Joyce and Emmanuel attended Bonanza High School, but they did not see each other much unless at a famous Tischler party. Over the years, the two went to college both close to home and across the country. Joyce settled in Baltimore while Emmanuel landed back in Las Vegas. Joyce visited Vegas often, though, and on these visits, Joyce and Emmanuel's paths kept crossing. During these instances, Emmanuel would joke with Joyce's brother, Tomo, saying, "Hey, hook me up with your sister!" It became a running joke between Emmanuel and Tomo, but what started as a joke slowly became real. Emmanuel and Joyce found themselves at a Shreve New Year’s Eve Party, and the rest is history!

In the middle of the night, Joyce wakes up to a noise to find Emmanuel sneaking around her side of the bed. Groggily she asks what he is doing, and he makes some excuse that apparently worked, because Joyce went right back to sleep. After an hour of waiting to make sure Joyce was actually asleep, he sneaks out of bed again and puts the ring box on the night stand with a bouquet of Joyce's favorite flowers on top of the ring box. A few sleepless hours (for Emmanuel) later, Joyce wakes up and starts talking to him about a dream she had. All the while, Emmanuel is anxiously waiting for her to see the flowers and ring box. Once Joyce saw the flowers, she still did not register what was happening. Only after Emmanuel told her to pick up the bouquet and he grabbed the ring box did she realize what was happening. He got down on one knee, and she said yes!