Emmett tells this story the best. But I'll give it a try :) Basically, I was working at the Spanish Steps and Emmett was traveling with his brother Darren. I approached them to promote a Bar I worked in and instead of completely ignoring my random question of "What ya'll doing tonight?" (He would say I sounded like some old Texan woman but I really didn't ya'll Lol) They stopped and talked to me. For hours. It was pretty awesome, actually. He ended up coming back to the Bar for the five nights he was in Rome that summer. We did some sightseeing together, the Vatican, drove a Surrey bike and ate a LOT of watermelon. Three months later, we met up again in Ireland. But, it wasn't until three years after this, that we would meet again. Only this time, he had convinced me to move to Australia with him *that Irish charm got me* and the rest is history.

Having different nationalities, has its downfalls and perks! I mean, there is quite a bit to keep in mind here- like, time zones, data plans, flight costs and the price of stamps, duh! Lol BUT some of the pros have been exploring different parts of the world together... just to stay together. Australia, Estonia, Mongolia, New Zealand and Russia- to name a few! I guess we would just like to thank the creators of commercial flights, Skype, the cellphone and online streaming, you guys have definitely helped us stay connected- like when watching Suits marathons while still being thousands of miles apart.

Oprah. The woman is a legend! :) So, for my birthday, Emmett gifted me tickets to "An Evening with Oprah". We turned it into a two week trip, making stops along the way as we drove north to Auckland. We stopped at natural hot baths, beautiful beaches and slept in our little camper van. The whole way, never noticing he refused to leave the van alone for more than an hour. I'd think to myself "I know we built the thing, but lets leave it in this sketchy 'No Parking Zone'- lets go to the beach!" Lol. He refused. We get to the Hotel, and it.is.NICE! From Hostels, AirBnB's to 2 star Hotels.... to the Pullman Hotel- what a treat! Still, I was clueless. "Go shopping" he said, "do your nails" he said. Still, nothing. He continued to suggest Oprah couldn't possibly see me in my backpacker outfits... as if! :) We get to the event. He starts heading straight for the stage, 5th row back. Oprah was RIGHT there. She was amazing, inspirational and of course left us in an 'i-love-life' kinda mood. Still, no idea what was about to happen. At the end of the event, we are getting our "picture" taken. And as I turn to smile, he gets down on one knee- and proposes. *my heart stops* Of course I didn't know we were being recorded or that the ring after all had been hidden in our easy-to-break-into van. I also didn't know he had been in touch with Oprahs DJ and coordinated for John Legends "All of Me" to play while he was on one knee, but understandably, he got nervous and got ahead of himself and popped the question to the great Aretha Franklin, "You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman". Crying, I said YES! It was perfect. All of it.