It all began on the volleyball court.

Daniel was invited to play sand volleyball for 6-8 months before he finally decided to show up for the first time on May 23rd. When he did, Tori definitely caught his eye. Daniel thought Tori was interested in him because she asked him to stay late and play doubles multiple times, but to Tori there was nothing there.

A week later Tori spent the whole day at her long-time favorite coffee shop in town, Bentonville Onyx, where Daniel happens to also be the manager. Daniel came over to chat a few times. He learned Tori had her nurse licensing exam the following day so he was a little nervous about asking her out. After coming back three times he finally got up the courage to ask her on a date after a quality 45 minute conversation. Tori replied with a yes!

Two days later, on June 1st, 2023, Tori and Daniel had their first date. Daniel picked her up at nine o'clock in the morning with Tori's favorite flowers. They went to Puritan for coffee and to play board games. They talked for a couple hours then went to Devil's Den for a hike. It was a very full and fun day to start off this adventure!

Tori went camping for the next week and the campsite didn't have cellphone service, so she called Daniel on her drive out. They talked for the 2 hour car ride, which was really special for Daniel that Tori would call to talk a day after their first date. After Tori got back from her trip they went on their second date. This time doing things a little more up Tori's alley. They went out to a friends lake house and went paddle boarding for a couple of hours. Water activities aren't necessarily Daniel's strong suit so Tori had quite a few laughs of Daniel falling off on his own accord, or being helped in the water from time to time. They finished just before the rain started for the afternoon. They changed plans for the remainder of their second date and reconvened for dinner and board games that night. A third date was agreed upon and the rest is history.

Over the next couple of weeks they made the most of the little time they had together. Daniel had a family vacation trip and was gone for a week and a couple weeks later Tori was out of the country leading a church trip. They had regular FaceTime calls and daily text updates with photos. When Tori arrived back in the country, things really took off. They spent time together everyday for the next twelve days and really enjoyed those days together. That time was so sweet for them both.

Snapshots of the following months

For their 3 month anniversary Daniel set up a fancy date night at a local gluten free restaurant for dinner.

They spent many dates making gluten free chocolate chip cookies and playing board games together.

Daniel and Tori started to spend time meeting family and close friends. This included dinners with couples and movie, game nights with groups or hikes with friends.

The Proposal

Daniel and Tori's schedules were pretty busy at this point and finding extended, intentional time together was a challenge. But on January 24th Tori wasn't working so Daniel told Tori it would be a date day after he got off work. He was training at work that morning which kept him fairly distracted and helped with his nerves. Tori came by the shop to read and once Daniel was off they went over to his house to work on a puzzle they had started on New Year's. He was trying to make her think it was a normal date day and it worked fairly well. They finished the puzzle within 5 minutes of needing to leave which was perfect. Daniel snuck the ring in his pocket and they were off. They talked as they drove; Daniel hoped she wouldn't ask questions about where they were headed. They arrived at Tanyard Creek, a favorite, local spot of theirs and started off on the hike. When they arrived at the proposal destination Tori saw the photographer pop her head out and her jaw dropped. "Well here we go" Daniel said as he got down on one knee. Tori said Yes!