Our story begins in Short Hills, NJ. We grew up just one block away from each other, our houses no more than a four minute walk apart. Although Kyle was in the grade above, we went through elementary, middle, and most of high school together. It wasn't until high school swimming-- where Ellie would stand by the block for the women's 200 free and Kyle would line up behind her for the men's heat after-- that our relationship became something more. Halfway through high school, Kyle went to boarding school in Pennsylvania and Ellie moved to New York, and then the long distance really began, with one of us attending college in DC and the other in Nashville. Throughout college, there was a lot of back and forth. Ellie would visit Kyle in DC and we'd walk around the monuments, get late-night burgers at Wagshal's, compare cupcakes in Georgetown, and sit through seemingly endless swim meets (with Kyle sick to his stomach before every race and Ellie cheering from the stands, relieved her swim days were behind her). Kyle would go down to Nashville and we'd grab hot chicken sandwiches at Hattie B's (which we will always rank higher than Prince's), root for the VandyBoys, dance together along Broadway, and create our own Goo Goo Clusters filled with M&Ms, pretzels, and mini marshmallows. In between, we'd make the occasional trips back to our hometown-- reminiscing over the Strawberry Festival during our years at Glenwood Elementary, hitting up Millburn Deli for the best sandwiches, attending Yankees games in the city, and wishing they never shut down the Red Mango in town. After graduating, we moved in together and embarked on a new chapter in DC. One year later, on May 19th, 2024, Kyle dropped to one knee. He proposed at Villa del Balbianello in Lake Como, Italy-- a breathtaking backdrop and also the site of Casino Royale, one of our favorite James Bond movies. It was the perfect ending to our Italy trip, and we were lucky to have gorgeous weather after storms hit the area the whole week leading up to our arrival. To us, it felt like more than a coincidence; it was a sign that this beautiful story we've written together has only just begun. We celebrated our engagement with close friends and family, and then Kyle departed for a 5 month training program in Georgia, extending the long distance as Ellie stayed back in DC. He continued to send postcards, we'd call every night, and of course, we still had those teary airport goodbyes concluding each visit. In December, Kyle graduated from his program, and we moved to O’ahu to start our life together in Hawaii. Evidently, our story isn't a short or an easy one (and hey— if you’ve made it to the end here, thanks for sticking around). But while our 5 years as a formal couple has been characterized by distance, it’s also been characterized by love, patience, and adventure. We are so grateful for this journey and are beyond excited to celebrate with all of you on our special day.