How we met
I have spent all my summers on LBI, and Anthony’s family rents for a week in August every summer.
In the summer of 2012, I went to the Hudson House to meet up with a friend, Mike, who happened to be there with Anthony. After a while, someone spilled my drink. Anthony noticed and offered to buy me a new one. A few days later, I got Anthony’s phone number from Mike, and we made plans to meet back at the Hud that night. While there, we realized we lived a few towns away from each other “in the real world.” The next week, we went on our first date back home. I told Anthony that I was not looking for anything serious at the time, as I was just beginning my first year of teaching and knew that I wanted to focus on work. Anthony felt the same way since his job kept him working late a few times a week. However, without realizing it, we were spending all of our free time together. Anthony makes me the happiest I have ever been, and we both knew we never wanted to leave each other’s side.
How he Proposed
My family has a tradition of watching the Beach Haven Fourth of July Fireworks in front of our house. In the summer of 2014, it rained on the Fourth, so the fireworks were postponed to the next night. During the fireworks, Anthony left to “go to the bathroom.” When he returned, I noticed he was breathing heavily, and I asked him if he was okay; he assured me he was. A few minutes later—during what Anthony thought was the finale of the show (it wasn’t!)—Anthony got off of his chair, knelt on one knee, and pulled out a ring. After making a speech that neither of us can remember,
Anthony asked me to marry him. My family was there to enjoy the moment with us. Then we ran over to tell our neighbors, and we all celebrated for the rest of the night.
Video by Darn Swell Media