After years of scouring the world wide web for someone special, I was at my wit's end. Thankfully, just as I was about to give up on my happily ever after, God had another plan in mind. With less than a month left on a Hinge subscription and very little interest in online dating, I reluctantly checked my profile on my phone one night. Determined that I would respond to any potential guys and then cancel my account, I came across a message from Graeme. A message that wasn’t a pick up line and commented on one of my prompts as opposed to just pictures, Graeme’s first impression was better than most. Graeme commented on my conversation starter about traveling to Scotland… who would have thought that just over a year later we would be planning our honeymoon there! I was busy on a family trip visiting my brother and sister-in-law in Spokane so I didn't respond right away. Luckily, Graeme was persistent and messaged again a couple days later. From the first messages we exchanged, it was clear this was different. Conversations flowed easily and the number of things we had in common was obvious. Graeme asked me out on our first date to the Ram at Kent Station where the nerves were immediately gone upon the first hug and dinner transitioned into a fireside chat. The night ended with a forehead kiss *swoon* and from that day forward not a day has gone by without us spending time together or chatting. We have already made so many memories on trips together and outings with both of our families. We have had countless game nights with friends and already checked multiple things off our couple bucket list: from concerts, to Moses Lake camping, to Caldon comfort food Sundays, and trips to Texas. I knew pretty early on that Graeme was the one for me and patiently waited for him to pop the question (Graeme was insistent on waiting for my sister, Alyssa, to get married). On September 28, Graeme planned a dinner at Anthony's Homeport and a walk along the Des Moines Marina (a spot we had gone on multiple walks before). I was slightly suspicious that that could be the night and knew that the second I met him at dinner I’d know based on his demeanor. He had me fooled because this man was cool as a cucumber! As we finished dinner, a drizzle of rain almost derailed the plan to walk to the most beautiful proposal set up just down the beach. As the sun set and a double rainbow appeared within 10 minutes of Graeme popping the question, both our families and close friends celebrated together with us. I had prayed for my future husband for years and Graeme is a direct answer to prayer as he embodies everything I could have wanted in a partner plus more. I have learned that while type A people like me like to have control, waiting for God's timing in this far exceeded my expectations!

I had just visited Yellowstone for the first time and had thought to myself that there was all of these beautiful sights I was seeing by myself but I had no one to share all of the adventure, excitement, and memories I was making with. I had told myself I would never join a dating website or app because I thought they were ridiculous and full of shallow people looking to hook up and not have anything substantial, however I had friends who said you can customize the personality that you would be looking for. They knew I was incredibly strict on my beliefs and the type of person and relationship that I would entertain, so after downloading and deleting the app twice I finally went through with it. After a few weeks of searching, Ashlee’s profile crossed my feed as a suggested match and I remember very vividly that I had felt the briefest, but very noticeable flutter of excitement when I saw her picture and read about her interests, future plans, and how her beliefs matched mine. Taking a deep breath, I decided to message her about her future plans to go to Scotland that she had mentioned as an interest, however days went by and I hadn’t received a response, so I thought she wasn’t interested! Just shy of a week later (which felt much longer), she messaged me back an entire paragraph as a response about how she was out of town with family, so we got to talking about our families, and eventually other mutual interests. Not a day went by that we weren’t sending each other what felt like entire chapters about our lives, interests, beliefs, and hopes for the future as we grew closer and closer. Fast forward to the first date in Kent, we shared more about our families during dinner and sitting by a nearby outdoor fireplace, and then a brief walk around the area where I had to try a whole heck of a lot not to grab her hand as we walked, thinking that it would be a bit too forward, as I was trying to be a gentleman. We ended the night with what I thought ruined the whole thing as I gave her a kiss on the forehead as I walked her to her car and bid her goodnight. Kicking myself as I sat in my truck thinking I had blown it, sending her a message to make sure it wasn’t awkward, to which she she later told me that she thought it was cute and endearing! We planned our second date shortly after that night! It didn’t take long for me to realize after many more dates over a short period that I was in love with Ashlee and couldn’t see a future where she wasn’t there with me. She continues to bring me such peace, joy, love, kindness, and countless other blessings to my life that I could spend days talking about. God knew exactly what I needed, and Ashlee is far more than I could have ever asked for or thought of in someone that I get to spend the rest of my life with. I knew I had to propose sooner than later as we both wanted to start a life together before long, so after bringing our families together and asking her to marry me on a beautiful, sunset and double rainbow filled evening, she said YES! I am beyond blessed to have her by my side now and forever. Now we watch the countdown until we both say I do!