Weirdly enough, I have my twin brother to thank for this. It all started during our freshman year at W&J College. My friend (and bridesmaid), Ellie, and I decided to drive down from Pitt on a weekend in January to visit my brother, Scott. Immediately upon arriving, I felt as if Scott was on a mission to introduce me to his new friend and baseball teammate, Justin, who he hadn't stopped gushing about since meeting him during their fall semester. Well, it turns out that brothers do know best, as there was an instant connection between Justin and me. So much so that from the moment we met, we never stopped talking (or texting). Justin asked me to be his girlfriend that February of 2014, and I never looked back. It's crazy to think we met our "person" at age 19, but I knew he was the one after years of long-distance (me being at school at Pitt, and him at W&J; my home being in New Castle and his in Pittsburgh), life changes, more schooling followed by bar exam preparation, and finally living together. One thing's for sure, and that's how easy and certain each "yes" was with Justin.

In August 2021, Justin and I planned to travel to Napa for our friends’ wedding and then continue on to the Nobu resort in Cabo San Lucas for a much needed, relaxing vacation. After postponing this trip once due to the pandemic, we were very much looking forward to being able to go! Nearly seven and a half years from the day we met, we were finally going on a true romantic getaway together and we couldn’t be more excited. Unfortunately, after arriving and sight seeing around San Francisco on day one of our trip, Justin’s passport (among other things) were stolen from our rental car. As you can imagine, this totally thwarted our plans to travel to Mexico two days later (where, unbeknownst to me, Justin was planning to propose). But it’s moments like these that remind me how Justin is one of the few people in this world who could, in the blink of an eye, take me from complete disappointment and sadness to feeling so elated that I’m practically floating on cloud nine. Because little did I know that while I was crying about my stolen shoes, computer, and makeup (all replaceable things), Justin, with the ring secured in his pocket the entire time, was secretly planning the most romantic beach proposal in San Diego where we would be rerouting our trip. In just under 72 hours and with the help of some of my best friends and the Picnic Collective, Justin arranged the dreamiest sunset picnic proposal on Windansea Beach. Now I’ll admit, I was bummed to be in San Diego and not on the Mexican getaway I had planned twice over, but I wasn’t aware of just how special of a place San Diego would become for the both of us. We always had plans in Cabo to go to a nice dinner that Justin had planned, and my spirits were lifted when he said we’d still be doing that in San Diego, but he provided no further details other than to put on my favorite dress I had packed and to be ready by 7:00. I was confused when the Uber driver dropped us off on a seemingly residential road next to a staircase that led down to a secluded beach. We climbed over rock formations to find the most beautiful picnic set up for us just in time to watch the sunset. It was then that Justin dropped down on one knee and popped the question I’d been longing to hear (as well as our friends and family, lol) - “will you marry me?” Although I blacked out in the moment as all of my emotions just started to flow, one thing was clear: saying “yes” to forever with my person. And it was so lovely to learn from our series of events that no matter what challenges or obstacles are thrown our way, I get to face them with my soulmate by my side.