About Us
Benjamin and I knew of each other as far back as seventh grade when both of our families moved to the Naperville area. It wasn’t until our junior year of high school when we first started talking. The first thing I ever said to him was “I like your car…” So cool of me, right? We had mutual friends and Spanish class together, which is where the sparks began to fly. We each had significant others at the time but that didn’t stop Benjamin from tying knots in my hair while he sat behind me in Spanish.
The summer after junior year we both broke up with our significant others and began to take serious interest in each other. One afternoon I got a call from Ben while he was in the Chicago airport on his way to visit his grandparents in Minneapolis. Ben said all kinds of nice things and ended the conversation with “and I want to be with you.”
That is how it all began. We dated all through our senior year and enjoyed all the things a normal high school couple would. I went to his soccer games, tennis matches, and wrestling meets while he joined me at my track and cross country meets. We went to all the dances together and even had the honor of being on prom court together.
We then went off to the University of Illinois together where we hit a couple bumps in the road. After two breakups we decided we didn’t want to be without each other and enjoyed the rest of our college years together. We had a wonderful time at U of I and feel very fortunate that we met and still keep in touch with some of our dearest friends.
After college and a month-long adventure in Europe, it was time for me to get a job and Ben to continue his educational adventures. Ben was accepted to the University of Chicago for medical school while I accepted a job with Newell Rubbermaid in Grand Rapids, MI. The distance wasn’t fun but we endured.
In December 2005 Ringo and I moved to Chicago for work, which was a wonderful change from the 180 miles Ben and I used to travel to see each other.
Ben is now working on his PhD as well as his MD at the U of C while I now work for Lutron Electronics. We live in the city with our three animals, Charles, Ringo, and Kitty, and are looking forward to moving into our brand new condo.
We have spent the last 9(ish) years together and are extremely happy to be spending the rest of our lives together!
The Proposal
First of all, Benjamin gave me the biggest and best surprise of my life. Many people can’t believe I didn’t know he was about to pop out a proposal, but I honestly had no idea. It was Labor Day 2007 and Ben was working on his preliminary exam for grad school—the kind of paper that removed him from all social settings and from seeing me for a good three weeks—so needless to say I was ecstatic when he called to tell me he was coming home early that day.
Part of our plans entailed taking Charlie for a walk and meeting some friends at the lake for a Labor Day BBQ. After talking with our friends for a while Ben asked if I wanted to continue walking. We strolled around the Planetarium and as the city was about to come into full view Ben started saying some very sweet things to me. I promptly told him that I wasn’t mad at him so he didn’t have to be so nice. When he repeated himself and told me he had a present for me, that’s when I knew. He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. Through the tears I was able to spit out “YES!”
We took a moment to let everything set in and my eyes finally cleared of all the tears so I could see the most beautiful ring he could have ever purchased! He likes to call it my bling.
We are now enjoying planning our wedding and are looking forward to spending our very special day with all of you!
This site is best viewed using Firefox, Safari, or Internet Explorer v.7.
