How We Met
August 25th 2009: My first day of sophomore year. As I gazed around my physiology class, I realized that I was one of two sophomores in the class, the rest being seniors. Nervously, I introduced myself to my newly assigned group. And then I met Brian. He was so charismatic, charming, and genuine. Somehow, I felt instantly relaxed, comfortable, and safe.
Fast forward 4 weeks later: We both had several classes together including leadership. Student body class officers, sports officers, and event coordinators were in this class, and together we planned events such as homecoming. The homecoming dance was coming up and I knew I wanted to ask Brian, but how? Leadership class was all about unity and fellowship, thus the legendary compliment bags were invented. Every member in the class had one bag, and you were free to drop notes whenever you wanted in others’ bags (e.g. “Your hair looks so pretty today!” “Thank you for helping me with that project”). So, I decided to drop a note in Brian’s bag that read: “You = dancer. Me = fun. You + Me = Fun at the homecoming dance?” Rather than signing my name, I wrote down my number… A few hours later, I received a text from a number I didn’t recognize. We texted back and forth all day, and he later told me to check my compliment bag. I received a note! He had accepted my offer :-)
On November 7th, 2009, he took me on a date – sushi! Later that night, we headed back to his car, where he conveniently had a small whiteboard and markers. We played hangman and it spelt out “Check the compartment.” Upon opening the compartment, I find a stuffed animal of Simba (Lion King being one of our favorite movies) with a note attached to him. From this moment forward, Brian was not just “the guy I was talking to” – he was my boyfriend.
how they asked
On March 19th, 2016, Brian wanted to take a day trip. We set out super early (or late) – 4 am! I fell asleep in the car, thinking we were headed to Tahoe for the day. Two hours later, I awoke in the beautiful wine country of Napa. We walked up to the winery where many other people were signing in, grabbing breakfast, and getting cozy. We were going hot air ballooning (riding a hot air balloon topped my bucket list for years)!
The sun began to rise as we drove out to where the balloons were. I gazed upon the horizon, taking pictures of every balloon as they were being inflated. Brian began to speak, telling me how much he loved me and was grateful for me, and I responded, “I love you too,” still taking pictures, my gaze fixed upon the balloons. He swiftly turned my shoulders to face his direction as he pulled his hand out of his pocket and got down on one knee. Before I knew it, my dream engagement ring was fixed upon my ring finger and a couple of our best friends came out from hiding, taking pictures and cheering us on.
We got married on September 7th, 2016 and moved in together (along with our terrier mix, Bentley) shortly after.
