We are getting married!

Austin and Sarah met in December 2009 on a blind date that was NOT supposed to be a blind date. Sarina, Sarah's best friend, convinced her to go to the movies with her, her boyfriend, and a friend. When arriving at the mall, it became very apparent that it was in fact a blind, double date. Neither Austin nor Sarah can remember which movie they saw, but they remember sitting in the back of the theater making small talk. One of Austin's first comments to Sarah was that she reminded him of his classmate, Jenni, who was pale and Canadian too. Sarah said, "Jenni Lewis? Yeah, she was my neighbor in Canada." "Wait, what?!" was Austin's response. What a small world... Austin and Sarah's relationship began as a friendship with a weekly movie date. The foundation of their relationship is their friendship. They love to spend time together, whether it's watching true crime documentaries, going to indie and techno concerts, hiking with their fur babies, or traveling together.

In September 2021, Austin and Sarah planned a weekend getaway to Perdido Key with their fur babies, Kaya and Ghost. They rented an Air BNB and invited Austin's parents, Lyn and Danny, to join them. This would be the fur babies FIRST beach trip and Sarah was SO excited! Little did she know, Austin was planning to "pop the question!" On Saturday, September 11, 2021, the family loaded the cars and drove to Pensacola's dog beach. It was... eventful! Ghost insisted on drinking as much saltwater as possible and proceeded to be extremely sick. Meanwhile, the beach filled with people very quickly. After finally settling the dogs down and enjoying a couple of hours, they decided it was best to go home and relax before dinner. On the drive home, Austin suggested Sarah and he go to a beach on Perdido Key while his parents rested. Always eager to walk the beach, Sarah agreed and became impatient as Austin kept saying, "Let's wait until the GoPro and drone are charged." Upon arriving at the beach, Austin's first comment was, "Well this water isn't blue..." Sarah proceeded to explain they were now closer to the Mississippi River basin and therefore the water was murkier. Austin was not impressed. They walk to the far end of the beach as they people watched. At one point, Austin suggested they cross the dunes. "Ok, but be careful because the dunes are protected," Sarah cautioned. As Sarah got settled on the beach, Austin setup the drone to fly over the dunes and suggested they take a photo. Later, Austin exclaimed, "Check out this hole!?" Sarah was more concerned about what lived in the hole and kept asking Austin to leave the hole alone. It was probably a crab hole.... Let him be... "No, come check it out!" Austin insisted. As Sarah approached, she noticed the sand looked different. "What is that?" Sarah asked. "Look!" Austin said. Sarah kept asking, "What are you doing?" with surprise in her eyes and voice. She could see black velvet peaking out from under the sand. After Sarah picked up the black velvet box, Austin got on one knee. Austin asked and signed to Sarah, "Will you marry me?"