This is not normally our style, but in reading this, I don’t think that there would be anyway that I could put it better.  So, instead of me telling you about how these to amazing, fun, welcoming, warm people met, I’m going to let Monica tell you for me.   How did you and Albert meet?  Albert and I  met briefly through a friend in ninth grade. We went to different schools and spoke a few times on AIM (lol, yep, instant messaging), but then fell out of touch. About six years later, we ended up working as servers at the same restaurant in Mt. Dora, but didn’t recognize one another. I was assigned the task of training him, and I remember telling the manager that I thought he’d be a good server because he was good with the guests, but that I felt like he didn’t listen to anything I said.   We worked together for over a year before I worked up the courage to ask him if he was the boy I had met in 9th grade. After that, a co-worker basically told me Albert was too scared to ask me out. I loved to listen to him speak to his tables (he has a way with words), and thought he was pretty cute, so I agreed to go out with him.  On our first date, he took me on a picnic in the park. He made bruschetta, brought fruit, wine, chocolate dipped strawberries, glasses, and napkins. I joked about how impressed I was that he remembered the napkins. He laid out a blanket and poured me a glass of wine as the sun began to set. We talked for hours about our lives and experiences. Before we knew it, it was late and very dark. The time had flown by!  Neither of us wanted the night to end, so we went to a movie. We actually saw Sweeney Todd (yeah, not exactly a first date movie, but it gave us an excuse to hold hands during the gory parts). After that we walked around downtown Mt. Dora, just us and the empty streets. And right before we headed back to his truck, he stopped me and kissed me. It was the best date I’ve ever had.

 How did Albert propose?  After thoroughly convincing me that he hadn’t purchased a ring, but intended to in the upcoming months, I finally let go of the hope that he would propose on our four year anniversary. I did tell him that I wanted to celebrate the event by recreating our first date in the park. He agreed that this sounded lovely, so we purchased all of the items and set out for the park. It was a cool, windy day, and we had the park mostly to ourselves. I unpacked the wine and hummus, and we recalled our feelings and conversations from our first date. So much had changed since then. Then he commented on how beautiful the day was and suggested we take some pictures. I insisted he take a seat on a picture-perfect bench while I take some of him first. Then he switched with me. After a few minutes of posing, he said, “Okay,” and I turned around to see if he was coming to join me. When I turned around, he was on one knee, open ring box in hand. I was completely shocked. But then he began speaking, about the amazing couple we had become and how I made him a better person, and the beautiful promise of sharing the rest of our lives with each other. My acceptance came through tears, and he jumped up to join me on the bench.

Albert and Monica, thank you for sharing  your day with us, it was amazing.

Here’s to Albert and Monica, may everyday be just like the first, a walk in the park.

~Jeff and Amalie