Our Story
Here’s our story (told from Elizabeth’s perspective):
Rob and I got engaged on July 15, 2009, just a few months shy of our two-year anniversary. Although we had talked in great detail about getting married, I was definitely surprised that he popped the question when he did. For those of you who know me well, you KNOW that pulling off a surprise with me is a hard thing to do! When I was younger, I managed to not only find all my Christmas presents one year (before Santa arrived), but I always seemed to be able to sniff out a secret or a surprise. But, Rob is always up for a challenge 
He not only managed to surprise me, but he shared his little secret with my parents, my brother and a few friends before officially asking me – quite an accomplishment!
Rob also understood and knew that I didn’t want a big production or a very public proposal in front of lots and lots of people. Although much of my work/vocational life is spent it front of large groups of people, I really intimate, low-key conversations and moments where it’s just the two of us. Being the amazingly intuitive person that he is, he asked me to marry him while we were sitting on the couch just hanging out after we returned from dinner with my dad and brothers. Just right – and perfect to allow us to take in the moment and enjoy it together before sharing the exciting news with everyone!
So, that’s the engagement story…now, here’s a bit about how we met.
We officially started dating at the beginning of October, 2007. The exact date, you ask? Well, that depends on whether you ask me or him! We have a friendly debate going as to what day to count as our official first date and when we had our first kiss – and we all know that the woman is right…RIGHT (said with a smile)? Here’s how I remember it. We had a “friendly date” set up on Saturday (the 29th of September) to have coffee and discuss a few things I had been telling him about, including a transformative personal growth assessment I had recently discovered. Little did I know that our “coffee meeting” was Rob’s way of transitioning us from the “friend stage” into being “more than friends.”
That day, our “coffee chat” turned into chatting on his balcony with wine and cheese, which led to dinner at my favorite Sushi place, Yutaka, that led to a glass of wine at Vino 100, which led to continuing our conversation until 5 am the next morning. Really – no first kiss that night! It was the best, non-date I’ve ever had. After taking a much-needed nap, we met up the next day for a walk on the Katy Trail – and a first kiss. Woohoo! Sparks flew and we knew that we were definitely on the road to being more than friends
Now, here’s the scoop on how we got to that first date!
Although we didn’t really get to know each other until Rob moved back to Dallas in the middle of August, 2007, we’ve actually “known of” each other for a long time! See, Rob’s sister, Michelle (who I call Chelle), and I became best friends in high school, right after Rob graduated and moved off to Colorado for school. Although I knew about Rob and heard Michelle talk about him often, I didn’t actually meet him until her wedding in 1998. Because he lived out of Texas, I didn’t see him again until late 2004. But, all along, Michelle would keep me posted on how Rob was doing and vice versa.
So, when Rob moved back to Dallas, we reconnected and spent time together as friends. I introduced him to my business network in Dallas and to the Tower Club and he, in turn, gave me some great business advice and thoughts on how to grow my business. Although the “connection” was there from the beginning, we got to know each other as friends, which gave us a great foundation for the relationship that we have now!