Living worlds apart, fate brought us together in the most unexpected way…
Our love continued to grow, and what followed was two years of us flying back and forth between the US and The Netherlands to spend a few precious weeks together, including Grace's first trip to The Netherlands in July 2022. - Fun fact: did you know in that first year we were together in person for over 100 days?
On April 28, 2023, Grace proposed in the Luxembourg Gardens of Paris. Marlies said yes! We celebrated with mimosa's and baguettes in the garden, and spent our evening drinking champagne at the top of the Eiffel Tower.
Determined to start our lives together, we started the process of Grace moving to The Netherlands. Grace left Portland and moved back with her parents in Texas.
In November, we celebrated our love with a small courthouse wedding. Soon after, Marlies' work contract got renewed and the visa was submitted.
Grace officially moved to the Netherlands in April 2024. On May 8, 2024, Marlies surprised Grace with a picnic at Kasteel de Haar and proposed back. Grace said yes!
Our journey has been a whirlwind of love, travel, and unforgettable moments. As we're settling down into our lives together - to quote Taylor Swift "it's been a long time coming" - we look forward to our wedding in July 2025 and celebrating our love with all of you.
Or should we say: Harry Styles. Because that is how it all began: a Harry Styles Twitter group chat, made in October of 2021. After the initial meeting in the group chat, we hit it off right away. While we were flirting on the Twitter timeline, we had deep late-night conversations over iMessage and Facetime.
On November 30, 2021, Grace asked Marlies to be her girlfriend in a
1-minute phone call. Marlies said yes!
On January 25, 2022, it was finally time to take the next step. Grace had invited Marlies to visit her in Portland. Without hesitation, Marlies embarked on a journey across the world, flying from Amsterdam to Portland. And that's where we first met, at the PDX airport. One could say it was love at first sight. Two magical weeks followed, where we got to know each other, first held each other's hands, and went on a weekend getaway to Cannon Beach, and survived a trip to Atlanta, Georgia. Two weeks that confirmed what we already knew: we are meant to be.
