We met in the fall of 2022. What we didn’t expect was just how chaotic that school year would be. As Joseph likes to say, we trauma-bonded over the hardships.

The school we landed in could generously be described as... challenging. We quickly became each other's lifelines. In the middle of that stressful environment, we found each other — two people clinging to sanity — and in the mess, something beautiful began to grow.

We bonded over our shared love of teaching. Long before anything romantic sparked, there was a deep respect for each other’s dedication to our students. What started as shared glances and post-school vent sessions turned into late-night talks, inside jokes, laughter, and eventually, love.

Since then, our little world has grown in the best ways. We adopted two dogs together — bringing our furry family to a total of five animals: two cats, Nala and Belle, and three dogs, Alice, Bruno, and Canelo. We bought a home, filled it with love (and pet hair), and built a life that feels uniquely us.

Surviving that first year together was no small feat, but it gave us something extraordinary: a foundation built on friendship, laughter, love, and shared dreams. Now, we’re stepping into this next chapter hand in hand — and we can’t wait to see where the journey takes us next.

M&J