Long story short? Middle school! We shared a best friend in grade school & eventually met at East Middle School. At first it was a rivalry, but eventually we became inseparable!

Well … it’s been a while, haha. In 8th grade I (Annelise) told Derik I couldn’t date until high school. He said, “I’ll wait.” Technically we started ‘dating’ in the summer of 2014. Doing some mental math… that would mean we have been together for 13 years as of 2027!

Great question, thank you for asking. Derik proposed on “National Proposal Day” 3/27/25 on the beach I (Annelise) grew up going to as a child. We were on vacation for our birthdays (3/30 & 3/31) with my (Annelise’s) family & best friend Bri. Bri is also the lovely lady who took photos of it all for us. Truly the best day of my life!