Five years down, forever to go

You see, DaVena had just moved to Western Washington in fall or 2014 when her roommate convinced me to hop online to meet more people in the area. While she was skeptical at first, DaVena gave it a try. Bryant reached-out and asked if she would like to grab some coffee--she declined. He asked again the next week--she declined again. Two weeks later, he asked if she was available that weekend. With the push from her roommate, she agreed! Bryant got to the coffee shop a little early and ordered chai tea lattes for both of them (he invited her out to coffee, but there was no coffee involved... thank goodness she overlooked that!) which arrived once she got there. What was anticipated to be about an hour-long meeting of strangers turned into a 3+ hour conversation and impromptu walking tour of Everett! While they both said that they were more interested in conversation and just meeting people to socialize with, they quickly became smitten with each other and spent the next three months getting to know each other in an "exclusively seeing each other but not being 'together' kind of thing" to make sure that they were a good fit before becoming official. Clearly, they liked each other a bit and, five years later, are strolling into the next stage of their relationship and life together!

For their five-year anniversary, Bryant and DaVena went to Port Angeles for the weekend. The couple took Ryker on a five-mile hike. They saw gorgeous views, found a a secluded cove, explored old military bunkers ... the proposal didn't happen then. The next morning, the three got up and began a mini-adventure to La Push. They stopped occasionally to explore Lake Crescent and eventually got to First Beach. They ran around the beach with Ryker for about an hour, took in the gorgeous views, and got their pants soaked by the unpredictable waves. It was beautiful... the proposal didn't happen then. After spending about an hour at First Beach, the trio hopped back into the car, explored Forks, WA, and began the drive up to Cape Flattery. Along the way, they passed a side-street by the name of Mary Clark Rd. Feeling that her mother was with her on this amazing trip made DaVena feel a sense of peace and calm. Seeing the sign gave Bryant peace of mind that DaVena's mom was with them in this plan. Once at Cape Flattery, DaVena and Bryant walked the trail to all of the different lookouts. Each one was more beautiful than the last. Finally, they got to the final lookout and spent several minutes admiring at the ocean and taking-in the beauty. In hopes to encourage a proposal, DaVena asked a nearby couple to take a picture of them ... the proposal didn't happen then. They started walking back to the car. About 50 feet back down the trail, there was a small unofficial path. It led to a secluded, intimate viewpoint of one of the "holes in the wall" that Cape Flattery is known for. After spending several minutes taking-in the view, a bald eagle flew about 30 feet in front of the trio. Bryant took this as a sign from his grandpa that this was the moment to ask. He had DaVena try to get pictures of the view from a better vantage-point, got the ring out, and, when she turned around from taking pictures, got down on his knee and asked her to marry him.