Barbara Ann and Chris's relationship began at the Seattle Tennis Club. Chris first met Barbara Ann in July of 2014 when she was dominating the club's annual tournament. Years later, Chris took up the game and eagerly invited Barbara Ann to hit with him. With a little nudging from some friends, Barbara Ann joined him and began to spend more time at the club to cultivate the relationship. This photo is from the summer of 2022, when Chris and Barbara Ann made their debut as mixed doubles partners. Love means nothing on the tennis court, but thankfully Chris will always consider himself more of a baseball player.
Chris and Barbara Ann love to be on the move and know how to arrange an adventure. This picture is from their trip to France in the spring of 2023. They saw nearly every major landmark in Paris before venturing down to the French Riviera. The highlight of the trip was the three days they spent at Roland Garros watching the French Open. Chris built an impressive 10-day agenda in 15-minute intervals and Barbara Ann demonstrated extraordinary patience with Chris' neuroticism. As they were checking bags for their flight from Paris to Nice, Barbara Ann set her suitcase on the scale and proudly claimed that her bag only weighed 25 pounds, forgetting that the French prefer to measure in kilograms. As is typical, her bag actually weighed ~55 pounds.
On January 19th, Chris spent the afternoon preparing his house for an intimate proposal that evening. He picked Barbara Ann up after work on their way to exercise together. A nightly ritual for the couple. That evening's activities were a brief stop at the gym, a social tennis group, and drinks with friends.
Following tennis, the couple and a handful of their friends had such a good time at the bar that they lost track of time. Chris, recognizing that Barbara Ann was enjoying herself, opted not to rush her home to the proposal. Cutting the fun short wouldn't have been in the spirit of the evening. As the group ordered a second round of drinks, Chris Googled, 'How long do tea candles stay lit?'
The couple arrived around 11pm at Chris' house, where he was relieved to find that the tea candles were still lit. Neither can remember exactly what happened between the moment they walked through the door to the moment this picture was taken, but they're pretty sure Barbara Ann managed to say 'Yes!'