"Where is that?”

Jerry commented on Aalia's Hinge photo that was clearly captioned: "Hawaii". Normally, Aalia would have rolled her eyes, but for some reason, she replied coyly, "Jerry: handsome but can't read". After a few days of exchanging messages, Jerry was intrigued by her thoughtful questions and asked her to dinner. Aalia, impressed with his ability to take initiative, had no other choice but to say yes.

The rest is history...

Well, not really. Aalia left Jerry to eat pistachio ice cream all by himself at the end of a great first date (because her social battery had died and she’s allergic anyway!). Miraculously, Jerry still went home and told his friend Deo, "That one… I'm going to get her". And so, he called, and they went on more fun dates and Aalia even drove to San Francisco for some of them! Their conversations about everything from salvation, to food, to love languages flowed naturally, and their attraction continued to grow.

And then, after 3 dates, came Jerry's birthday, and Aalia made the grave decision to not wish him a happy birthday, thinking he wouldn't care yet. He did. He cared and was waiting for a call just from her. Yikes. Well, thank God that grandmothers know best! Let's just say both Aalia and Jerry are forever indebted to Ms. Mattie Williams for her expert wisdom and care.

As much anxiety as Aalia had about their budding romance (which she expressed thoroughly to her sister Anya), Jerry continued with his intentionality, waiting patiently and showing Aalia that he was for real. Finally, after what seemed like forever (in Jerry's mind, that is), Jerry finally asked Aalia to be his girlfriend, and she said yes!

And so they dated, and their love grew stronger and deeper! At the same time, both of their family’s love for one another blossomed as well. Then, many fun family events, Sunday dinners, and WhatsApp calls later...

On June 23, Jerry planned a surprise proposal with all of Aalia's family present. He orchestrated a beautiful moment where her family gathered, and as Aalia walked in, she was greeted with a heartwarming scene. Meanwhile, Jerry's family was watching the whole event via video stream from Nigeria, cheering them on from afar. Aalia was overwhelmed with joy and said yes to spending the rest of her life with Jerry.

Now, we are excited to share that we are getting married on October 13th. We can't wait to celebrate our love and commitment with all of you. Thank you for being a part of our journey!