From the beginning we were not a traditional couple so when it came to planning our wedding traditional was not an option.  We both knew unequivocally that we wanted to do something epic.  When we started discussing destinations we easily chose Montego Bay, Jamaica.  When it came to the date, I started looking at the calendar and the perfect day hit me within seconds.  I have always heard that March was an amazing time of year in Jamaica and that's when I noticed that the 21st fell on a Saturday.  You see, March is perfect because hopefully we will be celebrating another Eagles Super Bowl victory while awaiting the upcoming Phillies season.  And, anyone who knows me knows that the number 21 has extreme importance to me.  So, we will be married on March 21, 2020, 3-2-1! 

Before we get to March 21, 2020, let's start from the beginning and how it all came about.  Ashley and I are both from Marlton, are two years apart and went to the same middle school and high school as one another.  We knew each other growing up while in school, went to the same parties, hung out with the same people but never really hung out with each other per se.  After high school our paths went separate ways and over the next several years we might've seen each other only a handful of times only to say hello to each other and never think of anything beyond that. 

I work for UPS in Philadelphia and one day during work I met a man named Joe.  Over the next few days, Joe and I began to talk and we got to know each other a little bit.  I told Joe that I grew up in Marlton, in South Jersey, and that's when he told me that he had a niece from Marlton around my same age.  He started to say her name, "Ashley," and before he could finish, I blurted out, "Szwajkowski?"  I am not sure what made me say her name as she is not the only Ashley from Marlton around my age but she was the one that stuck out in my head.  For the next few weeks, I constantly asked Joe if he had told Ashley that I said hello.  Jokingly, Joe said, "If you ask me one more time I am going to give you her number so you can tell her yourself."  As we laughed about it the weekend was rapidly approaching and it would turn out to be a monumental weekend in all of our lives, one that no one saw coming. 

You see, it was week 3 of the 2017-2018 season and the Eagles were about to play the Giants at The Linc.  Chuck, Steve, and myself decided we were going to tailgate the game because it was the home opener but we did not have tickets to go in.  That was also a little event that would foreshadow what was about to happen.  As it got closer to kickoff, Chuck recommended that we go closer to home to watch the game and we chose one place, PJ's in Cherry Hill.  We had the massive booth right inside the front door with our own tv and during the first quarter, who walked in?  As fate would have it, it was Ashley and a mutual friend.  I slapped Chuck with a backhand to the shoulder and was like, "Bro, I know them!"  All three of us ended up knowing either one or both of them so when Steve noticed they couldn't find a seat he offered for them to sit with us.  As the day went on and as the game went on, I knew something special was happening but I didn't realize the severity.  Then, Jake Elliot kicks a game winner, the place went absolutely nuts and I told Ashley she needs to watch every Eagles game with me because they had won a massive division game.  We actually ended up going out to dinner that very same night and that pretty much began the story of "us". 

Fast forward throughout the year and as we became unseparable the Eagles kept winning.  Carson went down in Los Angeles but it didn't matter because we were on a path of destiny, we had Nick Foles and I had my good luck charm, Ashley.  Foles was leading, the Birds kept winning and they kept winning throughout the playoffs until they got to Super Bowl 52.  I couldn't believe what we were witnessing and through it all Ashley was so understanding about what it meant to me.  Not only me, but she knew that our dads shared the same passion so when it came to what we were going to do for the big game, it was easy, it would just be the eight of us together.  From day one of our story, the Eagles played a huge part and we were about to witness greatness, the first Super Bowl victory in franchise history.  To this day, I can remember the exact feelings I had in 2004 when the very team we were about to play beat us in the big game while sitting on my best friend's parent's couch.  Nick and I sat on that couch for what seemed like hours in complete silence.  So, if we were going to get redemption in Super Bowl 52, I would know I had something special in Ashley and would never be prepared to let her go. 

Our families sat together as one, well I stood in the back of the room and I couldn't help telling myself that if they won this game that would be the final piece of evidence for me to know that we were also on a path of destiny!  Then, the plays kept happening, Philly Special and all of the other amazing plays leading to the Brandon Graham strip-sack of Tom Brady to the green, white, and black confetti.  While I stood in the back of the room fighting back my emotions until I was alone (ha-ha), I shared this day with the people I love most and to see it there with my dad and Ashley's dad, one could only imagine what this meant to me.  At this very second, THIS IS WHEN I KNEW...

I love you Ashley!