We met online, and Josh says, "the stars aligned."

We bonded quickly over a love of the outdoors, homemade pizza and bad horror movies. Within the first six months of our relationship, we traveled to meet each other's families and moved in together. Two years later, our shared space is filled with many animals (Lily's) and many bikes (Josh's), as well as laughter and love.

Our relationship has been a great balance of adventure and enjoyment of everyday life. We have traveled to Hawaii and Costa Rica, and take road trips to parks and camping spots around the Pacific Northwest. We have enjoyed showing each other where we grew up, too. Josh has experienced Wisconsin's supper clubs, the Dells (the waterpark capital of the world) and dock fishing up north. We've visited Josh's hometown, Stanwood, which is north of Seattle, and San Diego where most of his family lives now. San Diego is always an adventure and we enjoy the zoo, the really good Mexican food and driving to see Josh's favorite plant group, the desert succulents. When not traveling, we work pretty opposite jobs, as Lily describes it. Lily is a public school teacher and Josh works in AI infrastructure. At the end of a long day at work, we enjoy playing Scrabble, eating whatever delicious food Josh has prepared (he's the cook), and cuddling with Haddie.

Who is Haddie? Well, we both share a love of animals, although Lily's is a bit more extreme. In June of 2023, we put down a deposit on our first child, a golden retriever puppy named Haddie. The little puppy had a bit of a rough start in life due to a traumatic injury at birth but she was the perfect addition to our family and has taught us how to co-parent a toddler in a dog's body. Haddie takes after her mama as she loves collecting toys and things and is a bit on the dramatic side. Like her dad, Haddie is a redhead and loves to be outside.

This past six months have been the most exciting for us. We returned to the Olympic Coast where we backpacked together at the beginning of our relationship. While watching the shorebirds, Josh popped the question! Soon after, we bought a house in Lake Forest Park where we are excited to grow our family. We added two kittens to the crew in January.

Lily's favorite thing about Josh is his patience, kindness, ability to make her laugh, and his willingness to try something new. She also appreciates that he tolerates her extreme Lego hobby and many small pets. Josh's favorite thing about Lily is her outgoing personality, her dedication to her job, her ability to help him through the hard parts in life, and her sense of humor and smile.

It's an amazing feeling to find your person in life, and to have the love and support of our friends and families. We can't wait to celebrate the next chapter with everyone!