We're getting married!!

Shout out to the moms of the bride and groom! If it weren’t for their friendly, social personalities, Brendon and Allison might never have started chatting in the first place. Proof that sometimes the moms really do know best! In August of 2021, both Brendon and Allison were preparing to start their first semester at the University of Missouri - Columbia. Before heading off to Mizzou, Brendon celebrated his 18th birthday in Alaska where conveniently Allison's parents, Phil and Angela, were celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary. At an outdoor cafe, right outside of Denali National Park, Angela saw Brendon's yellow Mizzou sweatshirt and struck up a conversation with him. Brendon made small talk and they both went their ways. A few weeks later, Heather posted on a Mizzou Parent Facebook group about how excited she was that her son was attending college and how nice the people in Missouri were. Even stating they had met a few of those nice Missouri people on their trip in Alaska. Angela commented and started talking with Heather after realizing they had met each other in Alaska! Angela gave Heather Allison's contact information to give to Brendon and their friendship began! Brendon and Allison started talking over snapchat and eventually met on campus a few days before classes started. Brendon remembers Allison being bubbly, confident, and charming and Allison remembers Brendon being smart, witty and always smiling. They became good friends as the semester went on, and together with mutual friends they shared many nights playing card games, watching movies, and attending campus events. As the fall semester came to an end, Allison left to attend Air Force Basic Military Training, but not before signing a lease to share a split level apartment with Brendon and two other mutual friends for the following school year! When Allison returned from BMT and Tech School, she confided in Brendon that her feelings for him had deepened into something more than friendship and he agreed he had feelings for her too. Their relationship flourished and they bonded over cooking many meals together, and their love for traveling. They spent time together walking the trails throughout Columbia, cooking recipes passed down from Heather, arguing over if the Chiefs or the Patriots were the better football team, attending numerous MU football games, and going line dancing at 54 Country on the weekends.

After some time, Brendon knew Allison was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with! He began by asking Allison's dad, Phil, for permission to marry her. (After Brendon had cooked them a delicious meal of chicken and fettuccine alfredo.) Thankfully, Phil said yes, and the time of looking for rings was upon him. So, he confided in his mother about his plan and the hunt for a ring began! Luckily, Allison had sent plenty of examples for Brendon to go off of, so he found a similar one in no time. Then he had to pick a location for the proposal: Warrensburg? No. Mizzou? No. Luckily for Brendon, Allison was already in a great place for him to propose... Europe! So, he concocted a plan to propose to Allison while the two of them were traveling in the United Kingdom for a week. He decided that the best place to pop the question was in Edinburgh, Scotland at the Edinburgh Castle. The morning of December 16, 2024, he could barely eat and contain the nervousness and joy he was experiencing all at once. He found a secluded battery in the fortress, asked Allison to feel his coat pocket revealing a small box to her. Then he got on his knee and asked THE question! She said YES, and despite the time change, they called and shared their joy with their family back in the States. So, now here we are, and we are so excited to share our special day with you - all of our loved ones.