Matt and I matched on Hinge on November 1, 2023. Matt liked a photo of Daisy and I and I responded by asking him how his Halloween was (LOL). Matt asked me out the following week and we had our first date on November 8, 2023. I knew from the second I saw him, it was like ' oh, there he is' like I had been looking and looking for him and now he was finally standing right in front of me. We sat down and the waitress told us what they had on draft, which included Modelo. This prompted me to tell Matt the quick version of the story of my dad's bear hunt in Kodiak, Alaska when after countless miles of hiking and nights of camping, his guide pulled out a six pack of Modelo that he had been carrying the whole time in case he got his bear. While I was telling this story, I was screaming at myself in my head, WHY DID YOU OPEN WITH THE BEAR STORY? WHAT IF HE IS VEGAN OR SUPPORTS PETA?! Lucky for me, Matt is actually a hunter and thought this was a very cool story. However I wasn't sure because at the end of the night, he walked me to my car and gave me a side hug, which he claims was just him trying to be respectful. :) We started texting immediately, I think before I left the parking lot and I felt really really good about him. We had our next date the following Sunday and the rest is history!

We both fell pretty fast and both quickly realized this is what we had been looking for. When Matt invited me to the wedding of his brother, Chris, and sister-in-law, Katie, where he was going to be the best man and I would not know a single soul, I was starting to believe that maybe he felt the same way that I felt about him. Everything was always so easy with Matt and I never questioned what he meant or where I stood, Matt is a such a good man who says what he means and means what he says. Matt first said, "I love you" in the parking lot of the Suburban Showplace, when I met him for a quick hi after a work event. We both had events to get to and as I got into my car, he simply said "love you" like he had been saying it to me his whole life. I obviously felt the same way and said it back, my heart exploding. Our eight months of dating were such a blast, filled with time with family and friends, weekend trips to each of our cabins and Florida, getting to learn all about the fire department and meeting all of the amazing people there, countless hikes and adventures with Daisy, dinner dates and ice cream dates and movie dates and sushi on the couch dates. I knew Matt was the one, but I had NO idea he was ready to propose come July.

Matt took me by complete surprise when he suggested we go to the end of the dock to take a picture on July 6, 2024. We were about to go on a boat ride with all of our friends during the annual GRAY BASH weekend. I was worried because my dad was already out on the boat waiting and no one was moving to get out there, I grabbed my bottle of Matua and my sweatshirt, sure they would follow us if we headed out to the dock. When we got to the end of the dock, we took a picture and I checked it and said the lighting was not good, when I turned back to Matt, he was on one knee and was holding the most stunning diamond ring I had ever seen. I was in complete shock and all I could get out was, "is this real life?" to which Matt responded "YES" and I then said "YES!" I then heard screaming from the patio where all of our friends were jumping up and down screaming! I couldn't believe they knew about this and no one told me! The rest of the night was a whirlwind, everyone came running down the dock with champagne and Mary Kay had the most beautiful cake. After I ran to the house to tell Daisy, we jumped on the boat and took a beautiful sunset cruise where we FaceTimed all of our friends and family who weren't there. Being able to soak in that moment with my parents and my best friends and some of their kiddos was completely magical. After the boat ride, we came back to beautiful framed photos of our relationship and champagne and decorations and enjoyed Mary Kay's delicious cake. I don't think I let go of Matt's arm the whole night. We sat by the fire and I stared at the stunning ring on my finger and was completely overwhelmed with love. The next day, we got to celebrate with the Adams family with a delicious dinner.