You hear about people using all these different dating apps with little success. Well, we are one of the couples that found success through the app called Hinge. For the first month, we just chatted through the app. My heavens, Brendan was so verbose, that I started wondering if he was a real man or not. Come to find out about a year later that he was actually using AI to respond to me (and many other women simultaneously)! He had so many chats going at once that he needed AI to help him remember details of the chats and to respond in a meaningful way. However, though our initial relationship may have been colored with an artificial start, once we met in person, I realized that Brendan talked normally and was indeed a real man, and that I was instantly very interested in him. After our first date at the Copper Onion, I flat out told him, "Look, I don't ever say this after a first date, but I'm very interested, and I want to see you again!" And from there, our time spent together continued to increase drastically until we knew that we wanted to spend both a lifetime and eternity together.

-Brittany

May 11, 2024

That morning, we enjoyed each other's company while wandering around Daybreak for the community yard sale, scavenging for small treasures like a Game of Thrones themed Settlers of Catan, some various versions of Uno, etc. As we were walking back to Brendan's townhouse, he asked if I'd be interested in getting some brunch, and after I responded positively, he informed me that we were going to Salt Lake, but he wouldn't tell me where.

Now, just two days prior, he had announced, "I'm only going to give you this one hint: you should get your nails done tomorrow." So I knew something was up. But I wasn't sure if this was it or not.

Well, we soon arrived at the Copper Onion--our first date spot. While waiting to be seated, we walked around the block and talked, just relishing the time together. After 30 minutes, we were seated at a lovely table outside in what can only be described as the perfect weather: bright, clear, sunny, and comfortably warm.

While we were waiting for our food, Brendan randomly exclaimed, "Wow, there's this girl behind you with these strange heart-shaped glasses." I quickly responded that I thought that maybe they were what I was seeing reflected in the window in front of me, to the right. I essentially just dismissed it. About five minutes or so, he once again randomly exclaimed, "Oh my gosh, I think I see your sister over there!" He was pointing behind me, and I quickly turned to look and asked which sister it was. Ultimately, I turned back to tell him I didn't see her, but sitting there in front of me was this beautifully crafted jewelry box. I opened it up, and there inside was nestled the ring of my dreams. He asked, "Brittany, will you marry me?" My response: "Of course my answer is yes!"

The ring was far too large, but I managed to squeeze it between my other fingers so that it looked like I could wear it and quickly snapped a picture (but you can see in the image that it didn't quite fit). Unfortunately, we didn't get additional pictures to document this moment. But I still recall how special of a day this was, what with the beautiful weather, yummy food, and the man of my dreams.

-Brittany