It all started with theatre class during my Freshman year of high school 2015. I first noticed Trey in my theatre class, and I thought he was so cute but way out of my league. I would constantly steal little glances at him and rambled to my best friend about how cute he was. I would laugh when she suggested I talked to him thinking I had no shot. You can imagine my shock and anxiety when I got the role as none other than Trey's "Mammy" for our theatre class play at the end of the year. After being in this play together, we began talking here and there during theatre class as we both stayed in theatre for our entire high school experience. That was until one day when I needed a ride home from school, and Trey kindly offered to take me home. The only catch- we had to go to the gym right after school before he could take me home. Now at the time I hadn’t stepped foot into a real gym, and I was severely underprepared as I wore a dress to school that day. Thankfully, my best friend saw the opportunity in front of me, and we quickly conducted an outfit change in the school bathroom right before school let out. I ended up going to the gym with him that day (got my butt kicked on the leg press machine), and we went out for pizza afterwards. That day marked the start of us hanging out after school frequently and developing a beautiful friendship. Still in denial, my crush for him continued to grow until one day when he revealed (outside of the gym of course) that he felt the same way. It was there right outside the incredibly romantic Patterson park gym that we shared our first kiss. From there, our love for each other quickly grew as we spent as much time together outside of school as we could. Once Trey left for college at UTK, I made many trips on the weekends to go visit him. It was during one of these trips that he asked me to be his girlfriend on October 28th, 2018. We made the most out of each of those short trips and continued to support each other through hard times despite the distance. Once I graduated high school, I chose to attend UTK as well to pursue my education in social work. Although I picked a dorm to fulfill my freshman year dorm requirements, I chose to spend most nights with Trey in his apartment. After my freshman year, we decided it would be best for me to move into his apartment since I was practically living there anyway. Throughout college, our relationship flourished, and we shared many fond memories including attending football games, visiting the bluffs, playing escape games, and making quick trips to Gatlinburg. During Trey’s senior year, we got our first fur baby Rylo and got a taste of what it’s like to be parents (yes fur babies count). When we returned home that summer, we grew our little family by adding our second fur baby Henry. If you are close to us, you know that we treat our fur babies as if they were our literal children. Watching Trey care for our fur babies has been beautiful to experience as I have witnessed how much he truly loves and cares for them. Unfortunately, we lost our sweet Henry earlier this year. Though this was extremely devastating and we still continue to process our grief, we clung even stronger to each other and supported one another through this very difficult time. With that being said, me and Trey have been through many difficult times and continue to be each other’s rock through it all. Ever since we moved in together, we have been inseparable, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I have been blessed with the opportunity to see Trey grow into the strong, family centered man he is today, and I cannot wait to continue growing our little family together. Although I’ve written many words today (shoutout to you if you made it this far in my story), there are not enough words to describe how grateful I am to have found and fell in love with Trey. Our journey in life together has just begun, and I hope you enjoyed reading a small piece of how we got to where we are today.

Our story begins in high school where in 2015 we shared our first classes together, math and theatre. Math encounters were brief as it was more serious, but theatre offered more free time, giving us the opportunity to grow closer as friends. I was really drawn when she cut her hair one time and she was so embarrassed by how much I loved it. We ended up co-leads in a play at the end of the school year and initially she was so nervous to be physical or personal. I found it so heartwarming and comforting, plus she looked really cute in her costume. One day, E needed a ride home from school and I offered with the caveat of her attending the gym with me first. She agreed with little to no hesitation which caught me off guard but struck me with confidence. After a gym sessions at Patterson Park we shared our first kiss which led to the rapid growth of love and care we share for one another. I was so nervous to make the first move but she stood her ground, encouraging me to not miss my opportunity. By the end of my senior year, we were very in love and committed to making the most of our summer together before I would have to go off to college at UTK. E visited often my first year and I greatly appreciated the feeling of home she brought every time she would visit. I asked her to be my girlfriend on October 28th 2018, during one of her visits. Though I still had some time before I'd be able to come home for summer, we talked daily and visited each other constantly which helped me get through college angst but made me all the more eager to get home. E started UTK during my second year and though she was required to enroll in a dorm her first year, we were together constantly either at her dorm or my apartment. After her first year, she moved into the apartment with me and we began the first steps to the rest of our lives. Countless nights of support, love, and encouragement to and from one another allowed us to not only stride through classes, but also through the daily struggles of life. My senior year we adopted our first child Rylo while we were out with E's mom during a visit. If you know me or us, you know that we treat our pets like humans and care for them the same as we will our future children. With the new fur baby addition, our connection grew even stronger as we tried to navigate our own version of parenthood and adulthood together. Once I graduated, we adopted our second fur baby, Henry, and moved into a trailer on my dads property. At this point, our family has grown to four and we have a lot of work in our future. With nothing but time and responsibility ahead of us, we set out to tackle the game of life together in our new home, together. Over the years we have faced many hardships/hurdles, but they only seem to help us grow closer together as we rely on and support one other through every endeavor. I apologize for the shift, but consider this a preface for bad news. Recently, we faced one of the harshest realities of life and lost our beloved Henry after a hard fought battle. This loss was mortifying to us as a family and brought a huge weight on us all. Like with other struggles, we stood together and supported each other, lifting the other up as needed. Our little Rylo was also essential in helping us get through this difficult time and stay strong as a family. If I didn't have both of my two beautiful girls to confide in and rely on, it would've been a detrimental experience to battle alone. I am beyond grateful to have had such an amazing partner to lean on and love through all of these experiences and I so highly value the love and connection that has grown from that. I hope by now you understand, at least in-part, why I love this beautiful woman. She has an amazing heart and soul that has done nothing but inspire and uplift me as a person. I'm so glad to have had her through all of this and so excited to have her through all that is to come. I know no matter the situation, together we can do anything.