We met in Chattanooga at JJ's Bohemia 8 years ago. It was an instant spark as we talked about music and heartache and life. We fell in love quickly. "Wise men say only fools rush in..." Well, we were absolutely fools for each other from the start. We quickly became each other's rock through finishing our degrees, raising the sweetest dog and cat in the world, and learning and growing through our twenties together. We've traveled, we've explored, we've cheered each other on, and we've been as silly as humanly possible while doing said things. I knew he was the one so quickly it almost felt foolish. When my grandmother met him and agreed with me, telling me I truly found my other half, it was even rosier from her lenses. 8 years later and here we are, giddy as ever.

Jesse and I went to New York for his 27th birthday. It was our second trip (first one in the winter) and we had plans to see a Broadway show, skate in Brooklyn, go to Chinatown, see the Statue of Liberty, and ice skate at Rockerfeller Center. I knew we'd talked about proposals recently and were on the same page, but I had no idea he had pulled off a plan so quickly without me having any idea. On the morning of his birthday, we went to a french breakfast (Buvette's in the Village) and then went to skate in Brooklyn. We stopped back at the air bnb and changed to go ice skating (this is when Jesse gave himself a pep talk in the mirror, he later told me). I was suddenly so nervous when we got to Rockefeller Center- I hadn't ice skated in so long (let alone in front of tons of people) but Jesse was cool as a cucumber, reassuring me and squeezing my hand that it would be a blast. Spoiler, it was. We finally got out there and skated for a bit, laughing and taking it all in. We stopped to get a photo (we asked someone who worked there to snag one of us) and he sneakily and skillfully got down on one knee on the ice surprising me beyond belief. The whole ice skating rink and surrounding areas were cheering for us as I said yes. He absolutely blew me away and surprised me beyond words. It was the most magical moment of my entire life.

Elopement/Intimate Ceremony in Sequoia National Park Celebration Party in Nashville, details to come