We met one warm sunny day in the summer of 2012. I had just graduated from Towson University and moved to Federal Hill, where Ben had been living since he graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 2009. We were introduced to one another through mutual friends, and the attraction and interest were immediately inevitable. Ben quickly thought up a sly (and pretty smooth) way of asking for my number so he could give me tickets to a concert him and some friends were planning to attend in Baltimore. It was at that concert that he built up the courage to bend {way} over (I'm significantly shorter than him) and say in my ear "I'd like to take you on a date next week if that's okay? I was thinking we could go out to dinner." I obviously said yes and stressed for DAYS about what I should wear. And MAN did Ben impress me on that first date. I was swooning! He brought me to this beautiful, upscale Italian restaurant in Harbor East. It was on this very special first date that my infamous nickname "Pinot" was born. Knowing nothing about wine at the time, but still trying to sound and look sophisticated/classy/knowledagble, I ordered a glass of Pinot Grigio which Ben instantly got a kick out of since he thought it sounded just like "Pellegrino." It was at that moment that he informed me that from now on, my name was going to be Pinot. Not only did that name quickly spread through Baltimore, but it also took on other forms such as: Lil P, LP and Lil Pinot. It was on this date that I realized something was different, in an extra special way.

After that first date, the following months were tons of fun, laughter and adventure. We were getting to know each other and having a blast doing so. Things came very naturally to us and we simply just clicked.We are very different, but still very much the same. That December (of 2012), he asked me to be his girlfriend officially at a concert in DC (funny reoccurring concert theme with us). I said yes and my life changed for the better. In the months following, we both agreed that we slowly but surely came to realize that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. We didn't verbalize it to one another quite yet, but we knew that we didn't want to ever be with anyone else but each other. As cheesy as it sounds (I know it is), we both now say that finding one another did make us truly believe in the term "soulmate."

*Written by Ben*

Jenna and I had planned a trip to the Dominican Republic in December to celebrate our three year dating anniversary (Dec. 14th). I knew that this would be the right time to "pop the question." Traveling through airport security, I was very cautious keeping the ring close by and very well hidden in my GoPro case. When we arrived at the resort, I quickly stashed the case in our room's safe, keeping it safely hidden from Jenna. I had called into the resort prior to us arriving and asked them to setup a dinner on the beach the second night of our stay (Dec. 15th). Lets just say the first day/night of vacation was not very relaxed, sitting at the pool.. thinking of how the servers who barely spoke English would help in setting up the dinner.. thinking of how the proposal would go.

Sure enough, the next evening came fast. I carefully took the ring box from the safe and put it in my pocket before we left the room to walk to dinner. As we approached the beach, the sun was going down and we could see that there was a giant spotlight shining down on a private table with a champagne stand nearby. We both looked at each other realizing that this special/exclusive setup was for us and started to laugh. "Wow, they are really doing it up for our 3 year anniversary dinner" I said, trying to play it off. As we sat down for dinner, I was clearly very nervous. When we think back, Jenna said I asked her random questions for the setting we were in- "what are you going to ask Santa for Christmas?" and "how's the new job going?" I guess it was my way of trying to stay calm and make it through the dinner. It was one of the first dinners where I barely even touched the food my plate. During dinner, I gave Jenna a card that said "happy anniversary...etc." , trying to reinforce that this was ONLY an anniversary dinner. Jenna now says that this part really threw her off for good. I knew her mind was definitely wandering. Towards the end of dinner, Jenna walked to the bathroom to change her contacts. Our server, Patricio, came over to me and said "Mr. Hunt, are you ready?? Would you like me to take picture?" We quickly devised a plan where after dessert he would ask us if we wanted to take a picture down by the water and then he would capture the moment on my cell phone. When Jenna returned, we finished our dessert and it was game-time. Patricio asked if we would like to take a picture and we both agreed and stood up to walk towards the water, and I handed him my camera. As he went to take the picture, I faced Jenna and went down on one knee. I pretty much blacked out and do not remember what I said from there, but it was one of the best moments of my life. After Jenna said yes, we sat on the beach celebrating with our champagne as we FaceTime'd lots of family and friends. It was now time to relax and enjoy vacation with the love of my life!