Kaitlyn Bristowe: ‘My Day Had Changed’ After Meeting Jason Tartick

True love! Bachelorette alum Kaitlyn Birstowe recalled her first encounter with boyfriend Jason Tartick in a sweet Instagram tribute on Wednesday, October 23.

Bristowe, 34, marked the anniversary of the couple’s first-ever meeting with what she warned was an “emotional” post. The Canadian-born star said she was gearing up to record an episode of her “Off the Vine” podcast with Tartick, 30, and her pal Olivia Caridi in October of last year, but she “almost canceled” after “bawling my eyes out in an Uber, going through some crap.” The Buffalo native nearly canceled as well because he was suffering from an eye infection.

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EMOTIONAL ALERT. On this day last year…. I walked into a studio in Seattle to podcast with Jason and Olivia. I almost canceled because I had been bawling my eyes out in an Uber, going through some crap, and I was crying on FaceTime to my dad when he came in. We had never met, but he hugged me, and told me he had just cried too at a charity event he came from. He looked at me and said, “let’s have a soft Tuesday together”. He almost canceled as well because he had an eye infection. He brought a nice bottle of wine, and I had asked Olivia to join me for the podcast because I thought I would need someone to help keep the energy up, since I was so sad. But If you spend two seconds with Jason you realize his energy is electric and you can’t help but be in a good mood. My day had changed. I didn’t know what was going to happen. I thought of Jason as a friend, and wanted him to be the bachelor. He actually helped me through a hard time. I just wanted him to be happy. J, I met you 365 days ago and from what felt like a goofy friendship, turned into a beautiful love story. Thank you for always lifting me up, being my rock, and thank you for stepping foot into that studio with your Cyclopes eye. You’re my Lobster.

A post shared by Kaitlyn Bristowe (@kaitlynbristowe) on Oct 23, 2019 at 1:25pm PDT

“I was crying on FaceTime to my dad when he came in. We had never met, but he hugged me, and told me he had just cried too at a charity event he came from,” she wrote on Tuesday. “He looked at me and said, ‘let’s have a soft Tuesday together.’”

Though the former dancer revealed she asked Caridi to join the taping to help lift her spirits, she argued that Tartick’s “energy,” within two seconds of their time together, was “electric.” She added that one “can’t help but be in a good mood” with him around.

“My day had changed. I didn’t know what was going to happen,” she continued. “I thought of Jason as a friend, and wanted him to be the Bachelor. He actually helped me through a hard time. I just wanted him to be happy.”

Kaitlyn Bristowe Recalls Meeting Boyfriend Jason Tartick in Emotional Instagram Post — Jason Tartick and Kaitlyn Bristowe attend the ‘Grand Hotel’ Premiere in Miami on June 10, 2019. Gustavo Caballero/South Beach Photo/Shutterstock

Bristowe noted that their bond transitioned from “what felt like a goofy friendship” into becoming “a beautiful love story.” In closing, she thanked her beau for joining her show that day. She also called him her “lobster,” which is a reference to Friends character Phoebe Buffay’s (Lisa Kudrow) theory on soulmates.

Bristowe and Tartick began dating in January 2019. They currently live together and share a dog, a Golden Retriever named Ramen.

Two months before her whirlwind romance with the banker began, the Dew Edit designer had confirmed that she and her ex-fiancé, Shawn Booth, had called off their engagement. The former couple met on The Bachelorette’s 11th season in 2015, where they got engaged by the show’s end.

In November 2018, Bristowe and Booth, 32, announced their separation after three years together in a joint statement to Us Weekly. The exes said they “have both evolved as people,” but were “very much committed to remaining friends.”

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