Like all modern love stories, Alex and Nicole first laid eyes on each other on a dating app. They did not initially make contact, though. Rather, they followed each other on Instagram. But that's where things halted for a few months. Mid-February, 2020, Nicole travelled to Costa Rica with her girlfriends, and during this trip, Alex had popped onto her screen and into her head. When she returned home, she brazenly messaged Alex through Instagram (for the young folk, she slipped into his dm's). They went on their first date shortly after, on February 26, 2020, at Hopscotch Whisky Bar. They talked, laughed, and cried for hours over a few glasses of Pinot Noir. As we all know too well, two weeks after that, the world shut down. The new love birds made the decision to 'lock down' together, and as they say, the rest is history.

It was a freezing cold day, December 10, 2022. Alex was playing golf at an indoor simulator (as usual). When he was set to finish, Nicole, Alex, and Zoey had plans to go for a walk at the Irving Nature Park Beach, as they often would. Alex was late getting home, so Nicole checked his location to make sure he was ok (naturally). Here, is when she saw he was at her parent's house. She immediately threw her phone. What was he doing there? Is something happening? She had many racing thoughts. She later rationalized that her dad had asked him for some help, as he sometimes would. When he arrived home, the three headed to the beach. All was normal, until Alex asked to take a picture. Now, Nicole put it altogether. She set her phone up to lean against a large rock. Alex then asked if we could take a video instead. (For anyone who doesn't know Alex, this is VERY out of character for him to be the one asking to document their outings.) The three posed for a photo. After a few seconds, Alex said to Nicole, "what's on Zoey's collar?". Nicole looked down, and read, "will you marry my dad?". She promptly looks up at Alex, who was on one knee. It was the easiest yes, ever.

Knowing how important family is to her, Alex had pre-arranged both of their families to arrive at their apartment shortly after their return from the beach. They celebrated with lots of Prosecco and charcuterie (and hugs and tears). For the evening, he had made reservations at Nicole's favourite restaurant in Saint John, Italian by Night (where they later would choose for their reception venue!). The celebrations continued. After their delicious dinner, they decided to return back to the spot where it all began, Hopscotch, for a celebratory cocktail.