Her take: We went to the same college, at the same time, and had mutual friends, but didn’t know each other...yet!! Little did we know, our friends were going to be the reason that our lives changed forever. I met two of my friends out for lunch on a sunny August day. My plan was to go home afterwards but somehow they convinced me to go downtown with them. They were going to Novak’s Tavern to meet some friends and that is where I laid eyes on the most handsome man I’d ever seen! His smile lit up a room and our eyes locked for what seemed like forever. The connection was immediate. It was like nothing I had ever felt before. From that day forward, I knew he was put in my life for a reason. Of course I had to make him work for it a little, but in the end...it was all worth the chase! His take: I have always believed in the saying that everything happens for a reason. Without it, there is simply no other way to make sense of how Morgan came into my life. Up until 2013, Morgan and I unknowingly crossed each other's paths regularly while at Ohio University. We hung out at the same places and with the same people, but never officially met one another during our time in Athens. In a strange way, we are thankful we did not meet, since we would not have been in a place to truly appreciate one another like we do today. Fast forward to August of 2017, I was new to Columbus and ready to start a brand new chapter. One Saturday afternoon, while hanging at Novak's (A bar downtown), a good friend asked if some people he knew could join us. As the group arrived, I casually turned around from my barstool and immediately locked eyes with Morgan. You may call it cheesy, but there’s no denying that in that moment, I knew that I was going to marry this girl. We talked the rest of the night like we were the only two people in the bar. While it took us a few months to work through some growing pains, there was never any doubt that she was, and still is, the only one for me.

The evening started off as any other, with us going to one of our favorite restaurants down in “The Country”. It was a group made up of those who hold a special place in Morgan’s heart. As we progressed through dinner Alex became quieter and quieter as the nerves began to set in while Morgan was blissfully unaware of what was to come. After dinner had ended, Alex wanted to go get a milkshake knowing that Morgan could never turn down ice cream! In reality, this was a necessary distraction to give Chelsea and the others just the right amount of time to rush back to the house and get set up for the proposal. When we pulled up to Jacob and Chelsea’s house, we casually walked around to the back of the house where everyone was hanging out and doing a poor job of ‘acting natural’. A minute later, Kobi came running out with a bandana wrapped around his neck. At first this did not seem out of the ordinary, as Morgan and Chelsea always buy matching collars and bandanas for their pups! But this time, only Kobi had one on. After what felt like forever, Kobi finally settled down enough to give Morgan the opportunity to read what is said. A second later, Alex got down on one knee, pulled out a ring and did what he had been patiently waiting to do from day one… spend forever together. It was so unexpected and the most amazing surprise! Now we are excited to share this special day with all of you!