It was around the middle of march in 2017 when i swiped right on Carly in 2017 on the dating app "Bumble." On bumble not only does the girl have to swipe right on you to have a match, but the girl has to send the first message within 24 hours of you two matching to have any further communication. Well as you see, that all happened! One of my profile pictures on there was me dressed as Dexter for Halloween. I guess Carly loved Dexter and one of the first messages she sent was an emoji with hearts as the eyes, and said something about that picture, and said do i just marry you now or what!? It might have taken a couple of weeks for us to finally meet up. It was Saturday night, and i was at my friend Chris Antos' house, and we wanted to go out for a few drinks. Carly wanted to meet in person as well. She was bringing her friend Courtney RIley. So we made a plan for us to meet up, and both of us bring a friend along, just in case something went awry. We met up at Johnny's tavern on 95th street. Chris and I got there early so we could scope it out, since he lived a minute away. We sat at a table behind the bar far away from the door so we could see everyone that walked in, and if we wanted to run once they said they have arrived in case they were a "catfish." They both walked in, and sat down. We were all enjoying each others company, and decided to extend the night and to Talk of the town. As the night went on, and more drinks were had, the night didnt end too smoothly the way we both had thought it would. After a couple of more dates with just myself and Carly, we knew that there was a connection. My intents and purposes to be on Bumble were not to find someone that i could potentially love, and apparently, neither was Carly's! Her friend Lauren had bet her to get on Bumble and she would find a boyfriend, and Carly went on with the bet because she didnt think there were any boyfriend material guys on there. One of the stipulations was that she had to go on at least 3 dates with the guy. Happily ever after!
After reading Teddy's version, I am here to confirm - yes, our relationship did start as a bet!! And honestly, after our first date I really thought I had the bet in the bag!
If you already know the story, you are probably shocked we are actually here today; and if you don't know the story, it's probably for the best - because If I were to share the details of our first encounter on here, you would be equally, if not more, shocked than those who have heard it!
Either way - I am not 100% sure what it was that drew me to Teddy - even after our first couple of dates (oh boy were they rough loll), or knowing I would be losing a bet I was so certain I would win..
Now, I believe what drew me to Teddy was the balance to my life he was able to provide! The calm to my storm - the quiet to my loud - the drumette to my flat - the sane to my insanity- the laid back to my high strung - the country to my trap. We are truly a story of opposites attract, and almost couldn't be more opposite!
Even after our eventful beginning - involving situations that would be enough for a person to run far, far away- we both found ourselves running back towards each other instead! We have come a long way since those first few dates, and I now believe it was because we both loved how the other was able to fill in or balance out the qualities we had been looking for.
How did we actually stumble accross each other though? Good olé Bumble - a dating app I believed to be a complete joke (hence the bet) I just couldn't bring myself to believe any real relationships could be built from shallow tendencies (AKA swiping right or left based on looks alone.)
I know I was pretty darn close to proving my point - and then I met Teddy... I remember when his profile first popped up for me! The first thing I noticed - the red hair!! Next was the tattoos and last, a picture of him dressed as Dexter for Halloween. (A show I have always loved for those of you who don't know)
Once I swiped right and we were a match - I am pretty sure my first message to him was something along the lines of... "So, do i just propose now.. Or??" Pretty ironic considering the reason for you reading this story right now!!
Shortly after our first encounter, we had continued to make plans to hang out. There was just one thing I hadn’t shared with Teddy yet... In 2 weeks I was moving to Baltimore for the Summer to bartender at a seasonal bar on the shore. This was a plan I had made months before, knowing I never anticipated finding myself in a relationship. A potentially serious relationship for that matter - it just started as a bet - remember? I’m not sure when it was that I decided to tell him I was leaving, but once I told him he still continued to talk to me like it wouldn’t change anything.
Soon after arriving in Baltimore and about a month or more into our relationship - you know I had to cut to the chase and finally ask!! So.. what’s the deal?? Are you going to enjoy your Summer - allowing me to enjoy mine without being strung along thinking this is something that it’s not- Orrrr are we going to make this official and see what happens? The response I got? - “I guess you can just be my girlfriend then” and just like that - everything (including the uninvited attendee to our first date) became things of the past!!
Today - I couldn't be happier I lost the bet, because I totally freaking won when I scored Teddy, duh!
Carly and i went to a lot of weddings, I mean a lot! One day I had 2 friends getting married, and we went to both of them while Carly was pregnant, and she was a trooper that day! Over a 2 year span from about the winter of 2017 to the winter of 2019 we went to 10 weddings. Im mentioning this because Teagan was conceived on my friend Mark and Taylor Floods wedding night. It was Memorial day weekend in 2018. We didnt know until about 3-4 weeks later when Carly and I went on Vacation in Colorado. We we hiking, and climbed to the tallest peak in Colorado. Carly kept mentioning during and after doing these she would be out of breath, and would wake up each morning there a little nauseous, but we didnt think anything of it because we were in the altitude of Colorado. As we were climbing the endless amounts of steps to the peak of the mountain, i would be way in front of Carly and then slow down so i could stay with her, but she was so out of breath and i could hear her exhaustion and i mentioned something about it..LMAO that was a mistake! When we got back from Colorado, I was working on the afternoon shift when i got the text that Carly had taken a pregnancy test, and it was positive. So we went to the doctors office the next day to confirm it, and it was true!
On February 25th, 2019 - my life changed forever!
I remember I couldn’t sleep the night before, I woke up every single hour.. shocked it had only been one hour since the last time I woke up! I was so anxious for your arrival and so excited to finally meet you - the anticipation was killing me! (But so were you) my belly was too big at this point, I snored loud enough to send your Daddy to the couch and had carpal tunnel so bad I couldn’t feel my entire right hand for at least the first two hours of every day.
I never thought the night before we finally got to meet you would come!! We packed the car up at around 4am to arrive in time to prep for surgery. We should’ve known then how stubborn you would become - since you decided you just weren’t ever going to turn!! I was terrified of surgery- I had planned and prepped for labor. I even took birthing classes, and didn’t pay attention to the C-section part because I was sure, that wouldn’t be me. Wrong..
They rolled me out to the OR, without your Dad, to be prepped alone. I was even more terrified by this point.. I had to hold a pillow and some doctor in training (whom just completely botched my IV moments prior) while receiving the spinal block, and not your Daddy’s hand. When they finally let your Dad in to the OR I couldn’t feel a thing from my arms down, and your journey into this world began!
Two heavy blows to the abdomen and 7 minutes later at 7:54am, you were born. I was a Mommy - I was your Mommy!!
The moment I held you, nothing else mattered!! I had never been so in love with anything in my entire life. I could not believe you were ours!! Seeing the way your Daddy looked at you I knew- someone had finally won him over!
Everything was a surprise - you were a surprise, having surgery was a surprise, and making me a Mama sooner than expected, was a surprise!! I’m not usually the type for surprises, but you are the best unexpected thing I didn’t know I needed!
I love you, Teagan Chance - thanks for making me a Mommy &helping me become the person I’m supposed to be!
One thing I always told Teddy was not to propose to me while I was pregnant. Mainly because, even if it was meant for me, a part of me would always still wonder if he only did it because I was pregnant and it was the right thing to do.
Luckily, he agreed and waited a reasonable amount of time after Teagan was born to finally pop the question!
I think we both already knew we were stuck together for life, whether it be because we wanted to or because of the obvious. I know when speaking for myself I knew there wasn’t anybody else I wanted to spend forever with; but I’m not upset he waited to see how well we handled the whole parenting thing first.
Once we kind of started to talk about the idea of getting married I told Teddy I always wanted the engagement ring that was my Nanny’s and if he couldn’t get it - something that’s was almost identical loll.
He reached out to my Aunt, knowing she had the ring, but this was all still a secret to me!! When we took our vacation to Colorado in October 2019 (where my Aunt lives) we made plans to visit the Zoo. Though I knew my Aunt would be joining us- I had no idea it wasn’t just to see Teagan, but to also accomplish a sneaky ring hand off.
Looking back, I think I Teddys original plan was to propose to me on the Bear look out, which was pretty high up in the air!! Knowing Teddy is afraid of heights, when he was trying to get Teagan and the front carrier off of him - looking a little green in the face - I assumed it was because of where we were in reference to the ground... not because he was so nervous to do the deed!
Unfortunately, I think I ruined this opportunity because I took action by taking Teags and immediately figuring our quickest way to the ground.
At this point, we walked the whole zoo and were leaving - I had already asked Teddy multiple times if anything was wrong because he had just been acting so strange - well I was about to find out why....
In the zoo parking lot among the chaos of strapping, unstrapping, breaking down the stroller, and packing up the car... I nearly tripped over Teddy who had knelt behind me on the ground. In true spontaneous Teddy fashion - he asked me to marry him, WITH my Nanny’s ring, in the parking lot of the Cheyenne Zoo. Honestly, knowing the functionality of our relationship, the impulsiveness in the way he asked me to begin our journey to happily ever after was very fitting, to say the least!
I couldn’t be happier to finally get to say I do after a series of unfortunate circumstances has kept me from getting the chance to do so sooner!!
I wanted to get my proposal in picture and or video to see our natural reaction. We found out we were having a baby when we had just gotten back from Colorado in 2018 and we both loved the scenery and all it had to offer, so I suggested we take another vacation and go to Colorado. I had already known that I was going to propose to carly and I wanted her mom to be there while I did it. So we invited her mom, Chris (marys boyfriend), Lauren and Aaron to come along. They had all known the plan. Carly always told me that she wanted her grandmothers ring and if I wasn't able to get that ring, to try and find another one similar to it. Mary had got me in contact with her sister Liz who lived in Colorado and had possession of the ring. I told her that we were all coming to Colorado and would like to meet up with her at sometime secretly to get the ring. She agreed and met us at the Cheyenne zoo. The handoff was so suspicious I thought carly noticed! Thankfully she didn't. I would text Mary and her friend Lauren that I was going to pop the question at a couple of locations in the zoo, but the opportunity didn't seem right for me. I did get a little uneasy feeling in my stomach in the perfect spot, but we were do high up off of the ground by the ski lift and I dont know if it was the heights or just my nervousness of asking carly to spend the rest of her life with me! It was pretty chilly out that day but I was seating bullets, as each opportunity was squandered. And to make me more nervous,, carly asked me numerous times if i was okay. I guess I was acting strange for some reason! So as were leaving and walking to our cars, I t texted everyone and told them it was happening now, no matter what! Then the rest is history, she said YES!