WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!

It was a late spring evening in Seattle in the midst of the pandemic, and Matty came across a dating profile with the line, "We're the same kind of weird if the idea of a tropical vacation sounds terrible to you." He asked Mandy what the ideal vacation would be like, and after days of near constant texting and a short phone call, they met for the first time on a slightly rainy and cool day in Historic Ballard. It was ideal first date weather for two odd people who preferred to stay inside when it was warm and sunny. They talked for over three hours, alternating between sitting on a bench and walking in circles around Ballard Ave, clutching their cups of coffee, until it was too cold to stay outside. They exchanged stories about families, relationships, their dreams, marriage, kids, and beyond. It became obvious to both of them that, not only were they the same kind of weird, but they needed to keep talking. And they did.

Mandy and Matty snapped together like magnets. By early spring of 2021, Mandy, Matty, and Matty's son Nicola had been living together for a while, and it felt like all the puzzle pieces were falling into place. Matty began to conspire with Mandy's sister to find a ring. For the box, Matty wanted to combine Mandy's love of house-shaped decor with her love of Ballard, so he commissioned a box from a woodworker in Ballard with local hardwood in the shape of a little house. Although he tried to be discreet, visits to the jeweler and the box maker during pandemic times made it obvious that something was in the works. One beautiful Sunday, Mandy and Matty adventured around Seattle, smiles on their faces despite none of their plans coming into fruition, and settled at home over Thai food dinner and sunset watching in their living room. Matty brought out the ring in its house-shaped box, surprised Mandy with the question, and she said yes.