After we realised online dating had delivered the goods, we decided to learn a new hobby together. Taking to our local indoor snow centre we enrolled in some snow board lessons where we built up our confidence before our first trip to the mountains was booked.
Georgie's love for travel was apparent from the start and has been a huge part of our relationship ever since. We have now visited over 10 countries together, and have visited some amazing places, here we are in Croatia!
Georgie had always been open about wanting to travel around the world. Georgie planned a 7 month trip beginning in Thailand. I decided that I would finish my Accountancy exams whilst Georgie travelled, however the travel bug had caught on with me... and I travelled to Thailand with her. We got to explore numerous islands, experienced some amazing hospitality and learnt to Scuba Dive together completing our open water diving qualification. Leaving Georgie for 7 months was the hardest part of our relationship, testing every element whilst living on complete opposite sides of the world. However, our relationship blossomed, we stayed close and managed to speak every day.
As my travels were coming to an end, Ben met me for the last stop in Iceland. It was amazing to be reunited and after lots of happy tears we had a great time together exploring the volcanic island in our hire car.
A true sign of Ben's love for me came on our way home. We check in on Icelandic Air flight however Ben was lucky enough to be upgraded to Business Class however I was not. After much deliberation, Ben gave up his Business Class seat and remained in Economy to sit with me on my last flight home... However, Ben continues to remind me of this to this day!
After Georgie's world adventure we turned our focus to buying our first flat together, which meant saving every penny, of course Ben had a spreadsheet for this! As a way to continue our travels, Philippa treated us for Christmas to a weekend away in Dublin in January 2016 which was a great chance for us to explore further. Georgie even had a pint of Guinness!
In March we exchanged contracts and received the keys to our first home together. After many night sleeping on a mattress on the floor, spending evenings decorating and building flat pack furniture, we were in!
Our relationship strengthened as we lived together and have enjoyed making our flat a home.
We found that when we lived together we stopped going on 'Date Nights' as every night was a date night!
We decided that it would be great to start alphabet dates, we would take it in turns going through the alphabet organising an activity or day out beginning with every letter of the alphabet. One of Georgie's favourites was our trip to the local ice rink where Ben did his best "Bambi" impression barely able to stay on his feet!
Once we were settled, Ben and I had to get away so our destination was chosen - Marrakech, Morocco. The weather was fantastic and as you can see, we got to ride the camels. Ben was offered a considerable amount of Camels to swap for me... but I managed to survive and here we are today!
Sometimes to Ben's dislike, we definitely make the most of every day we have off. After celebrating at a close friends wedding we decided to extend the weekend trip to visit Snowdonia. Ben had booked for us to experience the worlds fastest zip line - it was great fun flying through the sky!
If that wasn't enough excitement the next morning we set our alarm early to hike up Snowdon to be the first at the summit! Our legs were in bits, but it was great to explore together again.
Another sunrise hike, this time in Slovenia to watch the sun rise over Lake Bled. Ben's birthdays had often meant a mighty hangover from too much alcohol the night before, but to capture this picturesque view of Lake Bled meant a 5am alarm. But it was sensational and provided us fantastic views! And we still made it back in time for breakfast!
Ben and I have been lucky enough to continue to advance our scuba diving skills in Malta exploring and navigating the ship wrecks around the island with my mum and dad - a new hobby we love to enjoy together.
We decided to go skiing again in 2019, 4 years after our first trip, returning to the Alp's. The snow was fantastic, the setting unbelievable, and we had an absolutely amazing time...as we got engaged! Ben got down on one knee and Georgie agreed - poor girl! We were both absolutely ecstatic and we enjoyed the moment together. News soon spread around the hotel and we were gifted a bottle of Champagne, and had lots of happy wishes from other guests. It was magical, and we were excited to tell our family and friends on our return home!
After celebrating other close friends marriages, it is now our time to tie the knot which we are ever so grateful for you to be part of our special day.