6 years ago in the Fall...

...they both ended up at the same Halloween party.

Ben's sister Rebecca was the hostess with the mostest, and Margaret Warner was the mutual friend that brought Tara along. 

Tara:  " I came dressed up as Garth from Wayne's World...but san's a Wayne (maybe I knew I was about to meet the Wayne to my Garth). I was hanging out in the kitchen post drinking some sort of Halloween concoction, and got cornered by someone dressed as a clown. Well, more specifically a Scientist Clown?? Who knows...but I recognized he, I mean the clown, had mitochondria on his tie, and from that moment on could not escape. Lesson learned. Never share your scientific knowledge with a clown. If you know me, you know how freaked out by clowns I am. After what seemed like hours, a 70's detective with a legitimate stache, aviators, and women's pants on rode up on his steed and saved me from the clown! This was Ben. For the rest of the night we couldn't stop talking, and all I could think about was how genuine, caring, and cute this mustachioed detective was. He ended up getting my phone number and maybe a kiss (ooooooh my), while also calling out my flip phone...should have known his tech love right then and there. He called me the very next day. After just leaving UGA, I was stunned by this act of "gentlemeness". A call instead of a text message?? This was the real deal. We spoke on the phone while he walked his parent's dog Sam, (whom I've come to looooooove and snuggle) around his neighborhood, and he asked me out on a date! A real date ya'll! Fast forward a few days, we met on the corner of N. Highland and Virginia Ave for dinner at Murphy's. I remember wondering "was that mustache real...will he still have it??"...he did not. In our real people clothes, we sat down in a cozy corner. When asked for our drink orders, we both said "Makers"...and the rest is history. "

Ben: "I’ve always been in to Halloween so of course, I told my sister, Rebecca, I would go to her Halloween bash a little over six years ago. I went to get a refill from the ghoulish punch in the kitchen, and saw this beautiful girl talking to a guy with a sign around his neck that said, “will clown for beer.” I knew she had to be saved. I ended up joining the conversation, and asked if Tara wanted to go talk outside. Then I saw her gorgeous smile and eyes, and that was it for me. We talked for awhile, and I remember thinking how smart, down to earth, and cute she was. Tara has this amazing ability to make me feel comfortable being myself around her. Plus, she dressed up as Garth from Wayne’s World. How cool is that? Naturally, I had to see her again, and got her number. There’s this ongoing debate about who kissed each other first at the party….it was me ;) I called her the next day and we talked for what seemed like hours. We went out to dinner at Murphy’s in the VA Highlands a few evenings later. She was just as beautiful as she was at the party. The conversation was amazing and I continued to melt every time she smiled. I had a feeling deep down she would have a special place in my life. Boy, was I right!"

December 9, 2016

Ben: "Tara and I have a tradition where we spend a day during the Christmas season hanging out, watching Christmas movies, and drinking champagne. It’s turned in to a very fun and festive tradition. For Christmas 2016, we planned to take a day off and roll it into a long weekend. The night before this Friday, I came home from my work holiday dinner and had an early present to give to Tara ;) She was sitting on the couch relaxing when I asked her if she wanted an early Christmas present. She initially said, “Can we do it tomorrow?”, but I insisted it would be worth it. Another tradition we have is I give her an ornament each year with a picture in it of us taken during the Christmas season that year. This year’s ornament was very special. She opened it to see a picture of us taken a week or so before at Rockefeller Center. In front of the big, beautiful Christmas tree! I told her to open the frame from the back because there was another picture to see. She opened it and the back of the picture read “Will you marry me?” in green sharpie. I got down on one knee and asked Tara to marry me! She was surprised, but of course, said “Yes”. The next day I surprised her with tickets to see the Nutcracker, the ballet that inspired Tara to become a dancer as a little girl. We enjoyed many fun Christmas movies, shared the good news with our families, and had a magical night on the town seeing the Nutcracker. I was the happiest and luckiest guy in the world!"