We are excited to celebrate with you in Sardinia, Italy

We met online, as seems to be common these days. Our first date was at Cowiche Canyon Kitchen on September 26, 2018. We spent a good deal of time talking about people we both knew from Darren's work in law enforcement and mine in juvenile parole. Not the most conventional of first date topics, as he had formerly been a detective on sex crimes and I had been the sex offender treatment coordinator. Apparently this conversation did not scare either of us off, and we planned a second date.

Darren pulled off a major surprise for me during his birthday lunch at Calcareous Vineyard, in Paso Robles on September 16, 2021. We had enjoyed a lovely lunch and wine tasting and went to enjoy the beautiful view of the valley. Darren said he needed to use the restroom, and shortly after he returned, our server came up with a gift wrapped in birthday paper. I thought it was so sweet that they were giving him a gift, but she handed it to me. I was very confused and thought he must have gone into the winery and bought some wine glasses for my upcoming birthday on the 22nd. I was blown away when I opened it up and discovered an engagement ring! Darren tells me I closed the box immediately and kept saying "Oh my god, Oh my god", during which time he got down on one knee and popped the question.