Troy and Erin first met at Sacramento Country Day High School. Early on, Erin liked Troy but her flirting tactics were, at best, peculiar. She managed to get his attention by hiding his lacrosse gear, lurking by his locker, or even sitting on the floor near his group of friends during free period. (To be clear, she didn’t sit at the table with Troy, she sat on the floor, in a corner, and only occasionally attempted to join in conversation.) At some point Troy picked up on these signals, because after 15 months he asked Erin to prom on St. Patrick’s day. The same day, classmates asked if they were “just going to prom” or “actually dating”. Erin panicked and froze, unprepared for this question. With absurd levels of confidence and unburdened by consideration, Troy informed everyone that they were in fact “actually dating”. From that point forward, Erin and Troy became an obnoxiously inseparable couple, to the dismay of their teachers who simply wished for them to focus. In another bout of confidence without consideration, Troy adopted a stray cat that showed up on Erin’s doorstep. Surely, no other gesture could impress Erin more. Our cat Nami is still as sweet as ever, 11 years later. During senior year, Troy made the decision to attend NYU, about as far from home as Erin could fathom. For a year Erin and Troy skyped and gamed daily, painfully waiting for ever too short holidays to be together again. To cope, everytime Troy returned home from college, Erin schemed to “decorate” Troy’s room with paper, confetti, streamers, and glitter. After a year of a cross-country relationship, Erin broke the news to her parents that she would follow Troy… to Troy, NY… attending RPI. This brought us back together, only a 2 hour train-ride away. Troy and Erin planned their class schedules around long weekends so they could be together as much as possible. Near the end of college, Troy began to think about marriage. It had been 7 years after all. However, Erin felt being married was far too adult, she couldn’t possibly get married while still in school. Eventually, Erin and Troy moved back to California and once again, Troy began discussing marriage. Perhaps simply to delay a proposal, Erin decided to pursue a Master’s degree. Obviously you can’t get married while still a student, Master’s or otherwise. Ever patient, Troy waited to propose until Erin completed this additional schooling. Furthermore, to ensure she was mentally prepared, her proposal took place over a series of 10 dates walking back through their 10 years together. At the end of the countdown, Troy proposed to Erin at the same spot at County Day where they first met, on September 9th, 2023. Today, Troy and Erin live in Davis, California, still with their cat, Nami. Looking back, Erin and Troy have known each other for 14 years and have been together for 12. When their wedding takes place on May 24, 2025, they will have known each other for half of their lives and are excited to spend the rest of their time together.