It all started at Marist Catholic High School. Freshman year, we had one class together. We never really connected that year though, or the next two. Not until senior year. We mutually decided to go to a movie together one Friday evening after school, just as friends. It “wasn’t a date….” . We enjoyed the day together and from then on kept hanging out. Alexander watched the first 3 seasons of Stranger Things in 2 days so that we could watch the 4th season together. That’s how it all started. Stranger things and star watching. Although, Elli told Alexander that she wasn't planning on bringing a boyfriend into college. On June 29th, 2022, we were star watching in Elli’s backyard and she officially asked Alexander if she could take back what she said about not dating. From then on, we were boyfriend and girlfriend. We spent the quality time together we could before leaving for school and decided to try out long distance because “why not.” After about 1 ½ months of dating, Alexander went on a trip to Spain where he he got a postcard for Elli at every new place they went. The sweet thing was, was that he secretly put one little word in the corner of each postcard, and when you put the words together, it said “I want to propose to you someday.” The next month, we dove into the start of 4 years of long-distance. Elli went to the University of Montana and Alexander to the University of Washington. We didn’t let the distance keep us apart though. We would make sure to visit each other about once a month, either Elli flying to Seattle or Alexander to Missoula. Summers and Christmas breaks were filled with as much quality time as we could squish in. Long distance was difficult and filled with many tears but it obviously did not keep our love apart. We learned more and more that we are actually much more alike than we are different. Alexander started taking long runs, Elli started playing tennis, Alexander has become a fan of country music, and Elli has joined the fantasy football league. Our favorite things to do together are taking hikes, swing dancing, playing cribbage, and watching movies from our constantly growing “to watch” list. During Christmas break on December 29th, 2024 we walked up Mount Baldy and Alexander proposed. Here we are, a year later, full into wedding planning. Elli graduated undergrad at University of Montana in December, and Alexander graduates as a Mechanical Engineer in June. We are working on setting up a place to live in Albany and are excited to start our next chapter as we support each other in Alexander’s full-time Engineering job and Elli’s Occupational Therapy Grad school education. We are so thankful for all the friends and family who have supported us through our lives and in this season of many changes. Here’s to many happy years to come.