THE STORY OF US
THE POPULAR TV VET AND HER HUSBAND ON BEING HIGH SCHOOL SWEETHEARTS AND 18 YEARS TOGETHER
When the time was right to ask his long-time love Dr Lisa Chimes to be his wife, Brad Nissen devised a proposal guaranteed to steal the gorgeous vet’s heart.
“It was my birthday, so Brad woke me very early and said he’d made me a photo book,” recalls Lisa with a smile. “When we got to the last page, he called in our two dogs, Nelson and Lucas, and Nelson jumped onto the bed. I then saw that Nelson had a ring box tucked into his little walking harness and opened it to find a diamond ring inside.”
Adds Brad: “I did a few trial runs beforehand, and they worked perfectly every time. It was a bit of a no-brainer.”
Six months later on July 3, 2011, the couple were married in Melbourne with, of course, their beloved cavalier-cross-poodles walking down the aisle, tails wagging!
“It was so perfect to have the dogs involved – it couldn’t have been better,” says Lisa, a Merial and Real Pet Food Company ambassador who is familiar to TV viewers through Bondi Vet and Dr Lisa to the Rescue.
Now 34, Lisa met Brad, 35, while holidaying in Byron Bay when they were both teenagers.
“It was the end of Year 11 and Brad, who is from Melbourne, was there with his parents, and I was on a holiday with my girlfriends for the first time,” says Lisa, who grew up in Sydney.
“We met through friends and it was on New Year’s Eve that we had our first kiss.
“We had this instant connection and we’ve been together ever since. We’re now coming up to 18 years together.”
Adds Brad: “Lisa’s always had such a positive nature and a real inner as well as outer beauty. We have also always had a very good understanding of each other and have communicated well.”
For the first six years, however, the couple maintained a long-distance relationship.
“We did a lot of back-andforth travel through Year 12 and university, seeing each other only every couple of months,” says Lisa.
“I think the key to the success of our relationship, certainly in the beginning, was the fact that we had to build a very strong level of trust. Having a longdistance relationship is the extreme test.
“If you can survive living in separate places – particularly in those teenage years and early twenties when everyone is partying – it’s a big thing. Once you get through that, it builds a very strong foundation.”
Clearly, though, it wasn’t an easy time for the pair.
“I look back to those goodbyes and they were heartwrenching,” recalls Lisa. “I remember being a young girl and lying on my sofa crying and thinking, ‘When are we going to see each other next?’
“When Brad moved up to Sydney in 2009, it made things so much easier.”
These days, Lisa and Brad’s household is certainly a full one. The couple are now parents to son Hudson, 5, daughter Darcie, 3, and 8-month-old son Spencer.
“Yes, there’s sleep deprivation and not much time to ourselves,” laughs Lisa, adding: “Life is definitely busy. But it’s so amazing to see these children we created together with little pieces of both of us.
“We’re both very familyoriented people and we just love being parents. We’re so looking forward to our future together.”