His story
It was a Friday. My friend Anna and I were hoping to see J. Cole in concert but arrived too late to get tickets to the show. As an alternative, Anna suggested that we go to her classmate’s birthday party that wasn’t far away. After a quick stop for two buck Chuck, we walked into the apartment on Beacon Street. A few people were there. Erin (the birthday girl and member of the wedding party) was getting ready, some friends were keeping her company, and sitting on the floor enjoying a frothy beverage was Annie. The party was uneventful other than one strange moment. I had courteously taken off my shoes when unprompted Annie walked over and wedged her shoed foot into my Topsiders and proceeded to toddle around the room. I still has no idea why she did, but I suspect it was the alcohol (*in T Pain voice). The night shifted to Ned Devine's, a bar downtown. The group was dancing to a cover band and that’s when Annie and I started hitting it off. I was impressed with her dance moves, though realized months later that Annie was self-conscious about her moves. I still have no idea why it impressed me but I suspect it was the alcohol (*in T Pain voice). Nevertheless I was smitten and asked for her phone number. The rest is history.
Her story
In 2013, I was living in Framingham and spending most of my weekends on Erin's pull out couch in Brookline. For her 23rd birthday, we had the typical planned: a drink or two in her apartment and an evening out downtown. We had our usual Providence College crew in tow and Erin also invited some of her friends from grad school. When Erin's friends arrived wine in hand, I didn't pay too much attention to the newcomers or the friend they brought with them (except for the shoe incident).
As we headed out to Faneuil Hall, I was surprised that this new friend decided to stick around after the rest of his friends went home, but once I saw his dance moves, I understood why he couldn't resist a night out dancing! I was pretty impressed, so decided to bamboozle him into thinking I had some moves of my own. It worked, we exchanged numbers and went on our first date on July 10th!
(Pictured:our first selfie together from that night, thanks to Katrina!)
Matt moved to Chicago for 5 months in January 2014 after we'd only been dating for 6 months! It wasn't easy being long distance but we knew it was temporary and the move gave us a great opportunity to explore a new city whenever we got together (despite the polar vortex)! Now we have lots of favorite places in Chicago and love the opportunity to go back and visit in better weather!
We first started living together in 2016 with our awesome former roommate Bobbi and her two kitties. While Matt claims he would have lived with roommates for the rest of his life, Annie was ready for a quieter living space for just them. When she bought her condo in 2018, that is exactly what happened! We enjoyed the peace of just the two of us, but it didn't last long. We soon brought the liveliest roommate yet into our home: Juniper!
We love traveling. It's one of our favorite things to do together especially when we can sample new cuisines and explore new cultures. We have been fortunate enough to travel to some great places, domestic and abroad, including Puerto Rico, Cancun, Athens, Santorini, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Cabo San Lucas, SoCal, Seattle, Miami, DC, Nashville, Richmond, Montreal, and Chicago. We hope to add to this list during our honeymoon!
His Story:
Prior to the proposal, I shared my plans with Annie's parents and asked for their blessing. A few weeks later, I suggested we have dinner as a way to celebrate our pending vacation to Mexico. We indulged in some delicious sushi at a posh restaurant in downtown and afterwards I was able to convince Annie to take a walk through the Common on our way home despite the cold weather. As we walked through the Public Garden, I stopped on the bridge over Swan Pond, stumbled through some heartfelt words, and dropped to a knee. A moment of shock and denial washed over Annie's face, but ultimately she said “Yes”.
Her story:
I was already looking forward to an upcoming Mexican vacation, when Matt suggested we go to a celebratory dinner at a place downtown I'd been wanting to try. Having just had a few long weeks at work, I could not have agreed more quickly.
After a delicious dinner, Matt suggested we go for a walk since he was feeling full. It was a single digit degree February night in Boston, and I wasn't super excited about the nondescript idea of "walking a little" but I agreed because he seemed to really want to go.
On our walk through the Common and Public Garden I was a little suspicious that something was up because Matt said some of the nicest things I've ever heard, including a concession that I'm funnier than he is (our biggest competition).
On the bridge over the pond, Matt pretended to take a selfie and as we got ready to pose, instead dropped to one knee and proposed! I was a little shocked at first, but soon recovered and said yes! I feel so lucky to wear my grandmother's beautiful engagement ring. It's more perfect than anything I could have chosen!
In July 2019 we adopted Juniper! She is the sweetest pup and absolutely loves to play and snuggle. She’s the perfect addition to our little family.
We’ve been to more than 20 weddings together since 2013! Whether you bring the moves like Matt or not we hope to see you on the dance floor at ours!
After postponing the wedding we had planned due to the pandemic, we still wanted to make July 18, 2020 our wedding day. We decided to get married in the community garden across the street from our home in Boston. With just 7 guests, some takeout, and our photographers, we managed to make a perfect day. Our marriage was a bright spot in a challenging year and we can’t wait to celebrate with all of our friends and family in 2021!