Welcome to Our Forever

We met at a Christmas-themed pub crawl in downtown Cincinnati. At the time, I was travel nursing in Cincinnati and all the girls at work told us how much fun the iconic "Santacon" would be and that we "had to go!" Russ, despite being a Cincinnati native, had also never been, but decided this year he would go with his buddies. As fate would have it, we met on the dance floor, both dressed as Christmas elves....and the rest is history. 12.14.19

I could hardly wait to propose to Emily once I had the ring. One Friday while out with friends in Nashville, I decided the following day might be the perfect opportunity. We were planning to get up early and drive out to east Tennessee to meet up with Emily's younger sisters, Jenny and Katie. The plan was to go on a hike in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and spend the rest of the weekend relaxing and hanging out. I texted Jenny and Katie and gave them a heads up that I might propose if the opportunity arose, and asked that they help capture the moment on camera for us. Emily almost caught on that I was up to something, but fortunately, I was able to get the idea out of her head! A few hours into our hike the next day, I was able to pop the question (in between a few "ARE YOU SERIOUS!?" exclamations from Emily), and she said "Yes!" It was a picture perfect moment and, for a few hours, the four of us were the only ones who knew. Once we had cell reception again, we were able to share the big news with our loved ones. It was truly one of the best days of my life! 4.23.22