How Did Y’all Meet?

Rocky Fork Adventure Session

Rocky Fork Adventure Session

We both swiped right! I was frustrated with the connections I was making on other dating sites. At a Girls Night, one of my friends suggested I try Bumble. Reluctantly, I created a profile and a few days later, Shane’s profile popped up. He was standing next to a huge Lego figure in true Shane goofy style. He loved camping and had recently moved to the Asheville area. We began chatting in February, bonding over discussions of cheese, camping, and waterfalls. It took us two months to finally set a date to meet in person. He drove an hour and a half to meet me in Johnson City.

When I first saw him in person, I remember feeling my stomach drop to my toes. We talked and talked as if we had known each other forever. It was the most comfortable I had ever been on a first date. But I had already decided it wasn’t going to be a serious thing. I surprised him two weeks later with a stay in a yurt. Little did I know that was one of his dreams. Two weeks after that was our first camping trip.

A month later, in his tent next to a swamp supervised by Ted the toad, Shane first uttered the L word as he left for work. For a year, we took turns making the commute between our two cities. Then, when we both made job changes and relocated to Johnson City, we joined households. We’ve been inseparable since we met and can’t wait to make it official.

Tell Me About Your First Date Together

Rocky Fork Adventure Session

After two months of texting and phone calls getting to know each other, Shane finally asked to meet in person. He drove up to Johnson City on his day off, spent the morning hiking in the area, and ended up at a coffee house where he waited until I got off of work. We went to Holy Taco for dinner, where Shane was completely honest about himself. There was much more talking than eating.

After that, we continued our conversation as we walked around downtown Johnson City. The decision was made to try and find another place where we could sit and talk. As we passed Freiburgs, we saw the place was packed. So, we walked in the back entrance only to discover we had crashed their recording session for a commercial. So, we continued on and found Yee-Haw was open and had live music playing.

The couch in the back was open, so we proceeded to sit and talk for a few more hours. It felt as if we had known each other our whole lives. There was a level of comfort with one another that neither of us had experienced before.

How Did You Fall In Love?

I fell in love with Beck very quickly despite the fact I wasn’t really looking for a life partner. At the time, I was living my life in the Pisgah National Forest. I was drawn to the fact that she would come to visit me in the forest on weekends. It was during those visits that I was able to witness her genuine compassion, caring, sense of adventure as well as tolerance, and patience with my somewhat unique personality. Beck led me out of the forest with promises of cheese and I’ve never had any regrets.

When/Where Did He/She Propose?

Rocky Fork Adventure Session

I proposed to Beck while visiting my sister in VA. I chose a very nice restaurant nearby and told her we were going out for a date night. Beck hates it when attention is drawn to her in a public setting (especially when going out to dinner
and having them sing happy birthday to her).

I arranged to have the staff come out with an amazing dessert and sing happy birthday (it wasn’t anywhere near her birthday). At the end of dinner we got the check, but no dessert!! It was a small restaurant and they were very busy.

I had to discreetly excuse myself and flag down the troops to reorganize. As they came out singing happy birthday to her I waited until she gave me the “death stare” before I got down on one knee and asked her to be my wife, before she answered I told her that if she accepts, it comes with a free dessert.

I knew something was up the third time he excused himself to go to the bathroom and the wait staff were scrambling around. We actually ended up with two desserts that night because they forgot the ring on our first. Yes, I hated the attention but wouldn’t have changed it for anything.

What Are You Most Excited About For Your Wedding?

Celebrating our relationship with friends and family.