How We Met
In a magnificent stroke of luck, Will and I found each on the online dating site OKCupid in November of 2012. We met one autumn afternoon in Rittenhouse Square for dinner and the date continued hours afterwards walking all over the city. Throughout the next week, Will visited me while I was working the late shift, for my dinner break. We bonded over our many bowls of delicious Chipotle.
Our relationship blossomed easily, finding mutual interests in circus aerials, exploring Philadelphia’s restaurant & bar scene, and our pet cats. Will was my strongest support system for me as I embarked on the extremely intense Physician Assistant Master’s program. He spent many evening helping me study by being a human model for physical assessments. In turn I supported Will during his rise through his research group’s lab and making sure he was adequately fed (a feat for such a hungry guy). After three years together Will thought it was the right time and together we designed a unique engagement ring to symbolize our love.
how they asked
Will, being the hopeless romantic that he is, knew that I would love to be completely surprised by the proposal. Unbeknownst to me he spent months coordinating the event, taking extra care to make sure everyone involved knew that under no circumstance should they blurt out the plans. April 29th 2016 I met him for a dress rehearsal for a circus show in which we were performing together and was thoroughly unaware that a master plan was about to unfold.
We watched our friends rehearse their acts and I admit that I was completely oblivious that Will seemed more nervous than normal. Part way through our act the music skipped. At first I thought there was a technical glitch but when I saw Will climbing the rope and the music changed to “You Make me want to make a new dance up” by Hey Ocean!, I knew that this would be the moment that my whole life changed.
The song was overlaid by voices of my friends and family saying how much they love us as a couple and are excited for our engagement. After I heard each voice the owner walked out. First, our friends and aerials coach Brendan and Lourdes, then my friend Kelly, then my friend Brandee (who was flew in from LA), and finally my mother and grandmother, who flew in from Florida and Rhode Island. In a spectacular drop from the ceiling, Will descended from the rope, almost tripping on the mat on his way down, got down on one knee and proposed.
Fortunately, the whole affair was professionally filmed and photographed, because I was in a complete fog and was so stunned by the entire event. A table, cupcake cake, flowers, and champagne were brought out, also coordinated by Will, for a small afterparty with my friends and family. I was absolutely overwhelmed by the amount of effort and coordination that he put in so that my friends and family could be involved in our engagement.
We are planning our wedding for Labor Day, 2018. Our wedding website is full of photos and videos of the engagement and our engagement photo shoot, which of course, was done on a corde lisse.
