Paddy and Leah first locked eyes at Caroline and Zac Bechtel-Boyd's intimate COVID wedding ceremony in 2020. However, both walked away from that celebration without the other one's number. Fast forward two years into the future and we meet once again at the same couple's formal wedding ceremony, and we hit it off!
 


Paddy was stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso, TX and Leah was stationed at Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM), WA. Luckily both parties decided to give this promising spark a chance – it helped that there were direct flights to each respective location! They both agreed to make a bold move when Paddy flew Leah out to El Paso, TX the week following the wedding. From there the adventure and flights continued and grew into a loving relationship.
 


Soon Paddy and Leah introduced each other to their respective families and they both got the stamp of approval! Paddy visited Leah and helped pack up her life as the Army send her on a six month Army rotation to Japan and the Philippines. Their love survived and Paddy actively sought a reassignment to the same location as Leah in WA.
 


Leah finally returned to the states and started her transition out of the active-duty Army and into civilian life. She flew down to Texas to start the great adventure of moving Paddy to Washington! There were a ton of memories that were made on that trip. To highlight a few: Hiking in neck-deep water at Zion, eating the best sandwiches in Sedona, murdering our tastebuds in San Francisco with hot sauce, seeing a live Shakespeare play in Ashland, camping under the stars, catching fish while swimming, running a mile in each state, and seeing friends and family along the way!
 


They settled into their new lives and could finally date each other locally. Leah shared some of her favorite local haunts in the area and Paddy learned that her favorite place was the Dahlia Garden at Point Defiance. Paddy took Leah on a walk on the evening of September 11, 2023 and asked Leah a very important question. Leah answered with a resounding, “YES! YES! YES!”
 


Now we get to celebrate our love for each other and the first step of our marriage on October 12, 2024.
 


Cheers to a lifetime filled with adventures, sunsets, berries picking outings, fishing trips, swigs of beer, and game nights to come!