There's no sugarcoating it. There's no avoiding it. There will be no awkward "um's" or "uh's" as we make up a fairytale story for you. That's right...we met on a dating app! (Hinge ;) A couple of weeks before school started, I got a message about Sherlock Holmes…a good start. We couldn’t meet right away, as Chris was out of town with his family. Finally, he came back, and the week before school began, we had our first date. We met at a local coffee shop, and the only thing as colorful as our floral shirts was our conversation, covering philosophy, music, and life for several hours. I’m sure that both sides of the family can see how it would be perfect. A nervous, pensive Philosopher talking nerdy to a smiley, optimistic Musician. And, if you can't picture it, then you can take our word for it...after all, you’re only reading this because we’re getting MARRIED!

Early in our relationship, I would tell Chris all about the South Florida sunrises. There is nothing like waking up early on a clear, warm Saturday morning and heading out to the beach hoping that the water would be calm and still. Standing there with your toes in the sand and smelling the ocean breeze while the sun’s first rays warm your cheeks…it doesn’t get much better than that. Covid pushed our plans to go down south back quite a bit, but we made it down for a weekend. I kept a close eye on the weather, hoping there’d be at least one of those perfect sunrises to share with Chris. It was Sunday, January 10. It was chillier than usual, but it was clear with the slightest breeze. We walked out on the sand, and Chris pointed out a spot just in front of the dunes on Dania Beach, away from everyone else. Secretly, I was hoping he would propose. So, when he started acting really awkward, I had a feeling it was coming. He kept trying to get me to turn around…but at that point, I knew it. I knew what was happening and I didn’t know what to do. Do I turn? How long do I look away? Do I just look at him? WHAT DO I DO??? But then, right when the sun peeked over the horizon, he got down on one knee, pulled out a ring, and said “…so…uhm, uhh…well…so, are you interested? …No? Ok. Ok, that’s fine. Ok.” Meanwhile, I was speechless. I was so happy I didn’t say anything in response!! But, of course… eventually, through the tears… I said yes, yes, YES!