We first met in August 2017 on a 7x7 soccer field in the Lower East Side of NYC, playing on opposite sides of the field. Vinny on defense for the Uber team. Trace playing forward for the Publicis team. Although the competition was fierce, initial sparks flew and it wasn't long before we had our first date... a drink led to a drink & a bite led to another drink in the East Village. We quickly bonded over years of playing soccer, love for travel (and both living abroad in Asia and London), New York dollar slices, and valuing close relationships with our families. And though we convinced ourselves that when Vinny moved a few months later (to San Francisco for a new job opportunity) that our book was closed... it was really only the first chapter. Within a year we'd started - and then ended - dating long-distance, with Trace getting a new job and moving to San Francisco. The next few years were a whirlwind, between finding a place together, getting Alfie, and again unsuccessfully convincing ourselves we were locating temporarily to San Diego to ride out the pandemic for a few months. We were fortunate to be able to stay and make San Diego our permanent home, and exploring SoCal (and adding National Park trips to some of our favorite travels) has been a huge highlight, along with beach days, sunsets, surfing (Vinny), watching surfing (Trace), more soccer, the list goes on. And, while the soccer competition in San Diego is (mostly) fierce as it was in NYC, as with many things over the past nearly seven years, we're just happy to play... and now be on the same team together on-and-off the field.