C.S. Lewis famously wrote, “There are far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” While our young lives have certainly been blessed beyond measure, we can’t help but reflect on this quote as we prepare for our best day yet — the day we get to say “I Do” and commit to far better things ahead with our one and only. And the best part is that we get to share that special moment with you! You are cordially invited to The Little Chapel-in-the-Woods on the campus of Texas Woman’s University to celebrate Jonathan Allen and Caitlyn Ashley’s dream wedding! Come one, come all — our dream wedding is almost here!

Jonathan was always going to propose to Caitlyn. Truth be told, he knew he’d found the perfect woman before the end of their first date. He took her to Barley & Board in Denton that crisp November evening two years ago, and it all seemed so effortless. They sat there for hours, laughing and talking about life goals, their shared love for history and desire to travel Caitlyn’s career as an attorney, Jonathan’s job as a professional cartoon watcher (you read that right), and even Caitlyn’s quirky obsession with Boston Terriers. Boy, was he hooked! And … spoiler alert … Caitlyn was too! “I thought she was beautiful. And when we sat down, she was so easy to talk to,” Jonathan said. They’d met on a dating app a week earlier and agreed to meet as soon as possible. “You never know how long these dates will last or how they’ll go. I definitely knew I had to see her again.” There’d be many more dates. And eventually, when the time was right, all that’d be left for him to do was pop the question. Oh, and find a creative way to keep Caitlyn from spoiling the surprise beforehand! Obviously, everyone knows how this love story ends. After all, we’ve got a wedding coming up soon! But many family and friends don’t know everything that led up to Caitlyn saying YES! And that’s the funny part. From stressful moments at security checkpoints in foreign countries to Caitlyn’s awkward pat downs, shared luggage, an argument over a backpack, perfect would-be proposal moments, and a ring covertly tucked away in a rolled-up pair of sweatpants, Caitlyn and Jonathan’s love story has all the intrigue and facepalm moments a young couple could ask for.

To appreciate this story, you first have to know that Caitlyn and Jonathan couldn’t be any more different. Jonathan has always been very relaxed and laid-back. Not much riles him; he’s a roll-with-the-punches kind of guy and prefers to work his brand of magic at his own pace. Meanwhile, Caitlyn is the prototypical Type-A personality — highly organized, focused, ambitious, impatient, and acutely aware of everything. Needless to say, Caitlyn took control of the planning stuff when our favorite couple started going on trips together. The first was to Arizona, and the second was a much longer trip across Europe. Unbeknownst to Jonathan, theories began swirling between Caitlyn and her girlfriends as early as their Arizona trip over whether or not Jonathan would propose. Caitlyn wasn’t entirely sure it would happen, but she wanted him to do it so badly that the suspense and her Type-A personality started kicking in. So she began looking for obvious clues. And when she came up empty-handed, she wasn’t afraid to snoop around. It also didn’t help that they visited one of the more iconic proposal spots in the country at the Grand Canyon. This was it! This had to be the moment! And yet, nothing happened. “We are in the most beautiful place at sunset, and nothing happens,” she said with a laugh. “I said jokingly, ‘I guess we aren’t getting engaged yet.’” Jonathan added, “I clearly had no idea of the expectations. She even started patting my pockets [to see if I had the ring] while we were out there. I’m thinking, ‘Are you kidding me?’” Jonathan actually planned to propose during their trip to Europe a short while later. But that’s when things really got interesting — and weird. As Caitlyn puts it, “I was packing our bags for the trip, and we got into a fight because he wanted to buy a backpack for himself. I couldn’t understand why, especially since he made this decision the day before we were supposed to leave. As it turns out, he wanted his own carry-on so that he could hide the ring. He had it the entire time, but I didn’t catch on. My friends kept asking me, ‘Is he going to propose?’ And I kept saying, ‘No, because I packed everything. There wasn’t a ring in any of his stuff.” Or so she thought, Jonathan said. “I lost the war with the backpack, so I put it in my sweatpants pocket and rolled it up. She packed it and never noticed,” he said with a laugh. Jonathan’s starting to feel himself a little bit by this point. But then he makes the regrettable mistake of forgetting the ring at the hotel when they go sightseeing in Prague. For their first night Caitlyn made reservations at the hottest rooftop restaurant in Prague with amazing views of the city. Again, another opportunity to propose with the perfect backdrop. And again, nothing happens. “Again, she says, ‘I guess we’re not getting engaged.’ I just hadn’t worn those pants yet, and I felt horrible,” Jonathan said. “I thought about running back to the hotel, but the moment had passed. Fast forward a bit, and we are go-ing through a security checkpoint to get into Prague Castle, and I have the ring in my pocket. I was so stressed out that they’d make me take it out, and Caitlyn would see it. Am I going to have to propose at this damn security checkpoint?! Thankfully, I slipped it into my wallet without anyone noticing and made it through.”

By this point, Jonathan knew he would have to take matters into his own hands. They were staying at a 5-star hotel and had decided to take a quick nap before heading downstairs for dinner. Earlier that day they had trekked through the woods in the drizzling rain to visit a more obscure Czech castle called Konopiste Castle, famously known as the last residence of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. When they woke up, Caitlyn was busy putting her hair in a bun when Jonathan made his move. “I asked him if I looked OK, and that’s when he held me and started telling me how pretty I was. I’m thinking, ‘What’s going on? Wait … is this it?’ I started patting his pockets, but he already had it in his hand and started get-ting down on one knee. I kept saying, ‘Wait, I have to take my hair down — I never have my hair up in a bun. Are you ready? Is this a good moment?’ He completely ignored me and proposed. Of course, I said yes. He’s always been a private person, and even in our hotel room, the moment was perfect.” Jonathan added with a big laugh, “I just felt like I couldn’t surprise her. You can’t surprise Caitlyn. It was like guerrilla warfare.” In the moments after she slipped the engagement ring onto her finger, all the obvious clues of his plan started to materialize. “It all made sense. That’s why he wanted the backpack. That’s why he watched me so closely while I packed our suitcase,” she said. “That’s why he was acting so weird at the security checkpoint. He had it the entire time.” That’s called winning, folks. There may have been a few hitches along the way, but all that matters is Jonathan got the girl. And they’ll live happily ever after.

“We should meet in person to make sure we don’t hate each other.” — Caitlyn. “Instead of the pilot guy, she went with the cartoon guy.” — Jonathan. “Her reference of time is way off, by the way. She’ll ask me a question, and it might take me a second and a half to respond. But in her reference of time, it’s already been 15 seconds.” — Jonathan. “If you can’t tell, I’m very Type A, and he’s very relaxed. I told my 90-year-old grandpa that I really liked him, and we really got along. His response was, ‘He must be easygoing.’ He didn’t mean that in a bad way, but he was totally right. It works.” — Caitlyn. “I got her attention on [the dating app] Hinge because I saw she had pictures of Boston Terriers. So the first thing I ever messaged her was, ‘Is that a Boston Terrier?’ Come to find out later, that’s the one question that sold her on me … because she’s obsessed with them. If we see a Boston Terrier while we’re driving, she stops the car and has to get out to say hello.” — Jonathan.