The Story of Lauren and David
When Lauren and David Met
After meeting on a pub crawl, neither of them wanted the night to end. With curiosity and enthusiasm, David asked Lauren what her favorite food was, sparking a conversation about her family’s storied Meat and Cheese Casserole. One thing led to another, ending in an impromptu grocery run and a late-night cooking adventure. From that moment on, they have been inseparable.
Dating in Chicago
As it turned out, they lived just around the corner from one another. Over the next year and a half, Chicago became the backdrop for a life built together, with Lakeview forever memorialized as the place where they fell in love. Their time was filled with memories made by just the two of them, silly adventures with Christina, and large gatherings with family and friends.
Some of their favorite moments included long bike rides along the lakefront that turned into spontaneous floor-is-lava games on playgrounds, impromptu soccer practice, or workouts on the turf. They snuck into Evanston Beach at night to stare at the stars and talk about their futures, packed picnics in secluded parks before watching Fourth of July fireworks, and cooked elaborate meals at home.
They spent nights discovering new restaurants, splurging on fancy dinners, and attempting (and failing) to try every Indian restaurant in the city. There were countless nights with friends, fully embracing their twenties, gathering for birthdays, celebrations, and no real reason at all.
They showed up for one another through busy work weeks, career changes, and the everyday navigation of adult life. They went to the gym together, laughed through a magic show hidden inside a speakeasy, caught comedy shows, watched turtle races, played pool and games late into the night, and held Rock Band sessions that stretched far past bedtime.
Through all of the adventure, they learned how to support one another, laugh often, and move through life side by side.
Singing in Chicagoland
Many of their dates and adventures took them to concerts around Chicago, including smaller shows hosted by Sofar Sounds and the occasional open mic night. With David’s encouragement, Lauren even sang a few times herself.
While Lauren tends to keep her musical talent quiet, David has always been her biggest fan. At home, he’s been lucky enough to enjoy private concerts where Lauren sings just for fun, layering harmonies, performing beautiful covers, or creating new songs. On one occasion, a single note caught him so off guard that he tipped his kitchen chair and broke it. It’s a part of Lauren that most people don’t get to see, and one that David feels incredibly fortunate to experience.
Loving Each Other Around the World
On top of building a life together in Chicago, and now Rochester, Lauren and David have been fortunate to experience life together all around the world. Sometimes, David would plan adventures for Lauren, like surprising her with a trip to Las Vegas to see Adele live, traveling to Maine to explore Acadia, wander Portland, and eat more lobster rolls than advised, visiting Bloomington, Indiana to see David’s alma mater, or taking Lauren to an all-inclusive resort in Mexico to give her a much-needed break between two jobs.
Other times, Lauren would lead the adventures, bringing David to a hidden oasis in the mountains of Vermont she had loved since childhood, and later planning a weekend escape to the Finger Lakes. And sometimes, they would simply join spontaneous trips together, including weekends in Toronto and New York City, visits to Cleveland to see Lauren’s brother Ryan when he lived there, countless trips to Niagara Falls, and even turning a layover in Los Angeles into a full day of exploring the city. One afternoon trip to Buffalo became a full-on mission to try and rate as many chicken wings as possible.
Travel often included family, from a laid-back lake house weekend in Wisconsin with David’s extended family to Lauren’s family orchestrating adventures that spanned the globe, from Florida to Hawaii, and from Ireland to Australia, building lifelong memories along the way.
And the adventures are not slowing down. They cannot wait for their European honeymoon, continuing to build memories and share their love and laughter everywhere they go.
A New Chapter in Rochester Together
After building a life together in Chicago, Lauren and David moved to Rochester and found themselves enjoying a different pace of life. It’s a city that's easier to get around, and more conducive to everyday routines, the kind that make ordinary days feel full in a good way.
The move was first and foremost about being closer to Lauren’s family, something that has brought her a deep sense of peace and happiness. Graduate school gave them the natural excuse to make it happen, as Lauren completed her Master’s degree in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Rochester. After graduating, she began teaching Human Biology at Monroe Community College and Microbiology to future Licensed Nurse Practitioners at Bryant and Stratton College, officially stepping into life as a science professor. David continued his work remotely, building Caren with his father, working to turn his father’s life’s work into a treatment for age-related diseases. As David says, he is just thrilled to be wherever Lauren is.
Life in Rochester quickly filled with shared routines and lots of laughter and joy. There have been countless nights spent cooking ambitious meals and settling into rhythms that actually stuck. Lauren picked up tennis and now trains a few times a week. They joined an intramural indoor beach volleyball league, and at one point decided it would be a good idea to train for their own unofficial, homemade version of a triathlon, involving local bike trails, the LA Fitness pool, and a lot of enthusiasm. They’ve worked their way through restaurants around the city, shown up to social events, and made real friends along the way.
Family has become part of the fabric of everyday life.
A few months after the move, Lauren’s brother Ryan joined them in Rochester, moving to the same floor of their building. This led to many easy nights spent watching anime, eating sushi, and hanging out without much of a plan. Weekly Sunday dinners with Lauren’s family became a standing tradition, filled with football, Euchre, laughter, and competitive game nights, along with spontaneous weekday lunches whenever schedules aligned. They’ve also been fortunate to enjoy many occasions with Lauren’s extended family, celebrating birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Mother’s Day, and just about any excuse that called for being together.
Rochester has become a place where Lauren and David have grown through challenging seasons, leaned on one another, built strong habits, and shared a life that feels joyful, connected, and very much their own. Through it all, they’ve stayed inseparable, laughing often, supporting each other fully, and finding happiness in simply doing life together.
Two Cats, Somehow
Lauren has always been an animal lover and was frequently asking David when they could get a dog. They both grew up with dogs and dreamed of having one, but life at the time made it tricky. Between a high-rise apartment, graduate school, and demanding work schedules, shaping their lives around a dog just didn’t quite make sense.
After meeting David’s cousin Abbie’s cat Wells and realizing a cat might be a better fit, they decided to give it a try, despite having almost no experience with cats whatsoever. Soon, Foxy joined the family. The first month was… discouraging. Foxy hid under the printer, shook in fear, and wanted nothing to do with either of them. There were many late-night conversations wondering if they had made a terrible mistake, if this was normal, and whether Foxy was unhappy or they were doing everything wrong.
In an effort to learn more, they realized Foxy was simply extremely shy, not broken, and that maybe a second cat could help bring her out of her shell. After a little more research, a “just to meet them” visit, where Lauren brought a cat carrier “just in case”, turned into a kitten named Ella coming home too.
That turned out to be the turning point. Foxy slowly emerged, unlocked her inner mom energy, and now follows Lauren from room to room like a loyal Pokémon. Ella grew into the family’s “cat-dog,” greeting strangers, demanding attention, wrestling David, and biting anything she can find. Today, Foxy and Ella are inseparable, spending their days snuggling, chasing each other, and filling the apartment with naps and life.
The Engagement
David had known for a long time that Lauren was the person he wanted to spend his life with. Even early on, calling her his “girlfriend” felt insufficient. She was already more than that. Still, life had its own timing. Lauren was navigating graduate school and the beginning of her career, and David was balancing demanding work. Rather than rushing the moment, he waited until it felt right, and until he could make it meaningful in a way that truly reflected them.
When the time finally came, everything came together naturally. David’s father gave him his mother’s ring, a piece of family history and a reminder that she was there in spirit with them. After some careful measuring and quiet planning, David knew Chicago was where it needed to happen. It was where they had fallen in love, where many of their closest friends still lived, and a place that felt inseparable from their story.
Under the cover of their annual Hanukkah party trip back to Chicago, David began putting the pieces in place. He also asked for Lauren’s parents’ blessings and shared the plan with a few of the people closest to them, wanting Lauren to be surrounded by familiar faces and love when the moment happened. Family and friends were invited one by one, and a surprise celebration was planned for afterward in a beautiful Chicago home, bringing together people from both of their lives.
The plan was to get Lauren to the Lakeview lakefront under the pretense of a night out to dinner. They met up at Benji’s apartment beforehand, where Benji conveniently needed to walk his dog before heading out. Despite careful planning, one thing David could not control was the weather. The proposal took place on a day well below zero, along the frozen lakefront. David made sure Lauren bundled up, but nothing could have prepared her for what was coming. Completely surprised and completely frozen, Lauren said YES!