March 6, 2021 - "So this is gonna come completely out of the blue to you but not to me, I have had a massive crush on you since senior year of high school." In the beginning of what has now become known amongst Em's friends as "the text," Dalton finally told Em how he felt about her in a long heartfelt message with minimal punctuation. That message was a culmination of all the things that Dalton admired about Em and the connection he was hoping she felt too after years of being just friends. They were introduced in high school by Em's cousin, and Dalton's Arlington Catholic friend, Sara. After meeting in passing a few times, they first spent quality time together on a trip down to Newport, RI with friends to visit Sara at college in 2015. Since that day, Dalton and Em both felt a sort of magnetism between them, but never knew how the other felt as the timing had never quite worked out. Until a window opened up, and Dalton finally decided it was now or never - despite living 500 miles away from each other - and texted Em all he felt, gambling that she felt the same way... looks like it was all worth it! As Em was finishing her degree in Washington, DC, Dalton won Em over through weekly facetime dates that quickly became daily. After weeks of receiving hand written letters and chocolate covered strawberries, Em made the trip up to visit Dalton in Portland, Maine to take things offline. To Em's surprise, Dalton had remembered every detail from those facetimes and surprised her with a pasta roller and the ingredients to make her favorite meal, lobster raviolis from scratch. And so began their homemade ravioli date night tradition. The raviolis were such a success that Em decided to take an extended stay in Maine after finishing her Master's. That first summer together was spent crawling from brewery to brewery, trying oysters from all along the east coast, and exploring the city of Portland and Maine's coastline. Dalton and Em made so many memories that year showing each other all their favorite spots in Maine and DC as they debated which city to live in, before deciding to move back to Massachusetts together. In August of 2022, they moved into their first official apartment in Boston together. Since then, they have loved eating their way through the North End, catching last minute games at TD Garden, and hosting friends for impromptu Espresso Martinis. Over the last 3 years, Dalton and Em have explored the beaches of Stone Harbor, cliffs of Acadia national park, slopes of Sugarbush, and bays of Lake Winnipesaukee. They have drank around the world at Epcot, tried to find the best BBQ in Austin, and burnt on Palm Beach. Their biggest adventure to date was their international trip to France and Ireland. They spent three magical days in Paris, and then traveled down to Bordeaux, France. After a week of wine tastings, sightseeing, and sampling the local cuisine, on October 8 they enjoyed a tranquil morning. They strolled through the public garden and had a relaxed and slow European lunch (longer than Dalton expected, but Em didn't even notice him checking his watch obsessively). Walking along the river after lunch, they came upon the Fountain of the Three Graces, when they were approached by a "photography student" looking to use them as her subjects. Or so Em thought... Before she knew what was happening, Dalton was down on one knee in the most beautiful place in Bordeaux asking her to marry him. Completely surprised and enamored, all Em could say was "Yes!!!" For the next hour, the photographer captured their engaged excitement as they galivanted around the city more in love than ever! To everyone reading this, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being such an amazing support system, friends, and family. We would not be here without you, and look forward to celebrating the happiest day of our lives with you all!