My first impression of Erik when I first met him three years ago was that he was kind, reserved, earnest, and so very honest. I always had pleasant conversations with him, but never really thought more of it. But then during dinner one night, something clicked, and while walking home afterwards, I thought to myself, "Wow, I don't really believe in soulmates, but maybe he could be a soul friend." A day later, he emailed me and formally asked me out on a date. I had a sneaking suspicion that his older brother Sean helped him write it, which Erik later admitted to. Told you he was honest! 

The start was a little shaky, but it makes for a great story now. On the first date, Erik told me that he knew he really, really liked me because "he wasn't afraid of marrying me and raising kids with me." He said this on the FIRST DATE! I contemplated jumping out of the car, but decided instead to give him another chance. Our second date was a picnic at Muir Beach, where there were a few Golden Retrievers that went swimming in the ocean and then decided to shake off right near the delicious lunch Erik had prepared! There were a lot of long talks, walks through gardens, and sweet moments that not only confirmed all the great things I already knew about him, but also taught me that he was an extremely deep thinker, a sensitive and wise soul, and so generous and creative in the ways he showed how he felt about me.

Then he went on vacation to Europe. WITH NO SET RETURN DATE. Rude, I say. Just, ruuude. I missed him an awful lot, and it was during this time that I discovered how much I cared for him, too. We wrote long email letters to each other every day. After a few weeks of this and putting on a brave face, I finally told him via FaceTime that he needed to come home. (Thank you, FaceTime!)

Once Erik returned to San Francisco, we started sharing the news of "us" with our community. It was so fun to see all our mutual friends pretty much freak out upon learning of our relationship. And we were so moved by their excitement and support. 

As with many journeys, there were twists and turns. There were challenges and celebrations, but through it all, with every step, I knew. Erik is my person through and through. He is mine, and I am his. After we both realized this, things moved pretty quickly!

In September, Erik flew with me to visit my parents. During the visit, he asked for my parents' blessing to marry me, and my dad very exuberantly declared, "Definitely!" My mom teased my dad endlessly that he really should have made it a little more difficult than that. "We have ONE daughter," she said, "And you practically GAVE her away!" In October, I flew to Prague for vacation, and Erik joined me a few days later. We drove to a beautiful garden outside Prague, where I had a hunch Erik would propose, and as we walked by the castle, the pristine pond, the rolling hills...no proposal. Gah! Erik gets a kick out of this part every time. 

But THEN we drove through the beautiful countryside and made our way to Salzburg. After going on the Sound of Music tour (bucket list item!!), during which I got to live out my dream of pretending I'm Maria, we walked through Mirabell Palace Gardens as the sun was setting. With an accordian playing in the background, and a view of the castle on a hill, Erik told me he had a present for me. He proposed on a quiet bench in a rose garden. After I said "YES!" multiple times and cried for an awkwardly long period of time, Erik reminded me that I should probably open the ring box and try on the ring to make it official!

One of my first memories of Jane was a long walk on the beach that we took at a church retreat. I remember thinking that she was really easy to talk with and I enjoyed her company. A couple years later, we started connecting over some life stuff both of us were going through with our careers, and then one day after a lovely dinner, I realized... maybe I like her more than as just friends. I needed a little help though, and so my brother Sean and his wife Kerry coached me through writing (or maybe... just maybe, they practically wrote) an email asking Jane out. On that first date, I was so nervous that I talked a lot. Later on during the date, as Jane was asking more about how I knew that I liked her, I answered in a way that would have scared most people away. I said, I know I like you because I'm not afraid of the idea of having kids with you someday.

Those first couple weeks of dating flew by. I had been planning on taking a trip to Europe right around the time we started dating, and still felt like I needed to go. So, after just over two weeks of dating, I left for Europe with a one-way ticket. We agreed on a "just once a week" email plan... that lasted just a week. Ten days into my trip I got one of the most exciting emails of my life; a short note from Jane that said "hi, I miss you" that I followed up with a FaceTime call even though it was after midnight for me. And from there, it became emails every day.

My one-way trip quickly found a coming home ticket. Shortly after arriving home there were some heartfelt words shared on a bench in the Golden Gate Park rose garden (this is important for later), and then a wonderful date in Sausalito where we officially became a couple. From there, the summer just flew by and on many lovely dates, my feelings for Jane just kept growing. When she left for a weekend trip to LA, I felt a little lost without her. I was surrounded by friends and I couldn't stop talking about Jane! It was then that I realized that maybe this was more than just your standard relationship and that I again needed to do something about it. So after a few days of practice, I said "I love you" to Jane. Many tears were shed (which if you know us, is not surprising at all).

Fast forward a couple months, and I'm on a plane to Prague to meet Jane. The first day there, we went to a beautiful park outside of Prague. There's a castle, some lakes, and a massive park that's perfect for walking around. I had gone there during my trip back in May, and it seemed like it might be a nice place to ask a small little question. I put the ring in the camera bag and we enjoyed a lovely day wandering the park; going from one beautiful spot to the next. But I didn't ask -- none of the places felt just right.

The next day we were in Salzburg and went on a really fun Sound of Music tour where we got to see many beautiful scenes from the movie. Throughout the day, I kept wondering if there would be a moment that would feel right, but it never came. Finally in the evening, as we wandered through Mirabelle Gardens... there was a rose garden with a whole bunch of empty benches. After sitting quietly for a few minutes, I pulled out a ring box and asked the question I'd been wanting to ask all day. She immediately started crying (of course) and said yes. After a few minutes of us both crying incredibly happy tears, I said, would you like to open the box? She opened the outer box, cried some more (full disclosure, I did too), and then I asked again if she'd like to see the ring. With tears in our eyes and smiles all around -- some photos were taken. The next day, we came back and took even more photos... because how often do you get to take photos with your love in an incredibly gorgeous garden beside a castle on the hill.