How L & T met

While their careers brought them both to New York City, they actually met over 1000 miles away, on the beach in Miami.  In March 2003, Lauren was two months from getting her master’s degree at Columbia University, and Torrey was attending Grammy parties as part of his work for Universal Music Group.  Lauren met her good friend Zofie only a few months before, but she had a lot in common with Zofie, who was also getting a master’s degree in New York City.  Lauren and Zofie decided to go to Miami for their spring break, and they spent the week dancing in the sun to great music as part of the annual Winter Music Conference.  At the end of the week, Zofie discovered that her boss from her music internship (none other than Torrey) was also in Miami, and they decided to meet up.

When Lauren and Torrey met, they talked for hours on the beach in Miami, but said goodbye.  In fact, even after Lauren and Torrey talked on the phone and began spending time together in New York, they didn’t see a future in their relationship, since Lauren was moving to Atlanta for another graduate degree in May.  But when it came time for Lauren to leave New York, they realized that their connection was developing into love, and they had to try to keep up the relationship despite the distance.  Only a few months later, Torrey moved to Atlanta, where they lived for two years.  They are now setting up shop in New York (with their amazing dog, Frank), and can’t wait to make it official and start their journey as Mr. and Mrs. Taralli!

The proposal

On October 27^th, 2007, Lauren and Torrey woke up in their Upper West Side apartment, with Lauren’s parents, visiting for the weekend, still sleeping.  Since they still didn’t have a coffee maker, Torrey decided they should go outside to the bakery around the corner to get Lauren’s mom and dad some coffee and breakfast.  Lauren, being her usual zombie self when she first wakes up, agreed to come without the dog (the first clue that she should have caught).  They walked from 64^th and Broadway to the bakery on 65^th and Broadway, where Torrey said that he knows of a better breakfast place a little further uptown (the second clue that she should have caught).  He walked her up Columbus Avenue, where she was starting to complain that this breakfast place had better be worth it.  They ended up at 72^nd and Columbus, on the corner where they met over four years earlier for their first actual date.  Torrey got on one knee (in the rain), pulled out a ring box, and proposed!  Little did Lauren know, Torrey had already put Lauren’s grandmother’s ring in a beautiful new setting and asked her parents for her hand.  She cried and nodded yes, and couldn’t believe what had just happened.  It was such an exciting and happy surprise!