How We Met
Erin and David met in the summer of 1996. Their families became intertwined when their older siblings began dating and eventually married with two beautiful children. Though their lives intersected at the occasional family event or birthday party, Erin and David continued on their separate paths and rarely said anything more to each other than the usual, “hi,” and, “bye.”
It wasn’t until one snowy weekend in winter 2010 that Erin and David had their first conversation. Erin had planned to visit her sister in Nevada but knew her Honda Civic wouldn’t make the drive. Conveniently, David was also planning to visit his brother that weekend – and Erin’s sister suggested she hitch a ride in his 4×4 truck. Though they wouldn’t admit it until later, both Erin and David were dreading the 4-hour road trip. What would they talk about for 4 hours? Had they even said 2 sentences to each other in the past?
Not surprisingly, Erin and David had more to talk about than either expected and spent the entire ride kindling an early spark of their relationship.
On the ride home to Turlock after a weekend with their siblings, Erin and David hit black ice at the top of a mountain. David’s truck swerved out of control and flipped into oncoming traffic. Though the truck was completely totaled, both Erin and David were able to climb out of the back window, shaken but unharmed. They both felt immediately bonded by the accident – and their four-hour wait time with no reception as they waited for a tow truck.
Months passed as friends before David finally asked Erin if she would join him on a trip to Yosemite. This day would later be referred to as their “first date” – the lovebirds then began talking every day – and the rest is history!
how they asked
I remember that work had been crazy that week. Between work, and school, and the last-minute volunteer event I was responsible for coordinating, I was anxious to get to David’s house and spend the weekend with him at Apple Hill. I had no hesitation to ask my parents to dog-sit Bentley and Baxter that weekend. They were more excited than usual to have them in Turlock, but I didn’t think anything of it – little did I know that this had been part of the plan all along!
Early Saturday morning on November 7 I left San Francisco to meet David at Apple Hill. It was an amazing day! We spent the morning tasting various ciders and pies. By early afternoon, after we’d eaten enough apples, I happened to be reading through Apple Hill’s brochure which advertised that Tahoe was only a 40-minute drive away. David and I love Tahoe and it was a beautiful afternoon – it was the perfect day to go!
Chance was in David’s favor that weekend – he had also been planning to get me to Tahoe from Apple Hill.
When we arrived at Lake Tahoe, David mentioned watching the sunset. We were walking on the beach when I saw a dog running straight towards the lake. Surprised and worried, I told David, “we need to save that dog!” I ran closer and realized: that wasn’t just any dog – that was my dog! To my even greater surprise, he was dressed in the cutest tuxedo, and my other dog was following close behind on shore.
At this point I was incredibly confused. Why were my dogs in tuxedos? Why were my dogs in Tahoe?
I reached down to pet one when I noticed a scroll on his back. As I unrolled the scroll, I noticed the poem:
Here ye! Here ye!
We come to you with these here scroll.
Trying our best to keep it from drool.
Your three boys have a question for thee,
Will you marry me?
I immediately began crying. David got down on one knee, said the sweetest words, and asked me to be his wife. It was the perfect moment, surpassing my wildest dreams and expectations!
I, of course, said “yes,” right as our families came running up to us, approaching us with hugs, kisses, and tears of joy.
It was everything I could’ve asked for and more.
