We met in early 2020, and very quickly fell in love. From the moment we met, we began a whirlwind romance! (Our moms begged us for this first non-selfie picture together!)

On Zoe’s birthday in 2020, Joe was meeting Zoe’s mom for the first time at Ema in Chicago. Little did we know that that was the day that COVID started to feel real. Joe and Ros had a great first meeting, but shortly afterward we were traveling to our respective hometowns, Ann Arbor and Villanova, to quarantine.

We did what we had to do, and turned to nonstop texting and nightly FaceTimes. We didn’t miss a night for the 2.5 months that COVID forced us to be long-distance. It felt like we were close in proximity because we updated each other on every mundane event and thought day in and day out, but we couldn’t wait to physically reunite.

Then, we came up with a solution. We were a 9 hour drive from each other, but the perfect halfway point was a Panera in Pittsburgh. Thus started our bi-weekly drives where Joe or his dad would drive him to The Panera and Zoe’s mom would drive her, and we’d pick the other one up and drive to spend a week, or two, or three with each other’s families in Villanova or Ann Arbor.

On top of getting closer with each other and spending 24/7 together, we became extremely close with each other’s families in the process, something that might’ve taken much longer in a non-COVID world. Our COVID love story even made it into an article in the Huffington Post, and this is the photo they used!

Then, after a year of living with each other’s families on and off in the Midwest and the East Coast, we made the move to Chicago, the city where we fell in love, this time moving to our new home, River North.

COVID was still in the air, literally, so we stayed safe and had a lot of cozy nights in. At this point, we were completely accustomed to spending all day and all night together without getting sick of each other.

When the world was shut down, we built our foundation. Since then, we have been celebrating life through travels, adventures together, milestones, and appreciation of the little things.

On September 10, 2023, we got engaged! Zoe was 100% surprised, and it became the best day of both of our lives. Everything went perfectly!

Our engagement sealed the deal, but we always knew it was coming since our first date. Over the years, we have been inseparable. We have created the life of our dreams together, as best friends through it all!

We are having the best time planning our dream wedding, and we’re so glad you are on this ride with us! See you in April!