Where it all began
We officially met on February 19, 2022 at an Après-Ski themed party in Hells Kitchen after a mutual friend invited both of us to go. But even before meeting in-person, we were flirting with each other in the group text.
We hit it off that day and had our first date just 3 days later on Taco Tuesday at one of our now favorite neighborhood restaurants, Chavela’s. On our second date, Wes decided to invite Eric skiing, a 3-hour drive away at Hunter Mountain. Eric was crazy enough to agree to 6 hours in a car together for a second date and we enjoyed a day of skiing and getting to know each other and falling for each other.
Within two weeks, we were officially boyfriends and we’ve been insufferable inseparable ever since. Wes had a drawer at Eric’s within two months and was staying with Eric ~5 nights/week until we decided that Wes would officially move in at the end of July, a year after Wes moved to NYC and exactly a year (to the day) after Eric moved into the apartment we now share.
Over the next year, we got to enjoy so many fun trips, the joys of fully living together, Wes picked up biking as a hobby so we could go together. Wes got to help with and see Eric’s Christmas lights display (link), and we celebrated our first holidays together.
Fast forward to July 2023: After many “hints” that Wes was hoping to lock Eric down for good, including but not limited to at least a dozen pictures of Wes’ ring-less hand, and the David Yurman link Wes sent Eric after only 4 months of dating, we picked out our rings in NYC. Not only did we get the same ring design, but we also found out we’re the same ring size.
For our birthdays in 2023, we both decided that instead of a gift, each of us would plan a day of our trip in Europe without telling the other what we were doing. Neither of us knew at the time we decided to forgo the gift, but we would each end up proposing on the days we chose. Eric’s day started in Munich, where he rented a car to drive us out of the city to Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Alps. We went to lunch, took a walk around Lake Eibsee and Eric proposed by the lake to which Wes said “Of Course!(!!!!!!)”
We decided to only tell a select few people about our engagement so that we could enjoy the rest of our Europe trip without our phones blowing up, which is why Wes had to post this picture later that day holding a giant pretzel in the weirdest way anyone has ever held a pretzel (to hide the ring):
That night, we took the overnight train from Munich to Amsterdam and enjoyed the day in Amsterdam. Two days after Eric’s planned day was the day Wes planned. We did a really great bike tour a bit outside of the busy downtown core with Bill and his puppy Herman as our guides. Later in the day, We went to a private boat tour where we drank wine, enjoyed pizza, and toward the end of the tour, Wes proposed at the Seven Bridges View Point on the boat. As we finished up the boat tour, a photographer took photos and we went on a photo walk around Amsterdam before getting caught in the rain. For those of you who made it this far, thanks for reading our story, and check out the photos we took in Amsterdam below.
