It was just another day at the grocery store when Chris found himself in the cereal aisle. While looking for his next box of Golden Grahams he looked up and saw a stunning woman having some trouble reaching for a box of Cheerios from the top shelf. Being the gentleman that he is, he offered to reach up to the top and kindly grab the box for her. Using his swagger and alluring abilities he struck up a conversation with the pretty lady and the rest as they say in Hollywood is history! Chris and Jess began their relationship shortly after and here we are today,

Now if you believe all the above, please continue on to the next section and keep reading, if not…

The truth is, Jess and I met on Bumble during covid. We decided to take a shot in the online dating game and we think it's safe to say that it all worked out! If you ask Jack or Annabeth they will totally tell you in detail the Cereal story because we have engraved that into their young impressionable minds. But really, a profile read and a couple of swipe rights are what brought the two of us together and we have not looked back since.

Now this one was well planned out if I do say so myself! It was March 16th 2022. Not only would this day become known as “the proposal” but it would also be known as “the closing”!

For those of you who don't know, Jess and I purchased a home together. Our closing date was March 16th and so I thought, what the hell, let's bundle all of these life changing events into one and really make March 16th a date to remember. I made some phone calls, got some great advice and help from both of our families and decided that not only would we open the garage door to our new home together for the first time but at that exact same moment I would also drop down to one knee and ask Jess to make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife. In front of our immediate family, well recorded and many pictures taken, she said yes and her answer did just what I expected. A house instantly became our home and my girlfriend miraculously became my fiance. We threw a party that evening celebrating both events. Our closest family was with us throughout the day and evening and March 16th became a day for us that we will celebrate together forever.

In the early days of our relationship together we labeled dates by number so that they were easy to remember. To me Date #5 really stands out! We spent the evening at Rose Vineyards in North Brandford. We enjoyed some delicious food and tasted a few really good wines. I think we were both realizing at this time that our relationship was moving in a very positive and forward direction. What I really remember about this date in particular is just the deep conversations we had about life and family but also that Chris always gave me his attention. He listened and payed attention to the things I said. But not only did he listen and pay attention but he acted on those things too. Over our other previous dates I had mentioned that I really enjoyed reading and my favorite author was Nicholas Sparks. Sparks had just released a new book called “The Wish”that I could not wait to get! At the begining of our date, after Chris got out of his truck to open my door for me like a complete gentleman, (I was runnning late as always!) he pulled out a copy of the book. Chris had gone in and preordered the book for me before it had even been released. It was a moment in our relationship that I will never forget. I often lookback and think about how it truly was a date straight out of a Halmark film or a Nicholas Sparks book itself. The irony of it all is about a year later when reminising on this, in my opinion, picture perfect date Chris informed me that he had thought I was going to climb out of the bathroom window to escape! I had been on the phone several times with children related issues and he truly thought it was me giving my sister the signal to "save me" and get me out of the date. While he has since been reassured I was never considering climbing out the window or doing an Irish goodbye, I still like to tease him about how I was sitting in my chair looking out at the gorgeous view thinking what a perfect night it had been and he was thinking oh great this girl is going to bail!

I know we talked about our dates having a number so we can remember them but my favorite date is going to have to be one that we didn’t assign a number too. And it wasn’t exactly a date, it was more of a mini getaway. Our trip to Boston is my favorite date for sure. We had plans to attend the Garth Brooks concert in Boston but COVID shutting things down screwed that plan up and the concert was cancelled. So Jess and I decided to make a weekend trip out of it! It was hands down my favorite time that we have spent with each other. We took a tour of Sam Adams Brewery, explored Faneuil Hall, went on a food and wine tour, had a great dinner at the famous Union Oyster House and participated in a really cool haunted ghost tour of the city and its oldest cemeteries. We made memories together that will last forever. Our time together is always special but this weekend getaway will always be one that I remember most. The time we had to bond and just learn more and more about each other was so special and just made me fall more and more in love with her. Boston Mass, October 2021.