Kristen and I like to describe our meeting as 'in real life'. I was minding my own business when my life, unbeknownst to me, changed forever (for the better) in the summer of 2022. I operate a legacy seafood market at the Pike Place Market. Pike Market is a top tourist attraction in Seattle, I meet hundreds of new people every day; however, the day that I met Kristen was different.

It was a Sunday, she purchased some salmon and I took notice of her. I was thrilled when she showed up the following Sunday and the Sunday after that, and the Sunday after that. Kristen I joke that I am familiar with many people at the market, but never bother to remember their names, I remembered hers. It was not long before I asked her if she would like to see each other outside of work, possibly go for a walk. She said yes!

We met up for our first date at Volunteer Park, now one of our favorite places to visit, and near where we live together today. We walked for ten miles, neither one of us seemingly wanting the date to end. I had dinner plans with my mother (Gini), so we parted ways after hours of walking and talking. Soon, after we went our separate directions, I quickly realized that I wanted to see more of her, I canceled my dinner, gave her a call and she was game for dinner along the Seattle waterfront. It was a magical day.

The magic has continued to this day. We've traveled down to visit my father and stepmother (Herb and Kris) at their winter house in Arizona along with my sister and her husband (Jen and Scott) who were also visiting at the time. I had the honor of heading to Vermont last summer to attend the wedding of Kristen's father Ed to Susan. I was able to meet Matthew, Kristen's older brother in from Germany. Subsequently we spend the week in Basin Harbor on Lake Champlain, Vermont with the rest of Kristen's family: her younger sister Annelies, her younger brother Renier, his wife Alexandra and their three enthusiastic boys (Hendrik, William and Theo). This included Leslie, Kristen's lovely mother, the first member of her family I met on her previous visit to Seattle. We've also had wonderful trips to Holland meeting more of Kristen's Dutch family and seeing some of its amazing history in the last year. We've also been able to head to Spain to drive the countryside and experience the sights and food of Andalusia. Kristen is a wonderful and easy person to travel with; the exploring of new places is something I look forward to continuing to pursue much more throughout our lifetime together.

Starting in November last year, I began planning what would become a very special day, our engagement. I enlisted the help of two of my longtime friends and made a reservation at our favorite restaurant, The Single Shot Bistro. We usually like to sit at the corner of the bar and have dinner. The restaurant staff followed my instructions to the letter to seat us in our favorite seats at the bar. They sat my friends, Mike and Beth Sidell, at a table adjacent to our favorite bar spot. Mike and Beth were thus able to capture the moment perfectly, (see the photo above.) The hardest part of the evening was keeping my nerves in check throughout the meal. Spoiler, I was able to. :-) and fooled Kristen. I will never forget the look of surprise on Kristen's face when she saw the ring finally come out on the dessert plate--complete shock! She had no idea, and after she had slightly regained her composure, she said yes! And I am very lucky and happy she did.

This brings us to the need for this wedding website. We are both so thrilled and honored that you are willing to take time out of your busy lives and celebrate the weekend with us. See you all very soon!