Our Story

Our first date!

This was Jillaine's favorite picture on Jerrome's dating app profile. Did she really want to meet him or just use him as a way to meet the Fennec Fox?

As if by serendipity, Jerrome had seen Hamilton on Disney+ right before seeing Jillaine's dating profile. He either gets to meet a really great person, or rant at her about musicals! WIN WIN!

Our second date! Jillaine insisted we follow the rules and wear our masks the whole time.

For our fourth date, Jerrome took Jillaine to Santa Barbara for an amazing picnic scavenger hunt.

During the picnic scavenger hunt, Jerrome showed his true love and his willingness to break the law to win Jillaine's heart by stealing pastries. (That he had already paid for...). IT WORKED!

Jillaine finally let Jerrome kiss her on the beach in Santa Barbara.

Jerrome found the only museum in LA that was open during the pandemic, the USS Iowa. Normally Jillaine wouldn't have been that into a battleship, but was impressed by his effort and intentionality.

Mask kisses!

Jillaine introduced Jerrome to letterboxing for his birthday. It might have been a little weird to take him to a cemetery when they weren't even boyfriend/girlfriend yet, but he had fun.

Exploring Pasadena while staying close to home during the fire evacuation warnings of 2020.

We were working on a collection of mask selfies for the historians of 2020.

Jillaine was so nervous because she wanted to invite Jerrome to Thanksgiving with her family, but she didn't know if he'd think it was too soon and get scared off. Thankfully, it worked out!

It was also Jillaine's first time meeting Jerrome's dog Zoey. Zoey was skeptical.

Spooky house!

Let's drive to Big Bear for a couple hours to find a letterbox at the graveyard of a ghost town.

Driving down a country road in the dark, Jillaine finally asked "where are we going?" "To a farm," Jerrome replied. "Why do you know about a farm way out here??" Now we tell everyone about 123 Farm.

Gas was cheap, but driving 3 hours to see Monarch Butterflies pushed the limits of our pandemic day trips. Jillaine thought we were going to Santa Barbara. Jerrome accidentally took us to Pismo Beach.

Jerrome said "I love you" for the first time in Oregon when we visited for Thanksgiving in 2020. Jillaine wasn't ready to say it back and made him wait another two months.

Jerrome learned many things about Jillaine on this doomed hike. The most important was to always bring snacks. Expired Clif Bars aren't good enough after scrabbling up a mountain. He had fun anyway.

For New Years Eve 2020 we decided to get dressed up and do a photoshoot at the beach. When we posted the pictures, some people thought we were engaged.

#notengaged

South Coast Botanical Garden for our first Valentine's Day together. The next day we went to Manzanar which was where Jillaine really wanted to go.

Where do you take a girl for your first Valentine's Day? The place she's told you she really wants to go and can't find anyone to go with. Even if it's a WWII Japanese Internment Camp. She loved it!

For Jillaine's first birthday since they'd been dating, Jerrome took her to feed animals at the San Diego Zoo. He also surprised her by flying her sisters down to join in the fun.

Jerrome was thrilled when he learned that the Spruce Goose was at the air museum in Jillaine's home town. The first time we went, it was closed, so he came back for Thanksgiving the next year too.

On our way back from visiting Jerrome's grandparents, we stopped in Chicago and got to see a WWII German U-boat at the Museum of Science and Industry.

Very posh as we wait for the Palm Springs Aerial Tram.

Jillaine had never seen Jerrome take an exit so fast as when he realized we were driving by the Cabazon dinosaurs.

Halloween 2022. We may never top this epic costume - NARA Document Planting Team special agents, framing former presidents one classified document at a time.

All dressed up for a Thanksgiving photoshoot with Jerrome's family in Indiana.

On November 18, 2023 Jillaine thought we were attending a short film pitch competition for her friend Mary. She was sure Jerrome would propose the next day. But Mary and Jerrome had been scheming...

Jerrome had set up an art studio with lights and pictures documenting our relationship. It was beautiful and a big surpise.

After Jerrome showed Jillaine all the pictures and forgot half his speech, he showed her a row of blank canvases and asked her to marry him and keep making memories together. She said yes!

Jillaine had helped design the ring, but hadn't seen it finished until the proposal. It turned out beautifully!

Mary and Patsy helped make the proposal a surprise and bring Jerrome's plans to life. It was so special to have them there!