Our story started as many do these days, on a dating app. After sending each other a single message each day for a month, Meghan finally had the courage to ask Mike out. To cut Mike some slack, it was June of 2020 when our story began.

We decided to meet at a Mexican restaurant in Manayunk, which is where Mike was living at the time. The first time we laid eyes on each other, we could only see each other’s eyes because masks hid the rest. The wait time for the restaurant was going to be over an hour, so we decided the wine bar across the street was a great alternative. We ate mediocre pizza and drank cheap wine (yes that was actually how it was labeled on the menu), but we couldn’t stop talking. We didn’t want the night to end! We spent several hours wandering around Manayunk, eating ice cream, and finding anything we could do around town to keep the date going. As we finally parted ways, we planned the next date for two days later.

From that point on, we were inseparable. Spending every weekend together and, as soon as travel opened up, we were on a plane to begin our adventures together. Our first and favorite trip together was traveling around Italy. After that trip, we went to Costa Rica, followed by Thailand. Outside of international travel, we’ve visited many places in the US together.

In June of 2022, we decided to embark on our next great adventure — homeownership. If you thought dating during Covid was hard, try buying a house! Just when we were about to give up, the perfect house presented itself. After settling into our home (and getting Stella settled), Mike decided to buy a ring.

January 22, 2023 after two and a half years of dating we got engaged. The day could not have been more perfect. Well, maybe a little sunshine would have been nice, but even the rain couldn’t dampen that day. We were leaving for Thailand in two days and Meghan was stressed about getting everything packed and prepped for the trip. Mike asked if Meghan wanted to go to the art museum. He knew that was something she couldn’t say no to (even when there were a million other things that needed to be done). The day started with lunch at one of our favorite spots in the city, Zorbas, with Meghan’s siblings. Tim and Julie wanted to see us before we left on our trip. They both didn’t betray a hint that they knew what was coming. We then went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, wandering through the exhibits. After spending too much time (according to Mike) reading plaques in the Asian Art Wing of the museum (one of Meghan’s favorite exhibits), Mike waited until they were in a room alone and popped the question. We wrapped up the evening with our parents and Meghan’s siblings at another of our favorite restaurants called Ralph’s in South Philly. It was the perfect celebration.