Anna-Katherine proved elusive for me. A mutual friend first suggested we go out in 2016, our senior year of college. Nothing came of the interaction at the time, but the same friend suggested we go out again in March after we graduated. I jumped at the chance, only to get cold responses from our mutual friend when I followed up (in at least three separate text messages) - she had reached out to Anna-Katherine who was not interested. The idea came up again in October 2018, a full two years after it was initially brought up. After a couple more follow ups, I finally had AK's number and we went on our first date to Cafe Babareeba in Chicago, and it wasn't long after that I knew I had found the love of my life in Anna-Katherine. We're so thankful for the Lord's sovereignty and providence in bringing us together. Before we started dating, I accepted a job in Dallas to begin in the spring of 2019. While much of our relationship has been long-distance, we've treasured the times we have had together and have made it a priority to see each other every two weeks, which we have done for the last year with rare exception. Anna-Katherine will finally be moving to Dallas, and we can't wait to share our wedding day with you as we embark on a life of serving the Lord together.

I didn't expect anything would come out of my first date with Josh on December 1st, 2018. That's why it was confusing when I had so much fun! He was thoughtful and easy to talk to. Still, I told him I couldn't go out with him again until mid January. In January he promptly followed up with a second date. He also sat me down to say he took a new job in Dallas. Unsure how to respond, I purposefully shifted the conversation away from "us" by asking about his new job. Hearing about it made me like him even more. He had a big heart and big dreams, and was chasing them. After a lot of inner turmoil, and despite my feelings, I decided a few days later to say it didn't make sense for us to keep dating. Josh did not like that answer! He met me at Panera to give me his reasons, we agreed to keep dating, and I couldn't wait to see him again. To this day, I never want our time spent together to end. Every goodbye gets harder. Josh is my best friend and my biggest fan. One of the best things about him though is that he lives out of conviction to honor and serve God, and has pointed me to Him through the ups and downs of my first 2 years of teaching. He calls me every morning to say good morning and to pray for me before school. He's the one I've been dreaming of and praying for since I was a little girl, and I CAN'T WAIT TO MARRY HIM!