Meghan

  Early January 2011 jcisrad "winked" at butterflyaggie on Match.com. A few days later butterflyaggie emailed jcisrad back which spawned a string of emails for a month and a half; later this would be described by both of us as "new-age old fashion love letters". We got to know each other through writing and would be beyond excited and gitty when our inboxes had a message from the other. At the end of February 2011 John asked me out on our first date on March 4th and we met at Seven Bridges for the very first time in person. He wanted to make sure I felt comfortable and picked somewhere on my side of town, he's so thoughtful like that! That evening I was running about 5-10minutes late (I'm a good Cuban!) due to work being crazy that day. I realized that I didn't even have his phone number to let him know; we had just been so wrapped up and enjoying getting to know each other through our emails it didn't even occur to us that we hadn't exchanged phone numbers. I remember when I arrived I didn't see him and paniced a little bit that maybe he stood me up, this was the first date I had been on through Match.com that I was truly nervous and excited about. John told me later in our relationship that he saw that across face and quickly rushed up to say HI. We had to wait for our table and sat in the bar with a drink and just talked and talked. We both felt like we had known each other for forever. It was the most comfortable I had ever been talking to almost anyone. When we finally were at our table and ordered I didn't really like my meal, but it didn't even phase me because I was having such an amazing time with this wonderful man sitting across from me. After dinner he walked me out to my car and we talked a little bit more until we had our first kiss - which by standards of first kisses was off the charts! We then finally exchanged phone numbers and left after almost 2 1/2 hours of the most amazing first date ever!  We both were on cloud 9 and couldn't wait to see each other again. I texted him that weekend and we planned to meet again on Monday for trivia at Mellow Mushroom, this time by the beach on his side of town. We met again on Wednesday night at a local bowling alley and flirted the whole time, eventually sitting outside by our cars talking until midnight even though a light sprinkle and mist came down on us. There wasn't anything that was going to get us to leave. During the summer months we fell in love spending every weekend with each other biking to the beach and enjoying the sun; John even bought me a beach cruser so it would be easier for me than the mountain bike I had. Since March 4th we have been unseperable! Even in September 2011 when John took a job with Wells Fargo and moved to Charlotte, NC we have been supporting each other non-stop. We knew we had to make it work, as there was no question or doubt in either of our minds that this was something that would last forever. In fact, we have grown stronger during this time and have come to truely appreciate the time we spend together. We talk every day on the phone or through skype, we email back and forth while at work, and set dates when we get to see each other next and only focus on that date, not the total time apart.  We both knew from the very beginning that we had found the person we wanted to spend the rest of our lives with. We were each other's perfect match! For Christmas in 2011 John came to Virginia Beach to my parent's house to spend the holiday with me and my family. He got to try Cuban food for the first time and I am happy to report he is a big fan! (Thank God because I am not sure that side of my family would have accepted him otherwise - LOL!) Besides coming to spend time with me, he also came to ask my father for my hand in marriage. My dad shook his hand and simply said "yes"! To have my dad's and mom's support in my decision to spend the rest of my life with John is a feeling I can't describe because he truly is the love of my life. Getting married was something that John and I had talked about for a while and the steps to making it happen were falling into place. Now all that was left was for him to surprise me one day. That day came on March 9th, 2012. We had originally planned for him to come down the weekend before (March 4th weekend) for our anniverary, however, I had been training for my 1st ever 15K on March 10th and wanted him to be there for that. I figured we could kill 2 birds with 1 stone. The only issue was he wouldn't get in until between 10-11pom like normal and I needed to go to bed early with the race the next morning. He tricked me and left worked at 1:30 instead of 5pm and surprised me by showing up early. I couldn't have been happier until he told me he had another surprise for me. So while we were hugging he brought this little open box up between us and with these big blue eyes told me he loved me. I think I was speechless for the first time in my life! haha! After I finished kissing him I said yes and he put this gorgeous ring on my finger. Now I was the happiest girl in the world! We couldn't have been happier and wanted to share this wonderful news and celebration with our parents right away which were the first people we called. My mom didn't sleep that night she was so excited for us! It was the perfect weekend and one that I know neither one of us will ever forget! Today we still live apart in Charlotte and Jacksonville and are trying to figure out what is best for us in the future. As for now we are moving forward with the wedding plans and can't wait to start the next chapter of our lives - married and living together!