I remember driving to Philly in the freezing cold to meet Daina for the first time. The butterflies in my stomach didn't make the two-hour drive any easier (neither did her running 30 minutes late). I was so nervous that when she finally arrived and greeted me with a warm smile, I completely forgot to smile back. Despite my stoic greeting, she agreed to a second date. To this day, I think she said yes to a second date because I told her I had never seen Harry Potter before, and she made it her new mission in life to "save me from my deprived childhood."

Even though we lived in different states, we made every effort to see each other as much as possible. And it did not take me long to realize that she was worth every single mile. Every day was an adventure, whether we were exploring the city or just cooking dinner at home, because we were together. I realized how much she cared for me through the little things she did- calling me so I wouldn’t fall asleep driving and making sure I ate healthy. We talked so much that even our jokes and sense of humor started to become similar.

We would spend hours talking about how we wanted our dream house to look like (wrap-around porch) and our career goals and aspirations. She pushed me through MBA school, and even as she balanced her fellowship, she always made time to make sure I was okay, happy, and most importantly, fed.

As each day passed, I only saw my life with her in it, and couldn't imagine it any other way. That cold February night transformed into a warm memory that I will forever look back upon, and I cherish every day since then. I knew that Daina was the one, but now the hard part began...how to ask her to be my wife.

When Justin casually mentioned casually one afternoon that his friend was having a graduation party Memorial Day weekend, I didn’t suspect anything out of the ordinary – it was graduation season after all.

That Saturday morning I got ready and made the solo trip from Jersey to Philadelphia. When I finally arrived at the park, Justin's brother-in-law told me that everyone down this path by the water. I walked down the path expecting to see a group of people celebrating – instead, there was only Justin. Waiting for me across the lawn under a gazebo.

The walk to Justin from across the park could not have taken more than 3 minutes, but in those 3 minutes, a million thoughts ran through my mind. I remembered the first time he held my hand, the perfect birthday we spent together eating pizza and watching movies, and the countless hours we spent talking on the phone. I remembered how his hugs are my favorite thing in the entire world and how he encouraged me to get through school and survive my fellowship. I can't remember a word of what he said when I finally reached him and he got down on one knee. But I do remember the look on his face and how he was so nervous that he couldn’t figure out which hand to put the ring on after I finally muttered "yeah".

Justin worked so hard to pull off the perfect proposal for me, and he succeeded 100%. He managed to surprise me and leave me completely speechless (which is not an easy thing to do). I am so excited to to start our lives together and take my next walk towards Justin down the isle.