We met each other after matching on Tinder. Gemma was impressed by Brandon's story of travelling solo around the world (Canada -> Japan -> UK -> Canada) and him comparing Gemma to Jen Barber from the IT Crowd upon finding out she was a British redhead who worked in IT. After a couple of weeks of lengthy messages we decided to meet up at a local coffee shop where conversation was easy and they enjoyed each other's company. The standout topic we still remember all these years later relates to tubers, but what exactly about them, is unknown. We also connected over our enjoyment of hiking and had a free weekend coming up as both our usual hiking friends were busy, so the second (or first) date was set!

Brandon chose the Diez Vistas trail, which to those who do not know, is a 20km hike, however, the day of the hike was very rainy. Despite the weather, somehow we got through it, even after having to wade through flooded and muddy sections. At one point, Gemma slipped over, but managed to win Brandon's heart by ensuring that the brownies she was holding remained safe. From there, they started seeing each other more regularly before becoming an official couple two weeks after meeting at the coffee shop.

From there, our relationship grew stronger, taking our first trip to Seattle for a weekend to two weeks in Hawaii, where Gemma, ever thrifty, decided to choose the wild pick car hire to save money, unfortunately, that meant we spent the trip with a minivan.

Just after a year of being together, we moved in together into a beautiful apartment on the 25th floor on what was the coldest day, full of snow and ice. We've moved into two other apartments before selling both of our places and buying a townhouse together, with no plans of moving again any time soon.

Our joint hobbies together include running (although not together as Brandon is faster than Gemma) and we've run multiple half marathons. We also love to play board games and have had to have custom closets installed in some of our apartments to accommodate our vast collection. We also love escape rooms, so much so that we have been known to create some by making our friends solve puzzles before they can get to their present. In short, we love to have fun!

On our fourth anniversary, we extended our family by adopting a ginger cat called Dusty. We like to joke that he is a blend of the both of us, bad teeth and ginger with a love of blankets like Gemma and allergies like Brandon.

Just before our ninth anniversary, Brandon asked Gemma if we should get married and she agreed that "after nearly a decade together" that we should, and that's why we would love for you to share our special day and help us to continue creating amazing stories together.