It all began with a match on Bumble in July 2021. Emily remembers a very specific side profile picture of Joe that struck her interest, and Joe remembers a picture of Emily holding a dumpling in front of the Chicago skyline and was intrigued - by the food and the views.

From the moment they started talking, they felt a sense of comfort with one another, like they already knew each other. Their first few days of texting were a little wild—Emily at Lollapalooza, sending who-knows-what kind of embarrassing texts, and Joe had a wedding/road trip with his dad planned, so they didn’t meet in person for a few weeks. Emily honestly didn’t think they would keep talking, but every day they talked, and finally they booked their first date.

The first date was on August 19, 2021, at Maplewood Brewery. They spent hours talking - well - Emily spent hours talking, so much so that at one point, Joe kissed Emily mid-sentence. This definitely worked as Emily remembers it being a very smooth move.

From there, everything clicked. They were spending weekdays and weekends together, going to breweries, trying out different pizzas and cheese curds, and always being up for something new. They fit into each other's lives seamlessly—meeting Emily’s family at her home in St. Charles went perfectly, and Joe’s family felt like home to Emily from the moment they had dinner at Pequod’s and in Florida and Alabama.

Joe likes to joke that he knew he loved Emily the first time he played golf at the country club, or when he woke up to Emily cleaning her apartment in a hot dog costume. But really he knew he loved Emily around Christmas that first year after spending a lot of time with family together. Emily likes to joke that she knew she loved Joe after the first time he did his terrible english accent and she laughed for literally days about it. But really she knew when they were in Florida together that December, and specifically remembers lying awake in bed with excitement about it. After all that beer, food, and family time, they really understood how well their lives clicked, how they quickly became best friends, how they eased each other’s anxieties, and made each other belly laugh.

The next three years were filled with travel, from road trip Bulls and White Sox games, to London, to Hawaii, to Switzerland, to 100s (literally) of breweries, and lots of silliness (don’t ask them to do a Doodlebob or Toad singing impression unless you want uncontrollable laughter and to be left thoroughly confused).

On September 19, 2024—Joe completely surprised Emily with a proposal. On their way to “dinner” with the Murray’s at Gibson’s Italia, they made a stop at a beautiful riverwalk spot with an incredible view, and suddenly, he was on one knee. After Emily said yes (and “thank you” about 100 times for some reason), the surprises didn’t end there—they walked over to Tre Dita at the St. Regis building for a beautiful and delicious private dinner with a lake view. After dinner, they decided to go stop into their first date spot, Maplewood, and their family and friends were there waiting to celebrate with them. It was the most magical night and now, they can’t wait to continue this journey together forever.