How it all began…
On the east, a little girl grew up reading about magic and tales of great adventure in fantastical lands. On the west, a little boy grew up putting his ideas to paper, sketching the characters he dreamt up. The years went on and their environments shifted with the pursuit of their interests. His craft continued, now using clay and wood to produce the creations in his mind. She found wonder in science and medicine, but her love of magic and adventure never ceased. And this is a tale of those very things, for if not for a very certain set of happenstances, the girl named Jenna and the boy named Daniel may have never met…
One month after Jenna moved to Minneapolis on a whim, she asked her Aunt Royce to set her up with a friend. Soon after, she found herself attending a birthday party of a girl she had never met. In the town over, Daniel was out with friends when he had a sudden desire to stop by the birthday party of his old friend from college whom he hadn’t seen in more than a year.
So on that evening in June 2017, Jenna and Daniel met at the Country Bar in Minneapolis. After an evening of karaoke and dancing, he asked for her number. Their first date was later that month on June 22nd at a cute Latin American restaurant called Hola Arepa.
Revisiting Hola Arepa for their one year anniversary.
Perhaps they should have known even then that they were meant to be because he had made her a cutting board after learning of her meager kitchen supplies (unfortunately for him, Jenna’s cooking skills have yet to manifest). And in case you’re wondering—no, this was not his signature move with the ladies—he just had the sense that maybe this date was worth a few extra hours in the furniture shop he worked in.
Their first picture and their last first date.
This ends the tale of how the girl who loved to imagine and the boy who loved to create first met on a warm summer night 8 years ago. Though neither could say why, the girl and the boy took a picture together that night—not realizing they were commemorating their last first date. It was just another oddity in a string of unusual moments—or some might say it was just part of the magic that brought them together.
The rest of our story, while magical to us, is a tale as old as time. We fell in love and eventually moved in together… in the spring of 2020, coinciding perfectly with the pandemic lockdowns.
Moving in together on Cedar Ave in Minneapolis.
Since then time has flown by. We moved in together alongside Daniel’s brother and his (now) wife, Phinehas and Katie, each couple claiming half of a duplex in South Minneapolis. When not working or working through medical school Jenna and Daniel’s adventures continued on the weekends, be that kayaking on Lake Nokomis in the summer, all things autumn in the fall (Jenna’s obsessed with Halloween), ice fishing in the winter, and more.
Ice fishing on Lake Nokomis.
Loki and Samhain.
Their next milestone came when Jenna graduated medical school (Daniel filled the living room with sand to celebrate with a “beach trip”) and subsequently matched for residency in Baltimore! Before they knew it their story’s next chapter was taking place on the East Coast.
Jenna graduates as Dr. Robinson!
Harry Potter themed Match Day.
Couch replaced by inner tubes, Daniel fills the living room with sand for a beach.
Their weekend adventures to the water have continued (and to real beaches) as they explore all Maryland and the surrounding area have to offer. They’ve already created many memories, catching sharks in Ocean City, visiting family in NY, renting a costal cottage in Cape Cod, getting engaged, and soon….getting married! And at risk of seeming greedy, they already look forward to what comes next.
Kayaking with the manatees in Florida.
Night fishing in Ocean City, MD.
Belvedere Castle overlook in Central Park, NYC.
Lighthouse and seal spotting Cape Cod.