We both finished law school in 2010 but didn't know each other. Unintentionally, we both moved to the Washington, DC area around the same time, hoping to find a job in a tough economy and found temporary contract work on various legal cases. Coincidentally, we were both hired to work on a major telecommunications merger in late 2011, and our desks were right next to each other. Luckily, there were constant technical issues and computer problems, which slowed down work and gave us time to get to know each other! Laura was intelligent, feisty, and beautiful, and the more we talked (she did most of the talking!) and got to know one another, the more I wanted to spend time with her.

A few weeks later, the contract ended and our days as co-workers were over. Fortunately, I had finally worked up the courage to ask Laura out on the last day of work. I took her to Thai Chef in DC. It turns out that Laura LOVES Thai food, and she started to think that this stubbornly-quiet boy from Indiana was worth the frustration!

Tony

In our few years together, we have had some amazing adventures, traveled to exciting destinations, and created some wonderful memories. I knew early on in our relationship that this was someone special. While getting to know each other, we found out we had so much in common - we both love eating good food, drinking, traveling, 80's music, beards, living in a big city, brunch, hanging out with friends, and animals. The more time we spent together, the more I knew I had found someone who could keep up with me and be there when I needed him. And while Tony may be a quiet and stoic man when you first meet him - when he opens up - he is witty, opinionated, and very silly. I have enjoyed all of the memories we have made so far, and it's been fun introducing Tony to new things, like the joys of margaritas and guacamole (can you believe he had never eaten an avocado before he met me?!) And he continues to amaze me with his knowledge of geography and history trivia. We are also the proud parents of two wonderful kitties, Duke and Trudy, who enrich our lives on a daily basis. (And if you didn't know already, Tony has completely transformed into an adoring cat man!) I am happy to say that the quiet conservative farm boy from the Midwest is the perfect match for this crazy liberal cat lady from the Pacific Northwest.

Laura

Tony's Version:

I was being a real smooth operator. I (finally) decided that it was time for me to make a move. I knew picking a ring for Laura was going to be difficult because the ring would have to be as unique and classy as she is. So, I sneakily reached out to Laura's sister, Sarah, to get her take on it. Sarah and I would email and text back and forth about different ideas for rings and the proposal. I even changed her name to "Tom" in my phone in case Laura got curious!

I finally bought the ring and hid it in a cigar humidor (the last place she'd look) for a couple weeks. I took a day off work to scout possible proposal locations. I smoothly suggested to Laura that we do a "day in DC" and take a half-day off work. We visited a couple museums on the National Mall, all the while with a diamond ring in my pocket. After calmly and naturally excusing myself while at the National Gallery of Art, I ducked into the restroom to call Laura's sister Sarah, who had flown in to surprise Laura after the proposal. With Sarah in place, I went back to Laura, and we walked down the front steps of the Gallery. I casually suggested that we walk to a little garden outside the museum, where I took her to an empty bench, got down on one knee, and asked her to marry me.

When she said yes, we hugged and were happy. Then I remembered that I probably ought to give her the ring! A couple minutes later, Sarah walked up to surprise Laura, which caused Laura to laugh and cry at the same time. Afterward, we walked to a nearby bar in DC, which is a meeting place for Seahawks fans and happens to be located on Indiana Avenue. One by one, Laura's friends showed up at the bar since I had told them it was a surprise birthday party for Laura, but they were all surprised to find out that it was actually an engagement party. Good thing she said yes!

Laura's Version:

As many of my girlfriends will tell you, I had given up hope that Tony was ever going to get it together and ask me! Then in the Summer, I noticed he was acting weird. Around the same time, my sister Sarah started to talk about how great "T" was (her nickname for him.) And if you know my sister, you know she hates most everyone - especially anyone I'm dating - so this was a shock. That was a major clue that something was up!

One day in August, Tony had a brilliant idea to have a "DC day" since I was sick on my birthday and we couldn't really celebrate properly. This did not thrill me - as anyone who has been to DC in the summer knows - it's super hot and humid, and it's filled with annoying tourists. So when he suggested this, I thought, "Great, you want me to sweat my a&& off walking around the Mall with a bunch of stupid tourists? Yay!" But being the sweet and loving girlfriend I am, I told him it was a fabulous idea!

The day turned out to be wonderful - even before he popped the question - we had lunch at a great restaurant I'd been wanting to try for a while, we visited some really great museums and art exhibits that I never have time to see, and it wasn't even that hot or humid!

When I had had my fill of art, I told Tony I was ready for a drink, and as we walked out of the museum, Tony suggested we go sit on a bench. "Why, are there drinks on the bench?!" I thought. But again, being the sweet and loving girlfriend I am, I went along with it. This is where he started REALLY acting weird and I realized what was happening. I started to have a mild panic attack and can't remember a single word he said. When he asked me to stand up after sitting on the bench and talking at me for a bit, my vision started to go blurry. [More sweet words I'm sure he was saying but don't remember.] When he started to get down on one knee, I started to FREAK OUT. I started shaking my head violently and repeating the word "no" over and over again. This is when he grabbed my hands, looked me in the eye, and said very calmly and sternly, "Laura, this is happening." It snapped me out of my freak out and at that moment I realized my fear of marriage was replaced by my desire to marry this man.

Tony sums up the rest nicely above. I cried a lot. The ring was seriously stunning. Sarah surprised me and I cried more. Then we went to my favorite Seahawks bar and enjoyed the surprise with our DC friends. It was perfect!