I moved to Atlanta in April to begin my new career at Expedia. Because I didn’t really know people in Atlanta, I decided to get on a dating app to meet new people, try some good restaurants and have fun. I’d basically given up on dating apps and had no intentions to meet my forever person on the apps.

The first (and only) date I set up from the app was with Brandon. I was exhausted the day of the date and almost canceled but I didn’t want to be rude so I reluctantly went. He’d chosen a hibachi restaurant because I told him it was my favorite. He talked at me the entire time. He asked me like two questions and the rest of the time was him talking. After a few hours I left and called my mom. She asked how the date went. I said “fine”. She knows that means I’m not feeling it. She asked why it was just fine. I explained that he barely asked questions about me and just talked at me. She said that he was probably just nervous and I should give him one more shot. I didn’t think she’d be right but I told her I would.

The second date was better but still a bit awkward until I made a move and asked if he wanted to grab a drink at the rooftop bar nearby. Once we got there things were so much more comfortable and we really hit it off. Between the first and third dates, he and I talked more than 19 hours on the phone. For those that know Brandon, that’s an absolute miracle so clearly he was interested lol. We connected on so many levels with values, thoughts on life and desires for the future.

He immediately wanted to lock me down lol. After the second date he wanted to make it official but as someone that had given up on finding my person, I was very hesitant. After a few dates I finally gave in and let him take me off the market.

The last year+ has been amazing. We have built a family together with Cooper and our extended families. I can’t wait to see what else God blesses us with throughout our lives together.

I had been on some bad first date's and was getting close to taking a break when Brittany and I matched. Our first 2 dates were okay but the spark didn't hit until we decided to grab a drink after dinner on the 2nd date at a nearby rooftop bar. The nerves went away and I began to feel a lot more comfortable with her. From that moment, we seemed to talk for hours until we got to know everything about each other. We began to spend more and more time together and fell in love pretty fast. I knew I wanted to get married, but nobody had given me the feeling that I could see a family with this person until Brittany. I didn't want to introduce anyone to Cooper until I felt confident they were the one, but when I knew I wanted Cooper to meet her and be a part of our life, that's when I knew I would do whatever it takes to marry her. Once I got to that point and had the engagement ring, I knew I wanted to propose in a way that involved Christmas (her favorite holiday) and I wanted her family to be there. I was so nervous that night at the Atlanta Botanical Garden and rushed through the proposal, but she said yes and the rest is history.