** Fun fact: The first time we met, I told him my plan of going to Iceland to turn 26 under the Northern lights and invited him to join along. He later used that as a way to ask for my number :)

HOW THEY MET

For me, that decision was to move to Pittsburgh. I knew one person: the college roommate who got me a job. It was just going to be me and my dog in a new place, so I started to bring her to the park. For my dog, it was a good way to burn off some energy. It was a good reason for me not to sit in my apartment all the time.

I got out of the car and did a quick scan of the park to see who was around. At this point I was starting to recognize a number of people that were often there when I was, but this time there was someone new. She had on an orange flannel that immediately caught my eye; I’ve got a thing for flannel. She was gorgeous, in that relaxed, “I’m at the dog park and it’s muddy out” sort of way. I knew I had to talk to her. She said her name was Ashley. I made lame jokes and she laughed.

For the record, I definitely asked which dog was hers. 

 I was so terrified. I thought for certain that she was just putting up with me, some weird dog person at the park. But it was so easy to see the passion she had for the things she talked about- travel, the outdoors, helping others- I just wanted to keep the conversation going. I wanted her number, but I’d never asked for anyone’s number before. No joke. I was terrified. How could someone so amazing be single? Surely she wasn’t actually interested in me.

Instead, I told her I come to the park most days, around 5:30 or so. Close enough.

There I was, paying for my cold medicine, and she walks by. I did a double take and caught her eye as she looked back. I kept stealing glances, then I gave up and just stared- wasn’t that the girl from the park? Here? What are the chances of that?

 I paid and left, keeping my eyes peeled towards the parking lot. I figured they’d be heading to their car and maybe I’d get another glimpse of her before I left. I didn’t see her. Strange, I wasn’t that far behind them... 

Thank goodness for Ms Kim. She’s been in my corner from before day one, and this proves it. What a wonderful woman.

It definitely wasn’t that simple. I had been hyping myself up for this since I got home from work. Today was it. If she was there, I was going to ask for her number. I could do it. Worst case, she’d say no. That was okay, it would be fine. I got to the park, and she was there. We started talking. I was hyper aware of how awkward I was coming across. I still couldn’t believe that she kept talking to me. All along, I was rehearsing in my head all the smooth, relaxed way that I was going to ask for her number. Instead, when the time came, I barely managed to stammer out, “Hey if um you’re uh looking for friends er I mean a person to uh go explore ahhh Iceland with, maybeicouldgetyournumber?”

Not an exaggeration. I was astounded when she said yes.

Friday, May 5th, 2017 

It’s kind of crazy when you realize that one single decision can change the entire trajectory of you life - that all it takes in one moment for your life to be changed forever. For me, that decision was to go to the dog park on Friday, May 5th 2017. Now, at the time, this was not an abnormal decision. Anyone who knows my dog, Oakley, knows he is full of energy and that regular exercise is a key component in keeping everyone around him from playing fetch until they go insane. The big decision of this trip was the time of day I decided to go - a few hours later than normal. 

So, you know, once I got there I hung out for a while, let my dog socialize and romp around for a bit, talked to a few strangers and then decided to head out. I figured I had fulfilled my dog-park quota for the day and was ready for some cinco-de-mayo tacos with my friends. 

 That’s when it happened. That was the pivotal moment that changed my life forever. Just when I was heading over to the leashes to take Oakley home, a really cute guy approached me and started talking to me. He said his name was Ben, and unlike all the other dog park guys I talked to in the past, he initiated a substantial conversation. Not the standard “Which one is yours? What breed is he? How often do you come here?” but genuine questions about myself and my life and the area. It was refreshing.

While I can’t recall the specifics of what all we talked about or how long our interaction was, I remember that conversation had me feeling a way I hadn’t felt in a long time. He was so sincerely interested in me and my life. He made me laugh and we joked around like we had known each other for years. He had a great vocabulary! (Which is a big deal to me.) It was impeccable. I was smitten – but unsure if he felt the same. And so, after some time, I told him I had plans with my friends and I headed out. 

As soon as I got in my car I was instantly kicking myself for not asking for Ben’s number. Before I had even finished pulling out of the dog park’s lot, I was already on my phone with my sister, Brilee, asking her if I should turn around and ask him for it. She encouraged me to just go back on Monday and see what happened then. I figured this was a gamble, seeing as people don’t always go at the same time everyday, but I went along with her advice and drove on because I was running late to meet my friends. 

 Fast forward to Saturday, my mom and I were on our way to Giant Eagle (a grocery store) to grab lunch from the salad bar. While we were walking down the aisle where people pay, we walked by none other than Ben! Now at this point, I awkwardly did a double take, making sure it was really him and, once I knew it was, I whispered to my mom “I think that was him!” as we kept on walking. I didn’t know if our interaction at the dog park actually meant as much as it did to me. Heck, I didn’t know if he would even remember me! So to the salads my mom and I marched.

Once we got there though, I explained to my mom that I was sure we had passed the guy I had told her about from the dog park, and that I wanted to show him to her. So, like total creepers, we hid behind the salad bar until he walked past (which is when I excitedly said “that’s him” maybe a bit too loud…) and out the doors. I decided then that maybe I would have the chance of meeting him again and I was really excited to see if it happened. 

Jump ahead to that following Monday. After work, I went up to my mom’s to pick up Oakley and explained to her that I had a rough day and that I just wanted to go home and take a nap. I told her that I doubt that Ben would be at the dog park and that I didn’t feel like going. But, the wise woman she is, she convinced me to through on my rain boots and some shorts and head on over to the dog park anyways.

When I got there, I quickly scanned the area for Ben and Amy, but was disappointed to see they were not there. I had a gut feeling they were not coming and was ready to go home. Thankfully, before I gave in to my desire to go home and nap, they showed up. Within minutes Ben and I started talking again, things were as easy and exciting as the first time we talked. Before we headed out, he asked for my number and the rest is history!