On my 28th birthday, I was driving to drop Cleo, my dog, off at my friend's house and then head to church in Collegedale, Tennessee. After taking some extra time to make sure my birthday look was fabulous, I was running late (I know, shocking!). While driving on I-75 North, I apparently exceeded the permitted maximum speed. Soon, blue lights appeared in my rearview mirror. "Happy Birthday to me," I thought. Of course, Justin Howerton of the Georgia State Patrol was the one who pulled me over. He was kind (and cute!) and admired Cleo in the backseat. After doing a double-take at my license, he said "Well, happy birthday." He let me off with a warning (good thing for him) and I drove off obeying all posted speed limit signs. The encounter was professional and made for a good story about the "cute birthday cop" at dinner later that night. Fast forward one year later. I had just turned 29 and was feeling frustrated with dating and the male species in general. I decided to join a dating app. Frustrated, and full of prayer, I narrowed down my parameters by height, weight, ethnicity, politics, religion, and everything in between. The matches that came through were few, and it is important to note that no one can see your profile until you like their profile and you meet one another's parameters. Justin appeared on my matches, and I did not recognize him out of his blue uniform and big hat. His opening line? "I don't know if you remember me but..." He remembered me! After chatting about the amazing coincidence of meeting him again in this way, I discovered that the day he pulled me over was his birthday, too.

I decided last fall that I was going to ask Annalyse to marry me. It took a few months, but after some planning, I went to a local jeweler and found the perfect ring. In December I began to plan a proposal and officially asked her parent's permission in early January. My idea was to ask her at our birthday party in late January. All of the married women in my life counseled me against asking in front of our entire families. The men egged me on to do it. After considering it some more, I decided to wait until our anniversary at the beginning of March. Her favorite flowers are daffodils, and there is a field near my house where many of them bloom every spring. Before heading to dinner that evening, I asked her to take a walk with me up to the field. I was nervous and covertly got the ring box in my pocket before we headed out. We got to the field and she began picking daffodils and I started to seek out the perfect spot. I found a circle of daffodils across the field. When she asked me what I was doing, I said "Enjoying nature." Confused why I wasn't helping her pick flowers, she walked over to where I was standing. I hugged her and told her how much she meant to me and how much I loved her. Then I got down on one knee, pulled out the ring, and asked, "Annalyse Hasty, will you marry me?" After she exclaimed, "Really?!" she excitedly said, "Yes!"