It all started with Emily deciding one day to download Hinge. A few weeks later, on March 10th, she matched with Connor. After a few hours passed with no message from him, she decided to go for it. With a world of confidence—and after spotting her dream dogs on his profile—she made the first move. At 2:36pm, she sent: “First things first here, Connor… what are your puppies’ names?” And the rest is history. 🥰 By 5:30pm the next day, she was at his house for their first date. He was a charmer from the start—showing up with a bouquet of red roses, a steak dinner, and her favorite Polar Lime seltzer. Some might say it was risky going to a stranger’s house less than 24 hours after meeting online, but she had complete trust in him. Just one week later, families and friends had been introduced, and “I love you” had already been said. (When you know, you know.) On Connor’s birthday, he folded up a napkin at Scoreboard Social that read, “Will you be my girlfriend?” The options were “yes” or “do a backflip”—and since Emily isn’t a gymnast, “yes” it was… now the second-best “yes” she’s ever said. From there, everything started to feel like us. Our relationship moved quickly, with a few “should we just go to the courthouse?” texts in those early months. But even more than that, something deeper was growing. As our relationship grew, so did our faith. In April, Emily felt a tug on her heart to make God and church a priority, and Connor invited her to join him at Pursue. From that moment on, we were all in—attending together, serving together, and building our relationship with God at the center. Our relationship would not be what it is today without God. He is our foundation. Watching Connor grow into the man he is today—a man of God, strong in his faith and love for the Lord—has been one of the greatest blessings and answered prayers. We are both blessed beyond measure and excited to begin this next chapter as Mr. and Mrs. Mersch, trusting in His plans for our lives—plans filled with hope, purpose, and a beautiful future ahead (Jeremiah 29:11). Now for the significance of March 27th—Emily’s favorite part of this story. Post-its became a special part of the relationship early on. Whoever left the house first each morning would leave the other a note. But just four days after asking Emily to be his girlfriend, Connor did something unexpected. A few months later, one night on the way home, he told her he had a surprise. Tucked in the back of a drawer was a Post-it that read: “One day I am going to ask you to marry me. 3/27/2025.” Just 17 days after meeting. 🥹 Looking back, we see God’s hand in every detail—reminding us that this story was His before it was ever ours. We cannot wait to celebrate this very special date with all of our favorite people two years later. ❤️ —The Future Merschs