It was orientation day at Tampa General Hospital when Kelly and Amanda first met. Kelly talked about his 12 pets and Amanda responded with, "Wow that's a lot!" (Doesn’t seem like much to anyone else, but for Amanda being as shy as she is it must have taken her a lot to muster up the courage and interject into the conversation). 

Kelly wrote his phone number down for Amanda and handed it to her, but she wasn’t really looking for a relationship at the moment. Kelly countered by telling her, it was just a phone number and they can just chat and they did just that. They talked here and there and made plans to hang out, but life had gotten in the way and they ended up falling out of touch.

Fast-forward almost a year later, during shift change, Kelly was walking by Amanda’s unit and he caught her eye. She stopped to ask Kelly about how she heard he was moving to Japan and that she was sad they didn't get to hang out. Kelly was surprised when Amanda told him that she was now ready to test the waters, which led them to their first date at Lowry Park Zoo.

Over the course of their relationship, they have supported each other through getting their degrees and enjoyed each other’s company traveling to Japan, Italy, Bali, and Singapore.

Kelly proposed to Amanda on La Jolla Beach, California, in front of an audience of seals!   Amanda didn't say yes though, she said "of course"...which meant so much to Kelly. “Of course” means “I've been waiting for this."

Congratulations Amanda + Kelly on your engagement!

Lead Photographer | Stephanie Duffany