AJ and Brandy met on April 23, 2011, at Thompson's Corner in Cordelia, CA, after talking on Match.com for a bit. Brandy brought her friends, and AJ his. After a really weird night, AJ made sure everyone got home safe, and Brandy and AJ never separated.

AJ and Brandy had spent a full day helping their friend plan their wedding. AJ ended up leaving his jacket at the friends house which was 45 minutes away. After driving back, and returning home, Brandy was, admittedly, mildly annoyed. AJ kept calling Brandy to come outside. Once she did, AJ was kneeling, ready to propose, under a blooming arbor full of lavender and roses. It was an easy yes, with many apologies.

After a day of playing paintball with friends, the friends convinced AJ and Brandy to head to Reno, NV, to elope. They eloped at the Arches of Reno Wedding Chapel. Their reception dinner was at Denny's. To be young again.... AJ forgot his nice suit in Reno where it still lives to this day.

By no fault of their own, the first few years of their marriage they lived separated because of deployments, training, and missions with the Air Force. There's not much to say about that time besides they did what they could, and tried their best to survive as a military family. AJ sacrificed weekends, driving 12+ hours one way, to spend only 12 hours with his family in Las Vegas, to turn around and go back to training. Once that craziness was over, Brandy accepted a job in Savannah, GA, separating them again, knowing AJ's term in the military would be ending soon, and he would be meeting them shortly after. God has a sense of humor, though. After AJ meeting up with his family in GA and getting laid off at Gulfstream, he accepted a job in Palmdale, CA. Back to the career-induced separations! Brandy and Connor quickly packed up and moved back to Las Vegas, NV. Brandy found out she was going blind at this point. AJ worked Mon-Fri in Caifornia, coming home to spend weekends with his family. This job quickly sent him on a deployment. He came home from his deployment, and his job continued to delay his return to work. In 2019, he said, "enough with this," and knew it was time to be home for good. Together we feel like we've missed out on a real wedding and a real marriage, despite the odds we've overcome. We are excited to celebrate our renewal of vows at 10 years, which is actually going to be the first time we've shared vows, and a real celebration of our union with both our families and friends together. It's even more special that we get to share this day with our son.