Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner

The Mansion at Strathmore

Wedding Ceremony & Reception

Ceremony

Reception

Fall

Our Wedding

After a crazy fall of dating mishaps, I was pretty much over dating. I was bored on my way home and decided to check my matches on Coffee Meets Bagel App just to pass time. I saw a cute boy on there named Tony and decided to message him. After exchanging four messages one asking if I was a "nice" or "mean" teacher, I agreed to meet up with him. We agreed to meet at a pub in Capitol Hill called Union Pub. I have never been there, so I was excited to try a new place. I honestly don't remember what we talked about. I do remember we talked for two hours and I wanted to keep talking which was rare for me on a first meet up. Tony reached out and asked if I wanted to go ice-skating. When we got to the sculpture garden the rink was closed, so I suggested we go to the Georgetown rink that I had been wanting to go to for a while. Tony said he was down, so we went and skated for hours. After we went ant got a glass of wine. Besides the fact that I was sleepy since it was 11pm, I also had a workout the next morning, so we split ways. Right after we met, Covid hit and we all went into lockdown. We started hanging out every other weekend and enjoyed spending time cooking, drinking wine and watching the Great British Bake Off. We found out we were both passionate about food, travel and LOTR. After awhile it made since for us to live together since we were both working from home. We decided to make things official in June of 2021 in North Carolina and then moving to our own apartment in Bethesda and got a dog.

Our Story ( Grayson's perspective)

I've still yet to have a job I hated more than the one I had when I met Grayson. Near the start of 2020, I redownloaded a dating app I had reasonable success with earlier. Things were still crazy and hectic at work but figured I had enough time for the occasional random chat with a match. I didn't. I think we exchanged a grand total of 4 messages on Coffee Meets Bagel and our allotted match time was about to expire. She was really cute so I sorta just went for it and asked to meetup with her at a pub after work. I picked one of my favorite pubs that was reasonably between us on the metro line, Union Pub. We sat and talked for two hours, mostly about our family, and got mildly lost when walking back to the metro. It was a way better than expected date but still a typical "let's get a drink date". When we decided to go out ice skating the following week though, I started to expect Grayson was someone really special. In a single night we went all the way from the Smithsonian statue garden (their rink had closed) to the Georgetown waterfront (their rink was thankfully open). Grayson on ice was one of the best things I've ever seen. We stayed out for a very, very, long time. I could only bring myself to suggest that we call it for the night when it was clear Grayson was going to pass out and fall asleep in front of her glass of wine at the local wine bar in Georgetown we went to. It's actually difficult to find someone in the area who hasn't burnt out on doing the typical "DC things" but Grayson really shared my love for the city. We managed to get in alot of really great dates in the short time we had before the pandemic started. Beating her at a spelling bee, and making out next to a trashcan in the metro were a few of the many highlights. After the pandemic started, at one point we had not seen each other for over a week and that felt like the slowest week in my life. It was an easy decision to shack up together when we both found ourselves confined to working at home. 2020 was insane for the reasons you'd guess, but it also involved me moving to a new apartment and both of us getting new jobs in the same week. I often thought back on how screwed I'd be if I hadn't found Grayson during the pandemic- and how much more boring my days would be if I couldn't listen to her trying to manage a virtual classroom of 1st-graders daily from our living room. After living with her full time in Arlington, and then in Silver Spring, I knew I wanted to marry her. And preferably get a larger apartment. And a dog.

Our story (Tony's perspective)

Our Story

Photos

Wedding Party

Q + A

There are three airport options when flying into the Washington, DC metro area:&nbsp; Reagan National Airport (DCA) serves domestic flights. It is a 30 minute drive from DCA to the wedding block hotel. Alternatively, it is a 1 hour metro ride to the wedding block hotel, the Bethesda North Marriott.&nbsp; Dulles International Airport (IAD) serves both domestic and international flights. It is also a 30 minute drive from IAD to the wedding block hotel. Please note that the metro does not fully extend to IAD.&nbsp; Baltimore Airport (BWI) serves both domestic and international flights. It is a 45 minute drive from BWI to the wedding block hotel. Alternatively, you can also take the MARC/Amtrak (commuter rail) from BWI to Union Station and then transfer to the Metro’s red line that will take you directly to the wedding block hotel.&nbsp;

Airports!

The metro is a great way to get around the DMV area. The Mansion at Strathmore is a 2 minute walk from the Grovesnor metro stop. The Marriott is 2 minute walk from the White Flint Metro stop.

Metro

Please be sure to make your reservation by Friday, September 23, 2022.&nbsp;Room rate (Standard Kings and Doubles): $89.00/night, not inclusive of tax.&nbsp;Parking: $19.00/night&nbsp;The Bethesda North Marriott is directly across the street from the White Flint Metro stop on the red line. The Mansion at Strathmore, where both the wedding ceremony and reception will take place, is a 6 minute drive from the Bethesda North Marriott. It also is directly off the metro at the Grosvenor-Strathmore stop on the red line (1 stop away from the Bethesda Marriott North).&nbsp;

Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center

Travel

Steps from the hotel, this shopping center has both great shopping and restaraunts.

Pike & Rose

One of Grayson's favorite museums in Washington D.C.

National Building Museum

One of Washington D.C.'s most popular destinations. See all the monuments and museums at your own time and pace.

National Mall

In the eastern part of the city a great place to find local businesses and restaraunts.

Union Market

This place is great if you want a beer and pizza away from the busy city. Located near by but not in the city.

Brookeville Beer Farm

Tony and Grayson's favorite brewery!

Silver Branch Brewing Company

Grayson and Tony's favorite wine bar.

Locavino

Best Ramen in all of Washington D.C.. Located in the heart of D.C. in Chinatown.

Daikaya (Ramen Shop 1st Floor/ Izakaya 2nd Floor)

Navy Yard has a variety of restaurants and beautiful sights. Along the water you can explore restaurants like District Winery, Due South, Salt Line and Ice-cream Jubilee.

Navy Yard Bridge

Just like Navy Yard, The Wharf is a great view of the Potomac with great bars and restaurants. Tiki TNT, and Del Ray as well as Hanks Oyster Bar are a few of our favorites.

The Wharf DC

National Portrait Gallery

Capitol Cider House

The bar where Tony and Grayson first met. Located near Union Station, the Capital and the Supreme Court.

Grayson & Tony

Grayson & Tony

Photos