When we first met, we were drawn to each other. Daniel thought Erica was cute as a button, but she was shy and he wanted to know more about her. Erica was captivated by this brash, blue-eyed weirdo. We spent the whole night talking. It was hard to say goodnight, but we exchanged numbers and went on our first date five days later. Daniel had been planning an overseas farming tour since before we met, so only three months into our relationship, we were facing a long eight months apart on different continents. It was rough, but we made it through and he finally came home. Six months later, he was offered a job in Sweden as a garden manager. So he left again! This time our relationship was much stronger, and we knew we could maintain a long distance relationship because we'd already done it once before. Plus, at this point we were stupid in love with each other. Shortly after Daniel returned from Sweden, he discovered a list of Erica's dreams. At the very top was "live in Alaska." Daniel thought that since Erica had waited for him so long while he pursued his goals, the least he could do was make one of her dreams come true. We started putting our plans into motion. We secured jobs and a place to live, then packed all of our belongings into a truck. After a full week on the road with two dogs and a cat, passing through Canada and traversing mountain roads, we finally arrived in Alaska. We've been home ever since.

Last year on Christmas Eve, we were back in Indiana celebrating the holiday with our families. We revisited our old stomping grounds. Our mutual love for breakfast took us to Steer-In Diner for bacon, eggs, waffles, and biscuits + gravy. We went to where we had lived during most of our relationship: Woodruff Place, a historic neighborhood in Indianapolis. We walked the streets, looking at the fountains, statues, and old houses. An ornate metal gazebo made for a good place to stop and sit for a spell, and once inside Daniel pulled a ring out of his pocket, got down on one knee, and asked Erica to marry him. We won't tell you exactly what he said because we'd like to keep it to ourselves, but we bet you can guess what she said. (Yes!!)