Maria and Mark had a vacation planned for the first week of October 2023. They had been looking forward to it for months! It started out in Orlando, just the two of them. They went to Universal Studios Horror Nights, and had a blast!

After 3 days in Orlando, they headed to part two of the trip: 5 days on the beach in Venice, Florida at Maria’s family’s vacation home. Her parents were there, and already knew Mark planned to propose. The first night there, Mark insisted on dinner at their favorite spot, Fins. After dinner, Mark thought it was a nice night to walk on the beach and look for shark teeth (Venice is known for having an abundance).

Once they were on the beach, Mark knelt down and said he’d found something. Maria turned and as tears began to fill her eyes, Mark pulled out a ring and proposed, and it was the easiest “yes” ever! They headed back to the house where her parents were waiting with champagne to celebrate. They spent the rest of the week on the beach, and celebrated the start to their forever!