Ours is an age-old, classic tale of romance. By that we mean we met in October of 2016 through a dating app. Brad had recently moved to Chicago from Kansas City and Nicki was into her second year in the city, still teaching. (It's probably worth noting that Brad's profile picture included a puppy, which should surprise nobody as a reason for Nicki to have swiped right). Shortly after starting to message each other, we agreed to meet up at a nice cocktail bar called Scofflaw in Logan Square (which we've gone back to every year since on our anniversary!). The conversation went so well that we ended up walking to another spot nearby and talking the night away (two drinks on a school/work night?! We must have really liked each other...). Brad walked Nicki home that night, and well, the rest is history!

It was mid-September and Brad decided to plan a picnic for us the following weekend. There was some inclement weather in the forecast, but I happily agreed, secretly thinking maybe something special was in the works. That Saturday arrived, and with a blanket and ample picnic supplies in tow, we arrived at North Avenue beach and claimed a spot (after shooing away many geese who had claimed the same spot as a bathroom). Despite a few raindrops here and there, we were enjoying our picnic and I began to think maybe we were JUST having a picnic. What I didn't know was that our friend Megan was hiding behind a trash can (literally), giving Brad a thumbs up and waiting for him to pop the question. When he was finally able to get me to stand up, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! Shortly after, Megan came out from her hiding spot and spent some time capturing our excitement with the beautiful Chicago skyline in the background. (Take a peek at the "photos" tab to see a few. Thank you, Megan!) And yes, the one of Brad on his knee was the real deal, lined-up geese and all. We've loved celebrating our engagement with so many of you and can't wait for the big day in October!