James was taken aback by Natalie's beauty when they were introduced. When she returned home, he started reading romance books with her for things to talk about. We developed a best-friendship while he harbored a crush until a delivery of flowers led to the confession of our feelings. The friendship that started in texts & video messages, became a relationship on FaceTime. When Natalie went on a cruise, she mailed letters, 1 to open each day, & he sent voice notes for each morning & night.

After 2 months in a long-distance relationship, James flew halfway across the U.S. The first time seeing each other in person after being introduced was his descent down the airport escalator. Natalie lept into his arms for a big hug before the first kiss. We'd worried our expectations were too high, but being together immediately felt even better than we'd imagined. It was the first time we said "I love you" out loud, though we'd thought it a lot. We confirmed what we knew—we were meant to be.

The prize would help us move so we can stop spending most of our time missing each other. Traveling back and forth means one of us has to be away from our children, and we can't wait to be all together more than a few times a year.