Taylor and Eric met in May 2016, and felt an immediate connection. Their relationship has only grown over the last year and a half and we couldn’t be happier for them! Learn more about their journey, below.
How long did it take to meet up after matching? What did you do for your first meet up/date?
We messaged back and forth for about a week, then decided to meet up in person. Our first date consisted of us going to a restaurant that was by the harbor full of local brews and seafood, which I am deathly allergic to.
After that we laughed and talked about our different upbringings. While we chatted about religion, family, and politics, we both felt something there. It was so natural and relaxing, so we decided to continue the day together. We walked around the city enjoying local beer tastings, and a stroll through the city park over looking the harbor.
To this day it’s still one of our favorite spots to visit. Eric always brings up that he knew he loved me that first trip there when he got me to laugh by being silly as we sat on our bench.
Taylor, what was the first message you sent on Bumble?
I simply messaged him, “hey.”
Eric, what was your first reply back?
“hey, how are you?”
Taylor, how did this match feel different?
Matching with Eric was different because I could genuinely tell from his pictures that he was a down-to-earth guy and that he was on the app for the right reasons. As opposed to clichéd conversations or dreadful pick-up lines, Bumble offered the platform for us to meet and have a casual, genuine first conversation.
Eric, how did this match feel different?
The biggest difference from the beginning was that I wasn’t looking for romance. I had gotten to the point in my life where only my true friends had hung around. I had my family, my job, and music, but that was about it.
Taylor was an out of town girl in a “dangerous” city, and I thought it to be a great opportunity for me to help her out. It didn’t hurt that she was my height and extremely attractive either. I was open with myself about the situation, feeling no pressure because I had no intentions of where I wanted it to go.
Taylor, what was your first impression of Eric? How did you feel before the first date?
When I first met Eric, he was waiting outside the lobby of my building in the city. (Our plans were to walk around and sightsee all day.) My immediate thought was, what if he is short? (I’m 5’11.) What if he doesn’t look like his pictures? What if it’s awkward? But opening the door and finding him there leaning against the wall waiting for me (and not on his phone!) was very peaceful. We immediately bonded and being myself came very naturally.
Eric, what was your first impression of Taylor? How did you feel before the first date?
She’s definitely not a catfish, thank God. After walking to dinner — where I unintentionally almost triggered a shellfish allergy — we went to a beautiful park in Federal Hill overlooking the harbor, tried some local craft beers, and found a place for a country girl to see the stars.
By the end of the night I had a serious mental dilemma going on. “I fell for the girl I just said I’d be a tour guide for,” and “I really hope she doesn’t think this was a plot.” I felt very comfortable knowing that I finally was in a place where I wasn’t that 20-something looking for love.
Taylor, what do you consider a unique aspect of your relationship now?
We are total opposites but have such huge hearts, so the key to our relationship is open communication. Eric and I are great about being very open and talking through any issues or arguments that present themselves.
This is something that gets overlooked in so many relationships because it seems like it should be so easy. If you’re upset, you say you’re upset and why. However, I think many people tend to shy away or not be open to seeing someone else’s point of view, which is important.
Eric, what do you consider a unique aspect of your relationship now?
Taylor has never stopped growing. She impressed me very early on with her capacity for compassion and ability to love blindly. Over the past 18 months, we’ve broken down a lot of barriers in the relationship dogma. She pushes me to be better at what I enjoy and to improve my flaws. That is all I could want in a partner.
Where are you now? Where are you headed in the future?
We’ve never been happier. We just got engaged and have two awesome dogs that we get the pleasure of taking care of. We also just bought and renovated our first home. We’re very excited for the future, but are still enjoying every day along the way.
What are your favorite things to do together?
Eric is a great musician, so most nights you can find us dancing around the house with the dogs, singing while he’s playing guitar. We enjoy finding local shops or restaurants to try in the area. We also love talking about how grateful we are Bumble was invented and we both happened to have it at the same time.
—
We couldn’t agree more. Nothing makes us more proud at The Hive than seeing Bumble success stories. To submit your story, please email feedback@team.bumble.com!