How We Met
Nick and I met in 2013 while attending Arizona State University. We both worked the same on-campus job and were able to get to know each other over late night shifts. We became great friends and would spend week nights building bonfires and weekends searching for adventures to distract us from our studies. We bonded over our love for travel and our upbringings that were spread across many states and countries. Over the years we remained friends, but our romantic timing never worked out. A few years later I was beginning my Masters Degree and he was finishing up his Engineering degree and we were finally in the right place at the right time. We officially began dating in January of 2016 after Nick asked me to be his girlfriend while on a weekend getaway to Big Bear, California. Together we graduated college, moved to a new state, started our dream careers, and traveled as much as possible.
how they asked
Nick’s family lives overseas in Belgium and each year they travel to Garmisch, Germany to celebrate the New Year. We decided to spend the Christmas holiday with my family in Las Vegas first, and then travel to spend New Years with his family in Germany.
My mother has had a running joke with my sister and I that if someone one day was going to ask for our hand in marriage, she wants an old fashioned dowry for us – which should include at least a goat and a cow. While at my house in Vegas for the Christmas holiday, Nick hid a present and letter to my mother, asking for her blessing. Accompanying his letter was a small toy farm featuring the goat and cow she had always joked about. When we arrived in Germany, Nick messaged my mother to find the present he had left her. I was completely unaware that he had done this incredibly sweet gesture for her, and of her very excited “YES” response.
Because New Years has always been my favorite holiday, and Lake Eibsee in Garmisch has always been Nick’s favorite place in the world – this made for the most amazing moment in my life. Nick and his family took me to Lake Eibsee to see the place they all had cherished and visited throughout Nick’s life. The lake was beautiful and completely frozen, surrounded by massive mountains. Nick held my hand and walked me down to the lake while his family lagged behind. He told me we were going to skip rocks on the ice, and I eagerly followed him down to stand on the ice. Once we made it down to the lake, Nick held my hands, said the kindest words I have ever heard, and got down on one knee to ask me to marry him. His family stood near by and captured pictures of this moment for us. After I had happily said yes, they joined us on the frozen lake. They brought champagne and engraved glasses they made for us to celebrate our engagement. It was the most incredible moment and the perfect way to start this new chapter of our lives.
We were able to spend the rest of our trip traveling through Austria, Switzerland, and Germany celebrating and ‘ring’ing in the New Year.
