rose from behind his back. Sarah was immediately taken back by such a romantic gesture, one she always pictured happening but never experienced till then. She nervously threw the rose on her front seat and the two of them went into the Hangar. Before the dinners came out, Alek took off his prosthetic leg, while Sarah knew of it, she was pleasantly surprised how proud and comfortable Alek was with it to show her. After dinner, as they were concluding the date, Alek asked Sarah for a hug and when they embraced, they both felt like "this is where I belong" and because how perfect the night had went, Sarah did in fact, kiss Alek on the first date! (That was a first) But she knew Alek would be different and she was right. All because of that single rose and fate, they are where they are today!

May 21, 2022; Alek, Sarah, Aubrie and Madelyne went to Lake George for their first getaway. Sarah knew, she wanted to make this a yearly thing for them. January 2023, Sarah booked the same weekend, third weekend in May and same hotel (Surfside). On Saturday when they arrived, it was gloomy outside and 60ish degrees. To their surprise, they were able to check into their suite early, 11am instead of 4pm. The girls immediately changed into their bathing suites and down to the beach they went. For lunch, they had Duffy's, signature bone in wings with Duffy sauce and two over priced kids entrees. After that, they walked the strip and went into their favorite stores. Aubrie was on a mission to buy a lifeguard sweatshirt and Madelyne was not sure exactly what she wanted, but ended up with another unicorn stuffy. They stopped in the arcade before leaving the strip. To kill time before dinner, they went miniature golfing at Pirates Cove and had a blast! For dinner, they tried a bbq place they always passed by but never stopped, Barnsider BBQ, it was delicious and a new favorite for them. Someone mentioned "ice cream" after dinner but the only place opened "late" after 6pm was Ben and Jerrys, the official season there starts the following weekend, Memorial Day Weekend. Three kid sizes in a dish and one Large PB Fudge milkshake for Alek. They ate their icecream as they walked behind the strip, along the walkway by the water. This lead them to the pier, a spot they always visit when exploring Lake George. There was no sunset, but still daylight in the gloomy clouds and an erie fog was starting to cover the water and mountain side. Sarah was leaning on the railing, overlooking the water, while Aubrie and Madelyne were playing behind her. Because it was getting late and the mist was turning into sprinkles, Sarah wanted to get going. But Alek leaned next to her and said " One year ago we became a family here *pulls out ring box*....will you?" He asked. Sarah was shocked seeing the ring and said “OF COURSE!" The four of them were overcome with joy and happiness. A little added bonus to this wonderful day, a couple hours after the proposal, Sarah became an AUNTIE to Sophie Grace, her brother Jacob's first child. May 20th will always hold significant meaning to Sarah and Alek. So will the third weekend in May, first trip away as a family, engagement weekend and now wedding weekend.