April 28th 2021 is the day this journey began. A journey we never saw coming. James S was out with a friend and went to music bingo at Hoppin in South End. They were sitting on a couch, having a drink when a boy and his friend walk in. Not even a thought crossed his mind about where this journey could take them.

May 12 they start talking on a random chat in Instagram. James S is described as "pry-ey" and a boy who won’t go away and keeps pressing. But none-the-less the conversation takes off from there. He find out that it’s James C.'s first birthday to spend in Charlotte and he doesn’t have any plans, and being the person James S is, he didn't want to let that go and have him spend his birthday alone. Being new to the gay world, he was looking for friends, and being new to Charlotte, James C was looking for friends. So we agreed to be friends. James C was the boy who didn’t want to allow anyone to be close to him. James S was the boy who wouldn’t stop prying. Who asked questions and pressed - like a barnacle, as he has been told. :)

Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith and trust someone to see what happens. <3

May 13th 2021 we go out for James C's birthday to Merchant and Trade. On a rooftop bar in Charlotte, celebrating as friends, neither of us knowing what the future would hold.

Then as our story unfolds and further develops, James C starts to capture James S's heart. The softness of him starts to unveil. Val, Joe, Finnegan, Amelia and Caleb come to Charlotte and his potential as a family man, and as a dad, is exposed.

We start dating and things take off from there. June 2021 becomes a transformational month for our relationship.

From a boy who never saw this journey coming, James S ends up becoming a boyfriend. Something he swore to himself he was sure he didn’t want. He just wanted to have fun, to see the world, and to be single for a while. And yet, it came out of nowhere. We started falling in love.

July 3rd 2021 we became official. James S gets the first boyfriend he's ever had. His life changes in a way never imagined and something completely unexpected.

James C goes to New York to be with his family and James S realizes he misses him; he felt incomplete without him. They FaceTimed a lot and James S spent a lot of time meeting James C's friends and family and people from different social groups on FaceTime until finally on a crazy hair, James S decided to fly to Buffalo to be with James C, and meet his loved ones in person... to meet the people and places that made James who he was. The thought was crazy. The idea was crazy. At a 4th of July pool party on July 3rd, James S books a trip to New York.

He travels to New York, is picked up at the airport after his flight, and James C has stopped to get him a drink and breakfast from Tim Hortons. They head into Rochester where James C shows James S around the city, where he once lived, where he works, a quaint coffee shop here, a cool restaurant there, and they find a waterfall that leads to a power station. James C tries to explain his work to James S, and for the 500th time, it still doesn't make sense. James S looks at power stations and says “Oh look, that’s James’ work” and that’s the extent of his knowledge.

As we navigate through New York, James S meets James C's friends and family at various events and times. He begins to figure out he's falling in love with him. This is the true turning point in our relationship where James S felt so vulnerable because he knew he was falling in love and there was no turning back.

This boy who captured his heart looks for ways to make him feel special in various ways. One way was scheduling time to go to Niagara Falls, when they really didn’t have the time. Since James S ended up coming up last minute, his visit wasn’t planned and yet somehow we still rearranged the schedule to make it for James S's first trip to Niagara. It was a magical experience that will never be forgotten.

Our relationship takes off from there. We returned to Charlotte and after several months ended up moving in together.

February 2022, we bought our first house in Charlotte and then in November of 2024 bought our second home in Matthews, NC. Today, we happily live in our beautiful home with our two kids, two dogs, two skinks, two snakes, a tomato frog, and ten chickens. If you think it's a zoo, you're right, it is. It might be a zoo, but it's our zoo.

We can't wait to celebrate the next phase of our journey with you. See you at the wedding!