If you don’t know, James and I met on Hinge. I came across his profile multiple times but was always pulled away before I was able to come up with some witty comment. Finally, one day James liked one of my pictures and we got to chatting. We met about a week later for lunch.

We officially started dating! Because of COVID, we got to know each others families, with a big emphasis on our families dogs. Throughout the first year, I moved to Washington D.C., then moved back. I started a new job at Ace Hardware and James moved from Ascension to Lincoln. I also moved to Hinsdale to be closer to work.

We celebrated being together for a year by revisiting the spot we had our first date at. Throughout the year, we spent time at the zoo, went to a Dan + Shay concert, and explored many parks. We went to a Bulls game, and I went to my first Cubs game. James directed his first band concert at Lincoln and we vacationed in Clear Lake, Iowa with friends and family.

Over the course of the next year, James moved into his own apartment, we adventured in Chicago and tried tons of new food. We celebrated family milestones, visited the zoo some more, and vacationed, again, in Clear Lake with family and friends.

James proposed to me in living room of our Airbnb in Clear Lake, Iowa. It was the perfect way to end our vacation and we’re so excited to start our lives together!