It was 2016. Matt went into work at The Crow Bar in Cornona Del Mar for the 28th day straight. He was running on auto pilot, not knowing what day or month it was. He was setting up for a normal brunch shift and had no idea that this was THE brunch shift that would change the rest of his life. As fate would have it, Hannah had woken up craving brunch that day! The place her best friend (and reason why she was in CA in the first place) Sydney chose to go for brunch was The Crow Bar, just down the street from their apartment. When Hannah walked into The Crow Bar, Matt was overwhelmed with a feeling he had never felt before. He knew he was going to leave this shift with Hannah's number. Before he got the chance to ask Hannah the FIRST 'big' question of their lives, Hannah beat him to the punch and asked him a question that would end up turning out in his favor anyway. "Hey, are you guys hiring??" Over the next few months Matt and Hannah not only worked flawlessly with each other (the love language for the restaurant industry), they became best friends. Matt was very persistent in making sure Hannah became his girlfriend soon after he realized he was falling in love with her...and on March 9, 2017, Hannah caved to Matt's charm and INCREDIBLE smile and told herself this was the man to fall in love back with. The couple spent the next few years battling really random, yet really tough situations together. Really random as in bird mites...has anyone even heard of bird mites?? Ask about it at the wedding. All in all, Matt and Hannah stood by each other throughout these situations and now laugh about how crazy the first few years of their relationship actually were. They got so comfortable with crazy situations being thrown at them, they decided to make a crazy decision of their own - to try life together in Rhode Island!

Hannah was confident that Matt would fit right into the Rhode Island lifestyle. He had visited RI a few times before the big move so he kinda knew what he was in for. You're all probably thinking right about now, "BUT THE WINTER!" Yes, the scariest season of them all for a SoCal boy... Luckily, Hannah had already thought of this worry and knew exactly what she needed to do to hoodwink Matt into thinking winter wasn't so bad...She bought him a snowboard and taught him how to use it. Winter is now the couple's favorite season. Hannah's plan worked.

H&M spent their last few months in California building out Big Mama - the van that Sydney and Hannah bought in RI and roadtripped out to CA in. Big Mama was essentialy an added member of the family. Seriously, this '96 Dodge Ram had something about her that just immediately made anyone who had ever taken a ride in her big, comfy, hot-glue upholstered captains chairs just fall in love. Even the woman who sold the van to Hannah and Syd cried as they signed the bill of sale! They thought she was crazy at first but really ended up getting to know that exact same feeling. Matt and Hannah worked 2 jobs each over these few months. Any free second they had was spent either at Home Depot getting material to build the van out, or building the van out. They put in laminate flooring, a little kitchenette behind the drivers seat with running water AND a glass tile backsplash. They sanded off all of the exterior rust and repainted the signature Big Mama blue into something a little less Mystery-Machine - 'Winter Gray.' They built his&hers closets that eventually, and to nobody's surprise, ended up being hers&hers. They made sure to have a "garage" in the back to comfortably house their electric scooters and tools they would need along the roadtrip. The roof rack that was welded together out of free bed frames by Hannah's brother, Zack, was filled with camping gear and other odds and ends. They cut a hole in the roof and installed a running fan for ventilation. An electric fridge, solar-powered generator, and an entirely new mechanical system were added to the list of pricey investments that were TOTALLY worth it. Big Mama was tricked out and ready for her second journey across the beautiful US of A. In total, Matt and Hannah spent just over a month driving from the West Coast back to the best coast. From Newport Beach, they went north up the Pacific Coast Highway to Big Sur and Monterey. From there they took a U-turn and went southeast to Joshua Tree, Death Valley, and Vegas. Zion National Park and The Grand Canyon were next on the list, both of which the campsite stays were extended because neither half of the couple wanted to leave the epic scenery. Matt chopped wood with his little axe and lit a fire every night. Dinner was cooked either in a mini InstaPot run by their solar-powered generator, or on the couple's 2 burner propane stove. 20+ deer and elk grazed over the grasses and tree leaves FEET away from their campsites in these National Parks. Life seemed so simple, yet absolutely unreal. Matt really wanted to catch some of the Angel's pre-season baseball games in Arizona, so that's where they headed next. Breakfast was cooked over their little propane flames in the pre-season parking lot...a really early tailgate, if you will. Sausage and eggs were enjoyed on the roof of Big Mama, because the view from the asphalt wasn't cutting it. If the couple had a dollar for every person in that parking lot that commented on their seat selection, they would have been able to trade in the '96 Dodge Ram for a Mercedes Sprinter.

Hannah and Matt were fortunate enough to have a safe *non-camping* stop-over in the smack dead center of the country so this is where they headed next. Right after visiting Sand Dunes National Park, they crossed over into Kansas territory to stay with Grandma Luther and the rest of Hannah's dad's side of the family. This part of the trip was special in the moment, but ended up being time that the couple was most thankful for. This was one of the last times they got to enjoy Gma Luther's company before she passed. Stories were shared, photo albums were gone through, belly laughs and typical Luther cuisine was enjoyed together. Gma and Aunt Jane begged H&M not to leave, but after a week of visiting they had to get back on track! The couple trekked through torrential downpours and stayed in Cracker Barrel parking lots for the next few days. Rain hitting the metal roof of the van all day and night made them feel like they were in The Amazon - super cozy and relaxing. It was only a few hours later that the couple would wake up to use the bathroom inside the restaurant and remember they were in the front lot of the side-of-the-highway biscuit & dumpling capital of the country. Matt and Hannah made the decision to go straight home to get out of the storm. Ironically, it was only a few days until the Newport St. Patrick's Day parade...and this year it fell on Matt's birthday! There was no better way for the couple to end their road trip home than to give Matt a good old Newport Parade Day initiation.

After 5 years together, you would think Matt would have already proposed...but he was waiting for the most perfect moment. Since he was always talking to different people while bartending, he had the chance to hear a lot of advice and opinions about engagement and marriage. There was one memorable piece of advice that Matt truly took to heart - "Keep the ring in your pocket, because you'll know when the moment is right." The couple had planned a trip to Burlington, Vermont for the weekend for Hannah's 28th birthday. They left Newport early, early in the morning in order to have plenty of time to take the scenic route - a tiny roadtrip, if you will. Hannah knew she was going to marry Matt for a few years at this point, but she didn't think he was going to ask this particular weekend! On the other hand, Matt knew this was going to be the perfect weekend. On the five hour car ride to the mountains, "I Think I Want To Marry You" by Bruno Mars played an unusual amount of times. The couple would always sing the chorus to each other, because the lyrics were true, but Matt knew this time the words hit a bit different. Matt and Hannah splurged a bit on a room with a view overlooking Lake Champlain and the Adirondack mountains because they were celebrating! ...Hannah's birthday, right? When the couple got to their room, the view was so incredible Hannah dropped all of her bags immediately. She went over to the huge hotel window and started taking a panoramic picture of the blue water and the silhouette of the mountains beyond the lake. Now, if any of you are familiar with taking a panoramic picture, you would remember you have to keep your phone quite steady and moving very slowly. While Hannah was mastering this form, Matt was trying to get her attention to look at something... "Babe, look." Hannah was thinking Matt wanted to show her a cool feature of the hotel room (other than the view) so she told him to 'hold on a second' while she finished getting her shot. So oblivious. Matt, now sounding frustrated, but was actually on the verge of blacking out said: "BABE. LOOK." Hannah turned around to find Matt on one knee, smiling bigger than she had ever seen that incredible smile shine before! With tears in his eyes, he said a few words and asked her to marry him! After about 15 minutes of ugly crying with each other, Matt put *the ring* on Hannah's finger and popped a bottle of champagne...then popped another. October 19, 2021 became the start of an incredible celebratory weekend and a new chapter for the fiancés!

First comes engagement, then comes throwing paint all over each other?? Yes. Yes, you have that exactly right. Matt and Hannah wanted to do something crazy and out of this world to remember this special time of their lives together. Why not get a little messy?! Their photographer, Kelley Alexander, was completely on board with the couples odd request for a photoshoot like this. A few trips to the craft store, some white outfits from Amazon, a night of hand-mixing paint to get the right color, a few bottles of champagne, and a lot of laughs did the trick!! You will be seeing these pictures more and more throughout the next few months! ...and yes, the champagne spray on the back of the 'Save Our Dates' is real and it was 100% EPIC.