Our story began in Nebraska, thanks to a mutual friend, Ian, my dental school classmate and Ben's longtime friend. He introduced us in February 2021, and after a few fun group hangouts, Ben asked me out on a proper date. Despite the fact that I was in the middle of midterms and he was moving into a new house, he drove from Omaha to Lincoln midweek just to take me to dinner. That thoughtful gesture set the tone for everything that came after. We officially started dating in May 2021 and have recently celebrated four wonderful years together. From the beginning, our relationship was built on effort, trust, and countless hours on FaceTime—so many, in fact, that we actually ruined Ben’s MacBook! Even while living medium-distance apart, we saw each other every weekend and never missed a moment to grow together. The distance never felt like a burden; it just felt right. After dental school, we packed up our lives and moved to Texas to start our next chapter. Houston quickly became home, complete with a little family of our own—our beloved dog Minkah and cuddly cat Rio, who brings us endless joy (and just the right amount of chaos).

November 2024 Ben proposed in Arizona, during what I thought was just another trip for a dental conference. He suggested we visit the botanical gardens, somewhere we hadn’t gone on our first trip there, so it didn’t feel out of the ordinary. Since he usually plans our travel itineraries, I didn’t suspect a thing. As we walked through the beautiful garden paths, he got down on one knee and completely surprised me with the sweetest proposal. Later that evening, he continued to surprised me with a reservation for dinner at our favorite Phoenix restaurant. It was thoughtful, genuine, and perfectly us.