Clear Cut Couples: Hannah and Lawson
Hannah and Lawson met at a friend’s Christmas party in DC where they were introduced because “Lawson runs a company that works with students in Europe and Hannah lives in Barcelona!” They had a little conversation about work and then ran into each other in DC the next day and got brunch with friends. The very next day, Hannah got an email asking if she’d be up for helping with some work in their office the next week. She said yes, ended up loving it so much that she didn’t move back to Barcelona, and started to cautiously become friends with her new (very smart, charming, and attractive) boss.
As for their first date… it never really happened. The closest thing to a first date for them was a work trip to Europe that they took together. Hannah said, “Looking back it’s hard to imagine how we didn’t realize we were in love sooner. On this first work trip we were en route to Portugal when I told him I was always afraid the pilot would forget to put the wheels down before landing. Without skipping a beat he started beating his tray table and chanting (loudly) ‘WHEELS! WHEELS! WHEELS!’ I melted in my seat and wasn’t sure whether I was melting with embarrassment or instant love. Once we got to the city where we were having meetings that week (in beautiful Southern Portugal) we walked the town, had a classic Bacalao dinner, and talked till 4am about everything under the sun. I remember shortly afterward a friend asked about my love life and I answered: ‘There’s no one, really - but I think my boss is the kind of person I’d eventually go ahead and marry. But he’s my BOSS so obviously I’m not into him - that’s just not an option. It’s just nice to know that this kind of person exists, you know?’” Soon, they started spending 50+ hours a week together for work. That was almost 5 years ago! But they have been together officially for about 3 and a half years.
They have shared so many incredible memories over the years! They once did a blitz work trip through Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Costa Rica, Argentina, Ecuador, Chile, and Uruguay in a span of 25 days. That trip was absolutely exhausting, but full of the best meals, the best conversations, and a lot of hilarious memories. They’ve taken so many other amazing trips since then as a couple - Mexico blitz week, overnight train rides to Switzerland for quick snowy weekends, ending up stranded in Paris when their airline company went bankrupt and canceled all flights, weddings of friends in Europe...it’s been a wild ride! “As much as we love traveling together, some of our favorite times are spent sharing pizza in our now home base of NYC and with family in our Virginia and North Carolina hometowns.”
Lawson proposed in Hannah's hometown of Fredericksburg, VA. He knew Hannah was pretty good at figuring out surprises so he had to get her friends and family involved. One of her friends convinced her to go to coffee and other friends posted on social media from places like Indianapolis and South Carolina to convince her they were out of town on the Saturday of the proposal. Meanwhile, he set up a picnic with a great rosé champagne (Hannah runs a wine tourism business and is picky about her wines) in a beautiful park near her house where she spent a lot of time as a child and where they shared many special memories. He also printed off 250 photos of their relationship over the last five years and wrote a caption on the back of each one with an inside joke or memory. Around 4:30pm, while she was at coffee with her friend, he surprised her! She was totally shocked and almost couldn't speak! (She said later that she knew he would propose soon but thought for sure it would be later in July).
They walked together through her hometown to the park, and he proposed under the trees. She said yes!!! She was soooo excited about the Old European diamond. After drinking champagne and laughing and looking at all the photos, they walked to her house where a couple of her close friends and their families had orchestrated a surprise party. Hannah started crying immediately when she walked in - it was such a sweet moment.
Hannah said, “Everything was perfect and I’ve never been so surprised in my life! I was so truly not expecting a proposal for a couple weeks that I did not have my nails done. I’m pretty active and have next to no nails normally - so this horrifying realization hit me as I realized he was proposing. That said, looking back I wouldn’t change a thing. He said ‘No nails is you - I love it.’ Also, he forgot to put the ring on my finger when he proposed. He stood up after I said yes and handed me the closed box. We laughed once he realized and he got back on his knee and put it on. Also fun side note - fire ants were biting my feet as he was proposing and I didn’t even care. Since the proposal I’ve stared at my hand approximately 9 out of 16 waking hours of the day - that’s how much I love my ring!”
They’re hoping to do a small wedding weekend with close family and friends soon! “We’re just excited to do life together and trying not to get too tied to our plans as of now.”
