Once upon a time, in the small town of Golden, Colorado, a Christmas family tradition was born. Every year, the Hawkinson family hosted a festive gathering filled with friends, laughter, family, and plenty of spiced Swedish wine. One year—long ago—the Dolloff family was invited. From that moment on, they never missed a celebration.

As the years passed and the families grew, so did Allison and Thomas. What once meant playing chase through the house or flying down the laundry chute slowly turned into sipping wine and playing pool. Though they saw each other only once a year, time did what it does best—and eventually, they forgot one another.

Until fate stepped in on Christmas Eve, December 2022.

Wine was poured. Pool was played. And—well—the rest is history.

“He’s just a guy from California I’ll never see again.”

—Allison

“I don’t know who she was—just a girl.”

—Thomas

“Wait… are we related?!” (The answer is no.)

—Thomas

The two decided to follow through with their choices of that fateful night, and began dating in February 2023. What followed was a year of back-and-forth flights between San Diego and Denver, which turned into a shared, shoebox-sized apartment in Point Loma by January 2024. A year after came a move back to Colorado—Fort Collins, to be exact. (January 2025)

That's when they decided that forever together, no matter the state, sounded pretty great.

Their story is well known and deeply cherished by many. But if you ask them, it all comes down to one thing

Santa Claus knew exactly what they wanted for Christmas:

A tale as old as time.

A best friend.

Someone to become Stevie and Loretta’s parents.

And a lifelong partner.