--- How We Met --- Every great love story starts with a serendipitous moment, and ours is no exception. It was a warm summer day after Alexa finished a long soccer tournament and rushed to get to a movie showing with a group of mutual friends she shared with Sean. As Alexa drove from Tumwater, WA, back to Vancouver, WA, she had to make a pit stop at the Kelso, WA Target to buy a cute new outfit, change, and touch up her makeup before meeting said friends at the movies. Alexa showed up right when the movie was about to start, and this is when we first crossed paths. The only seat left near our mutual friend group was, coincidentally, next to Sean. What ensued next was something that Alexa could have never predicted. Sean was absolutely terrified of the movie that was being shown, The Strangers. Sean was covering his eyes, trying to bury his head into Alexa’s shoulder, and asking if they could make a beeline out of the movie to go watch Kung Fu Panda the next screen over. Alexa found it refreshing that he wasn’t afraid to show his emotions. This encounter turned into hours of laughter after the movie, and we both knew something special was blossoming. --- The First Date --- Our first date was nothing short of magical. We decided to grab food at a quaint little restaurant in Downtown Camas, WA. The conversation flowed effortlessly as we shared our favorite books, movies, and dreams for the future. Sean flashed a smile at Alexa, and he had a huge piece of lettuce stuck in his teeth. We laughed hysterically about this for a few minutes and conversation flowed effortlessly. By the end of the night, it felt like we had known each other forever. Alexa swooned over Sean's wit, charm and humor. Sean couldn't stop thinking about Alexa's kindness, intelligence, beauty and sense of humor. --- Growing Together --- Over the years, we've built countless memories and faced life’s ups and downs hand in hand. From getting through high school and college together to adopting our first rescue dog, Koda, to buying our first house together, every moment has been a testament to our unwavering bond. We've traveled to the beautiful rolling hills of Tuscany, the City of Light, Paris, celebrated milestones, and grown as individuals and as a couple.

--- The Proposal --- Before Sean proposed to Alexa, he gave her a promise ring back in 2016. We went on a family trip to Italy and France. While in France, Sean’s family was in cahoots together to hide a ring Sean had bought for Alexa, so she wouldn’t see it until they got to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Once we reached the top of the Eiffel Tower, Sean read Alexa a beautiful love letter, and presented her with a ring. This was a moment straight out of a fairytale and Alexa felt incredibly lucky to be with someone so incredibly thoughtful. Now onto the actual proposal. I know what y’all are thinking…"it’s about f***ing time, you've been together since high school!" Well, we wanted to wait until we had the means to have the wedding of our dreams abroad. The proposal was also a moment straight out of a fairytale, but it didn’t start out that way. Alexa was training for a half marathon and felt irritated with Sean because he wanted to bike ahead of her as she ran, and she didn’t quite understand why. She did not feel comfortable running by herself on the trail, but since it would only be for a short period of time, and Sean was incredibly persistent, she gave in. What Alexa didn’t know is that Sean was about to propose. He had meticulously planned every detail, from choosing the perfect ring (studying every ring picture Alexa sent to him carefully) to booking a weekend getaway with some of their closest friends at a charming cabin in the woods to celebrate our engagement. As Alexa slowly made her way up a hill then began to make her descend, Sean biked ahead of her to a clearing in the woods, set up a camera and champagne bottles and got down on one knee and asked the most important question of our lives. This was the best reward Alexa could have received after running 8 miles. Through happy tears, Alexa said "Yes!" and we were surrounded by the beauty of the moment, knowing that our forever had not just begun, but we were about to start the next chapter of our lives together. We have watched each other grow from naive high school kids to successful adults and that is something that not many people get to experience. --- Looking Forward --- We are beyond excited to start this new chapter together. Since we have been together for so long, we felt that eloping, with just the two of us, was the right choice. We want a stress-free day, with an intimate symbolic ceremony, traveling around one of our favorite places in the world, Italy. Even though our favorite people will not be in attendance, our wedding day is not just a celebration of our love, but an appreciation of all the people who have supported and loved us throughout our journey. We just want to focus on our love, with no other distractions or external stressors, worrying about every painstaking detail. We can't wait to share this special day with you through photos and videos and look forward to creating even more beautiful memories as we embark on this lifelong adventure together.