Our Story
How We Met
We first crossed paths at work in June of 2013 while working on a professional resume-building exercise. Matt, with his grounded and humble nature, found it challenging to highlight his achievements, a task that didn’t come naturally to him. Despite this, we clicked right away. During the exercise, I discovered some fascinating things about him – he holds a Minor in Latin and has a background in drumming, even performing at Kings games. Despite my enthusiastic encouragement, he didn’t include these in his resume.
That day, we completed our resumes and shortly after, Matt took off for Hawaii with a one-way ticket. We kept in touch as I traveled to Hawaii, and our professional friendship blossomed into something more. By September 2013, we decided to start dating, marking the beginning of a beautiful journey together.
The Proposal – 12.31.2018
In December 2018, we were fortunate to travel to India for our friends' wedding and spent two wonderful weeks exploring. On our return journey, we had an overnight layover in Dubai before heading to San Francisco. Matt, with some help from our travel companion Julie, planned this stop to coincide with New Year’s Eve and made a reservation for dinner at the Four Seasons Dubai.
We arrived around 9 pm to find ourselves at a lovely outdoor table with a view of the Burj Khalifa. The sight was incredible.
As midnight approached, the sky lit up with fireworks, creating a truly surreal experience, especially since they were launched from the building itself.
After the fireworks, things began to calm down, and Julie suggested we pose for a picture. As we got up, Matt began speaking to me, and when I turned around, he was on one knee. He asked me to marry him, and I said YES – 100% YES – and immediately began to cry. For the rest of the night, we felt like we were walking on clouds, with butterflies in our stomachs. It was an unforgettable evening.
The Elopement – 02.20.2020
We planned an intimate elopement followed by a larger celebration, but COVID-19 interrupted our plans for the big event. We exchanged our vows at Magic Island in Ala Moana Park on February 20, 2020, at 2 pm, enchanted by the symmetry of 02/20/2020 at 2 pm. With Diamond Head as our backdrop and a trade wind gently blowing, it was just the two of us in a truly magical moment. 🦄🏝️🍍
