Not realizing Alex's love of beer, Alli happened to suggest that their first date be at the newly opened "Beer Grotto" in Ann Arbor. Alex, upon hearing the venue suggestion, immediately knew he had met a potential 'winner', but suggested that the date be scheduled early enough in the night so that Alli could "cut her losses" if it didn't go well (those were Alex's exact words, haha!). The conversation flowed, as did the craft brews, and that first date turned into many more. Alex, realizing that things were going well at the Grotto, quickly asked Alli for not just one more date, but a dozen more dates at once where they would watch the series 'Game of Thrones' together every Sunday night for the remainder of the season. Alli wasn't sure if she should meet a guy she had only met once before at his house to watch the popular HBO series but, something about it felt right and she agreed. Since those first few monumental dates, Alli and Alex got to know each other by going to concerts, spending time near Lake Michigan to meet friends and family, traveling throughout the the US and Canada for fun and friend's weddings, and many of trips to Wolverine Brewing for pulled pork nachos and beers.

Fast-forward to 3 years later, Alli and Alex decided to take a trip out to a beautiful house in Taos, NM to escape the final, frigid days of Michigan Winter (well, "spring," but we don't really have that here in MI). Excited to see the mountains and relax, they hopped on a plane to Santa Fe and arrived well after midnight, driving up to Taos on the dark, mountainous roads. The next morning, Alex had already popped out of bed and gotten ready by 7:30am which is unusual for a guy who isn't exactly a morning person. He said he was going to get coffee and groceries and would be back soon! But, Alex did not return soon. Having leisurely gotten up, Alli became hungrier and hungrier, distracting herself by taking photos of the house and surrounding landscape. Finally, the phone rang and he mentioned waiting for a Visitor Center to open at 10am to grab pamphlets. Alli, being extremely hangry, begged him to just come home already so they could make breakfast! It was a cold and dark morning, however that did not stop them from going on a road trip to Abiqui, NM - a desolate canyon of hoodoos and tumbleweeds - followed by lunch at a cafe and a couple of small wineries. They met some fun folks along the way and made the most of the fact that it snowed on the way home. Upon returning to Taos for the evening, they stopped to grab dinner and Alli mentioned just wanting frozen pizzas for dinner - "nothing fancy." So, salad and DiGiorno it was! That night after playing some games, listening to the local radio station, and eating DiGiorno pizza, Alli was telling many stories while Alex frantically lit candles around the house including BOTH fireplaces. Being oblivious still, she decided to take her camera outside to capture the last light as the sun decided to make an appearance right before setting. While taking photos, she heard the music switch over to the Lumineers song "Patience" and turned to look as Alex was walking out onto the patio to kneel down with a ring!

So, it all made sense after the fact, piecing the day together, that Alex was planning to propose it's just Alli didn't realize it! Earlier that morning when he took forever getting back home with the food, he was actually sitting in a parking lot calling her dad to ask for permission to marry his daughter. When they were out and about all day, Alex was acting like the paparazzi so he could document the entire unfolding of events. The reason he was rushing to finish dinner and light candles that evening was to set a glow-y mood for proposing. It all made sense after the fact! And all of that has brought us to today. Cheers, Alli and Alex