I gently bent the rules for these two. Technically the contest was for engaged couples – Kaitlin and Adam are already married. But I just liked their story the bes. My contest, my rule breaking :) So here’s their winning story, as Kaitlin tells it:
“I have quite a few people to thank for setting in motion the chain of events that would lead me to meet my future husband. It all started during my last semester in college at Oklahoma State. My best friend Ashley was a year ahead of me, had already graduated, and found a job in Fort Smith, AR (not the entertainment capital of the world). She was unhappy there and devised a plan that would involve the two of us moving to a fun city with a young hip crowd and a lot of single guys! We diligently researched our options. We looked at Nashville, Denver, Seattle….and the list goes on…before finally settling on Austin, TX. I did not know much about Austin and did not even know anyone in Austin but it seemed like a fun place to live so out went the resumes. I was surprised how quickly I received a job offer and jumped at the opportunity to work for an extremely talented Interior Designer named Jackie. Everything was great until Ashley said she was having a really hard time finding a job and did not think she could make the move without stable employment. I was left with a tough decision: Should I move to Austin by myself or stay in my comfort zone? Austin it is!
Jackie was a terrific boss! She was very motherly and wanted to make sure I was meeting people and making some good friends. She was also a romantic and always wanted to know if I was dating anyone. I had gone out with a few guys I had met here and there but no sparks…not yet.
Christmas was around the corner and Jackie wanted her staff to attend a special event for our Christmas gift. She chose a Christmas Musical downtown that she had heard great things about. She is a very direct person so I was not surprised when she gave me an extra ticket to the musical and told me to find a date for the evening. I had a couple of weeks before the musical so I started racking my brain. I was not coming up with anyone but thought it would be a good chance to expand my dating pool so I was not going to give up easily.
Since it was the Christmas Season, there were quite a few parties going on. One party happened to be an ASID event (American Society of Interior Designers). I was hesitant to go because I wouldn’t know many people there but after being urged by my one friend that was going I decided to get dressed up and go. I had not been at the party long, when I started talking to one of the designer’s husbands about my desperate search to find a date for the musical. He must have felt sorry for me because lo and behold, three candidates appeared in the doorway. He had called three friends to come to the party and meet this girl who needed a date (not exactly the first impression I wanted to make to my future husband). I spent a little time talking to each one of them and felt a bit like Goldie Locks because one was too old, one was too arrogant, but one was JUST RIGHT! So, yes…I chose my husband from a line-up. It may not be the most romantic story but possibly one of the most interesting. Adam attended the musical with me and the rest is history. I have always found it interesting how stars align and that each choice we make in life could lead to something great. It certainly did for me!”
Congrats guys! Thanks to everyone who entered – look to see Kaitlin and Adam’s winning photo shoot later this month!
[...] and Adam won last month’s Engagement Contest (despite having been married for the last two years – I bent the rules. :)) We spent an [...]