Our story starts in the most romantic way imaginable. It was a random weekday in late May. It was raining hard around 6am that day when I walked into the Amazon warehouse soaking wet and half asleep for my shift. I remember catching Tyler out of the corner of my eye. I was immediately startled by the new, handsome security guard I made eye contact with. I turned bright red and practically ran away! Of course, my parents, who I worked with at the time, clocked my weird behavior immediately and teased me for weeks afterwards. It would be nearly a year of stuttered hellos, awkward smiles, small waves and so much more blushing on my end before I plucked up the courage to go talk to him. He was standing across the room from me that day, seeming to be more reserved than normal. It took me ten minutes of sneaking looks at him before something in my brain finally just said to me "Come on, Baily! What's the worst that could happen?" Usually that phrase would queue my brain to start coming up with dooms day level scenarios but this time, for the first time in my life, that question gave me a burst of confidence. I walked across the room, and talked to him for nearly an hour straight. I didn't see him the following days. I was nervous and thought I'd said something weird to him. I didn't have his number and do not have the social media skills to accurately locate anyone online. I was mid downward spiral when he walked up to me out of nowhere. He told me he'd brought me a book on mythology (the topic of our conversation the week before) and he gave me a bag of gummy bears (my favorite). That was it. That was when I fell in love with Tyler Gibson. Over the following month sticky note exchanges became text messages, movie recommendations became movie nights together and discussions about favorite foods became lunch breaks together. Eventually he invited me to meet his family and their pack of dogs. During the visit, Tyler's father turned to me after Tyler walked away and said to me "You know he'll give you the world." I remember taking it as a challenge. I think I even said something like "I know, and I'll give him the world too." that was all it took for Tyler's amazing family to welcome me with open arms. I've never met a group of people who were so kind and warm. They were quieter than I was used to, but if I learned anything from being with Tyler it's that love can be peaceful. It can be quiet and sincere just as much as it can be loud and boisterous. Tyler asked me to be his girlfriend that night. Agreeing to be with him is easily the best decision I ever made. We often agree, even to this day, soulmates must exist because we found each other. It was during our most recent trip to Arizona Tyler proposed to me. We were staying in this dome that was half windows half tent in the desert outside the Grand Canyon. We were stargazing and cuddled up together when he asked me. He was so nervous, he kept going on little tangents that I found adorable. I, of course, said yes. I'd be an idiot not to. It wasn't until after the initial excitement calmed down that Tyler realized he had asked me " Will you be my wife?" instead of "Will you marry me?" I told him I didn't mind but he insisted on asking me again. He tried two more times before he was satisfied. I said "yes!" all three times and was crying happy tears by the end. Tyler has been in my life for the past 6 years. I've been in love with him for 5 of those years. Tyler has been the best part of my life in all that time. I have always loved him for his calm nature, his sense of humor and his dedication to all the people (and pets) he loves. He is the most amazing man I've ever met and to this day I do everything I can to continue to give him the world. I'm really excited to continue building our lives together. To me, this wedding is a declaration to love each other forever, as it is a chance for us to celebrate finding the one person that completes us.

This thing has been so difficult for me to write. I’m not sure how many times I’ve gone through and rewritten it, physically and mentally. When it comes to Baily and our relationship, there’s just so much I could talk about that I couldn’t settle on what to include. The first time I remember seeing Baily, she was walking into work with soaking wet hair and looking miserable. She’s told me over and over that she must have looked horrible, but all I could see was an angel come from the heavens to grace me with her existence. Unfortunately for the both of us, we spent about a year acknowledging each other when we’d pass but otherwise we didn’t really talk. Then one day, when I was at a pretty low point in my life, something clicked and Baily decided to come have a conversation with me in the break room. It was like she or the universe knew that it was time. I don’t remember everything from that first conversation, but the thing that really stuck with me was that Baily is a book lover and she was looking to learn more about Norse mythology. I just so happened to have a book on the very thing and brought it to work with me next time I came in and let her borrow it. She’s told me that that was the moment she decided I was the one for her (she’s a dork, I know, and I love her for it.) From then on, we were constantly talking to one another and hanging out whenever we could. We had something of a forbidden romance at work because I was a security guard and she was a regular employee. We thought we were playing it off super smoothly, but of course everyone knew what was happening. We just couldn’t hide how we felt about each other. I think we were “just friends” for something like 3 or 4 months before I officially asked Baily to be my girlfriend. In all that time we had already been going on lunch/dinner dates in the park and she would come to my mom’s house for movie nights. I can also remember several times during then where we would talk about how it felt like we were learning new things about each other all the time, and yet at the same time felt like we had known each other our whole lives. I don’t remember when we officially decided on it, but even from the first time we had a conversation like that we knew that we must be soulmates. In our time together, Baily and I have experienced a lot. We’ve gone to aquariums, zoos, renaissance fairs, hiking, stayed in cabins, visited her family in different states, got an apartment together, upgraded to a house (still renting, but fingers crossed we get to buy soon), got a black cat we named Styx (after the river, not the band; but they’re cool, too), and all sorts of other happy things. I’ve watched Baily become more confident in herself, advance in her career, gain friends, try new hobbies, and just generally grow as a person in a way that I can say I’m proud of. Baily has also helped me grow as a person and try out new things that I probably wouldn’t have had the courage for, otherwise. I try my best to be someone that she can say she’s proud of as well. Along with good times comes some bad, of course, but no matter what came our way we were always there to work it out or support each other to face the challenges head on. It really has been a privilege and a pleasure to be with Baily. We’ve almost reached six years since that first real conversation we had together. It feels like so long ago, and yet like it was just a few months back. I wouldn’t trade any of it for anything else. Getting to marry the woman who has become my best friend is such a wonderful thing, and I’m so thankful for all we’ve accomplished and experienced together. We can’t wait to have all of you come and experience our big day together. Here’s to forever!