We met on a blind date set up by our two best friends at the time. The idea was that Chris needed a date for The Prep homecoming dance, and so our love story began. We were both nervous and shy initially, but soon we began to loosen up. At first we were too shy to talk to each other much, but as the night went on we opened up. The conversation turned to Iron Man and Roller Coasters on the way home.

The following week, Chris had it his mind that he just had to see me again. While he was quietly thinking about me to himself, I kept bugging my best friend Steph if he had asked about me. Soon we started double dating. Our second date was to see the movie 'Seven Pounds', and our third was late night bowling. By our fourth date, Chris knew he wanted to make it the real deal. After watching Gran Tourino at our friends house he got up the nerve to ask me out. We will always debate this moment, as he asked "Would you mind going out with me?", and my being a grammar snob replied, "No, I wouldn't mind." Apparently everyone in the room only heard the "No." He started to leave dejected, and I quickly clarified that I would love to be his girlfriend.

The next 6 years had their ups and downs, as we had fun together for a year and a half in high school but soon separated for 5 years of long distance. I stayed local in the Philadelphia area, and Chris chose to go to college in Pittsburgh, PA.

So many people asked me how I could trust him being so far away, but from the moment I met him I saw him as a trustworthy and kind human being. We strengthened our relationship by growing up apart during college years and visiting each other as much as possible. By year five of our long distance haul, we started to talk about our future. We decided that we wanted to live together first before getting married. This conversation was pushed back until the final degree was earned by Chris.

Once he was home for a little while and placed with a job, the news was broken to the families that we planned on moving in together. I had already been living on my own for the past two years, but we felt we were ready to give living together a try. It was a little rough, as expected, in the beginning as I had to get used to sharing a space with another human being again. Gradually Chris became accustomed, and happy, to live with Esmerelda (our Min Pin) and myself.

After living together for six months, we decided to take a private vacation in Longport, NJ. It was during this week that we decided we were ready for the next step. I started to tease him, and he made it seem like he wasn't going to ask for another year. So I let it rest and stopped worrying about when he would ask. Little did I know, he had other plans.

On September 3^rd, 2016, after spending time with the lovely Stephanie for her birthday, we were headed down the shore to visit Chris' family for the weekend. Sadly, due to Tropical Storm Hermine, they were already evacuating and heading home. Despite the ominous weather, Chris insisted we head down the shore one last time before the fall came. I felt this was a little odd, but did not suspect anything. Little did I know, that he wanted to walk along our typical beach route in Longport for a special reason. We took our shoes off and took our normal stroll along the shore while reminiscing about our time together and families. As we neared his grandfather's beach condo, Chris rolled into a whole speech about how I waited 5 long years for him. He said that I waited patiently while he was at school, and he never wanted to be away from me when I needed him most. Before I knew it, he was down on one knee asking me to be his wife. I said yes, and happily wore the ring. Soon we headed home and met up with family to celebrate. The rest is history and soon to be Happily Ever After!

Registry