We're (finally) getting married!

We first met in high school, in our Honors Biology class (Madi was a sophomore, Zac was a freshman). Our teacher seating us in alphabetical order meant that Madi sat directly behind Zac, and a friendship quickly formed once we found out we both did cross country and track and knew some of the same people through those sports and through band (for Madi, at least!). A friendship soon turned into a date to homecoming the following year, and the rest is history! We went to different schools for college -- Madi to UNI and Zac to ISU -- but didn't let that discourage us. For those four years we split time every other weekend or so visiting each other at our respective campuses and built bonds with the new friends in our lives. When it came time for Madi to move to California for her PhD program, Zac agreed to come out after finishing his master's degree and we'd determine where to go after she finished her program. Her only stipulation was that he was not allowed to propose until she was done -- one major life event at a time, please! After moving out to California in the middle of the pandemic, Zac picked up a few hobbies that required the ocean, and we both grew to love the closeness of both the beach and the mountains and currently still live in Orange County, California. Madi completed her thesis dissertation and PhD defense in December of 2023, and started her community college professor career in earnest. Zac quietly picked up a ring previously owned by her maternal grandmother from her parents over the winter holidays, and waited patiently for the right time to pop the question. On one of the first truly beautiful days of spring in April of last year, we went to Crystal Cove State Beach, a frequent haunt of ours when we lived at UCI, and he surprised her in the sea cave at the end of the beach with a proposal. We're so excited to celebrate nearly thirteen years of being together with all of you at our reception on June 27th!