For Julia and Nate, their story has us looking back to the year 2015. Hamilton gets ready to debut on Broadway, the great dress debate divides families (is it black and blue or white and gold?), the 7th Fast and Furious movie makes its debut, and Julia heads back to Shuttle Meadow for another wonderful summer. For Julia, this was going to be a typical summer filled with junior golf, babysitting, swim team and spending time with friends. For Nate, this was the start of a new summer job as a lifeguard at Shuttle Meadow. At the Welcome Back Banquet, the new lifeguards were introduced and mutual friends encouraged Julia and Nate to talk and get to know each other. Sure enough, sparks flew and the rest of their summer turned into their forever.

Julia and Nate knew they had something special and they weren’t ready to let distance stop them. After that magical summer, Julia went off to college at James Madison University while Nate finished his senior year back in Connecticut. 484 miles couldn't keep them apart. They made it through that first year, stronger than ever. 484 miles became 302 when Nate attended the University of Scranton. Julia and Nate became very familiar with the lovely drive up and down I-81. Over the next five years, Julia and Nate earned their Bachelors and Masters degrees while making the most of long weekends, spring breaks, and lots of FaceTime dates.

Once their time at their respective schools was over, Julia and Nate made the big move to Virginia during the summer of 2021. Julia began teaching first grade and Nate began working as a government contractor. They began exploring their new home in Northern Virginia. Trips into DC, exploring wineries and breweries, finding new golf courses and the best ice cream spots consumed most of their weekends. They started settling in, making new friends and keeping in touch with college friends. Nate even bought his first condo! They quickly made Virginia their home.

Shoutout to teachers having Election Day off! The Saturday before Election Day, Julia casually asked Nate if he wanted to take Tuesday day off and go to Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park (something they had been talking about doing all fall). Little did Julia know...Nate had the ring, her parents' blessing, and the plan of proposing at Skyline Drive at some point the following weekend. He was just trying to figure out how to get her there. Well, Julia certainly tee'd that ball up very nicely! Driving along, looking at the beautiful views at the different overlooks, all Julia's thinking about is how much work she has to do once they get home. Finally, Nate pulls over to one of the overlooks and convinces Julia to get out of the car and walk down to take a better look at the view. Nate gets down on one knee, pops the question, and the rest is history! After that, the day was filled with lots of phone calls, FaceTimes and celebrations. It was the best Tuesday ever!

We are so happy, grateful, and excited to celebrate our special day with you! Many of you are traveling long distances to share our wonderful day with us. We truly can't thank you enough! We look forward to seeing you all and dancing the night away!