Alexis and Cory grew up in the same town, went to the same high school, and had some of the same close friends...and never knew one another. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Then, sometime in the spring of 2012, they met for the very first time at Molly's bar (Alexis doesn't remember this...whoops🍻). It wasn't until December 2013 that they would meet again (both would remember!) and it was a whirlwind love story from there. Alexis and Cory went on their first date 🍿 in February 2014, fell in love 💑 by April, and moved in together in July. They decided to make a big move, both literally and in their relationship, and moved out to Colorado 🏔 in the summer of 2015 (after adopting Crinkles a month before!). They spent 2.5 years out west where they also adopted Bear and Alexis got her Bachelors and Cory his Masters. 🎓🎓 Alexis and Cory decided to move back to Illinois at the end of 2017. A year and some then went by and they had made it to a milestone of 5 years together! 😍 5 years of true love and an unconditional best friend in each other. Serious talks of the future had begun, and Alexis and Cory were getting excited for the next big part of their lives together. Then, one night in April 2019, Cory got down on one knee...

Cory and Alexis went on a date to Olive Garden! 🥙🥖🍝 Alexis was picking up on some serious nervous-energy vibes from Cory; at one point he played ninja catch with his fork. 😂 When they got back to the apartment, Cory realized that he didn’t have his door keys...🤨 Alexis was really suspicious that something was going on now! Someone (*cough*Jay*cough*) let Cory in through the lobby front door and then Cory came around to let Alexis in the back. When Cory opened their apartment door almost all of Cory and Alexis’ close friends and family were waiting there in the living room and yelled, “SURPRISE!” 🎉 The place was decorated and there were champagne and bundt cakes galore. Cory then turned to Alexis and said: “Alexis, so we have been on a lot of adventures together. And you’ve been the courage that sent me in that direction all of the times. Ok? But, today, I’m gonna take the first step and I’m gonna ask you: (gets down on one knee) Will you marry me?”🥰 AND SHE SAID “YES!” 💍

Alexis told Cory, almost right away after talks of engagement had begun, to consult her best friend Maggie for ideas on how to pop the question. After a lot of back and forth, with crazy ideas abound, a plan was made and the wheels began turning; barrelling headlong into a life-changing, million dollar question. Maggie asked Cory if he thought Alexis would want the proposal to be a private affair or a big celebration. After some thought, Cory responded, "Both." He thought that she would appreciate a more intimate proposal, but that she would love the opportunity to celebrate with her close friends and family right away. Maggie suggested that the two things could be done together, and the plan to throw a surprise engagement party was hatched. Only one thing remained, asking for permission... On a cold, icy evening at Lord Stanley's, Cory and Alexis were enjoying some pizza and beverages with her mother after having helped her move some furniture down several narrow staircases. Alexis' father, Mike, also came out for an evening of socialization and entertainment. Seeing this as his best chance in months to speak with her father where she wouldn't overhear him, Cory decided that tonight was the night he would ask Mike for his approval for the engagement. Before Cory could even finish asking the question, Mike was emphatically giving his blessing. He couldn't be happier for his daughter.

As the day edged closer and closer, Cory said he was cool as a cucumber whenever anyone involved in the planning and execution asked him how he was feeling. Those feelings crumbled quickly as the day dawned, and getting Alexis to stick to a deadline proved to be impossible once again. Jay and Maggie arrived on time to begin decorating, but the fiance-to-be was still entrenched in her rituals of beautification. Eventually, though, Alexis was ready to go, but Jay and Maggie were held up by a pesky restaurant worker! In a last minute effort, Jay and Maggie were let into the building so that they could begin decorating as soon as the happy couple left for dinner. At the restaurant, Cory's nerves began to make an appearance. The food arrived in record time and he was worried his co-conspirators hadn't had enough time to get things set up! After a quick trip to the "bathroom" to check, he'd been assured that everything was in place and guests were already there and ready. When Cory sat down at the table...the realization truly dawned on him; after paying the bill and a short drive home, he was going to propose to the woman he loves.

The plan was simple but solid. After Alexis made a comment about wanting the proposal documented, the location of said proposal changed from the restaurant to center stage at the surprise party. Upon returning to the apartment complex, however, a chink in the flawless improvisation that Cory had weaved was made apparent. Instead of letting Jay and Maggie into the building, he had given them his exterior door key. The very same key that is necessary to even get into the building in the first place! In a mild panic, Cory made up some half-hearted excuse of his key potentially having fallen off in the car while he made a call to Jay to come down and let him in the front door, so as not to be seen by Alexis. After being let in, Cory went to the side door to let Alexis in and said that someone was coming in the front door and let him in. This would prove to be the last hiccup in the plan. As the couple climbed the stairs, they moved further from their past and closer to their future together. Opening the door, all their friends and family there, Alexis was stunned. Once an excited Bear was wrangled, the speech that had been repeated and revised so many times was given. After what felt like an eternity, SHE SAID YES!!! Happy friends and family showered the newly engaged couple with hugs and words of congratulations. Merriment and celebration ensued, and the night was perfect!