Our wedding date was postponed from Saturday, March 21st, 2020 to Sunday, November 22nd, 2020. You know what's fun? Planning a whole wedding for 10 months and then everything changes in the span of less than 10 days. We're so grateful for our family & friends who have been so understanding with these changes.

The story of our proposal begins a couple days prior to the actual event. Our friends Amanda & Jordan said that they wanted to try Hillcrest Coffee, because they had yet to go. We were meeting up to plan for our upcoming trip together. I, of course, was running behind. I went to a gym class that morning and just stopped by my apartment to freshen up and throw on a new outfit. I ended up calling Dustin and telling him that I would be a few minutes late, so I'll just meet him there. He seemed annoyed, but agreed to it. I remember thinking "that was weird!" I arrived at the coffeeshop, and of course all three of them are there chilling with their cup of coffee. My friend Tina Sargeant was taking photos of the shop outside and asked if we all would like to be in some of the photos. We run through a couple shots and then Tina says, "How about you and Dustin do a couple together?" Naturally I answered for the both of us, "YES!" All of the sudden we were walking down the entrance path and when we reached the end, Dustin got down on one knee. I was completely surprised and of course I said "YES!" He planned everything from Jordan and Amanda staging a coffee double date to having an amazing photographer and friend to capture the moment. He surprised me and in the best way possible. I'm so excited that I get to be his wife!

A few days after the Great Gatsby, Dustin messaged me on Facebook (of all places) to say thanks for coming to the party. I remember thinking "Oh, that's so nice. He's sending thank you notes to everyone." I was completely oblivious. After chatting back and forth over the next couple days, he asked if we could grab coffee together that Saturday. He picked me up at my apartment and we went to Hillcrest Coffee, a local Lakeland coffeehouse. Well, our coffee date ended up going on for hours. We both didn't realize we had so much in common. Neither of us had looked at our watches until the owner started cleaning up the tables around us. We looked down and realized it's 2:30 PM! We both were starving! So we grabbed lunch at Black & Brew and we couldn't stop talking. Was it the connection or the copious amounts of caffeine? Both probably. We ended up continuing the date and walking around Lake Mirror. Neither of us remember exactly what all we talked about, but we both remember feeling so at ease. Then he dropped me off and we both laughed at the fact we had a 12 hour first date. So much for worrying about awkward silences!

Who would've known April Fool's Day was going to be the day Dustin and I would have our first meaningful conversation? I only found out later that Dustin was trying to talk to me all night, but was being pulled in different directions since he was the host. Dustin has hosted a Great Gatsby party every year and this one was the 4th. EVERYONE dresses to the occasion with their best flapper dresses or suspenders. I came to the party with my friend, Morgan. She and I made some new friends, laughing throughout the night. I remember stopping to talk to Dustin about his recent trip to Paris with his sisters and friends. I told him let me know next time he sees a good airplane deal, I guess those were the magic words. We chatted for a few minutes until he got called away to help with something at the party. Morgan and I had to leave early, so I just made sure to stop and say thanks for the invite. He nervously waved from the bathroom with some of the guys trying to fix the toilet after someone clogged it. So romantic, right?

Dustin was hosting some friends, as per usual. My best friend, Betsy, invited me to come over and hang out with these new friends that she had been talking about. I came over with her and it was just a casual night of hanging out: snacking and laughing over a beer with the whole group. I probably didn't say more than 50 words to Dustin directly. I remember thinking he was hospitable and a genuine person, but didn't really think twice about it. Little did we know...