The way we met is a little boring, on a dating app, towards the end of the pandemic. Just a few days into talking we decided to go on a date - Texas Roadhouse, obviously. The first words I actually heard him say was just "flowers?" as he held a bouquet of sunflowers. Less than 2 months after we met, against better judgment, we decided to drive to the Grand Canyon together. Turns out spending two weeks trapped in a car with someone really fast tracks getting to know them.

At some point in 2023 Rodney made me a wooden pendant for a necklace that I wore consistently for several long months. Little did I know he had hollowed it out and hidden my engagement ring inside. During this time I was volunteering at a horse rescue. We had gone together one Saturday and one of the horses randomly decided to snatch the pendant off of my neck. Thankfully we were able to pry it back out of his mouth. Rodney said later that it would "be funny one day, but today is not that day."

October 13th 2023 we had booked a vacation to Myrtle Beach. I was just happy to be back at the ocean with no idea I'd be leaving with a fiance. The night we got there he wanted to go sit on the beach in the moonlight. After we'd sat for a while he asked to see the pendant he'd made me, "I want to make sure all the clasps are tight so it doesn't come off and get lost." So he starts messing with it, and then looks at me and tells me "Oh no, I broke it". He handed it to me saying "Make sure that's not like fully split in half please." It was.. and inside was the most beautiful ring I'd ever seen. I'll be honest I don't remember what he said because I couldn't stop crying and then laughing about it almost being eaten and then yelling at him for having the audacity to hide my ring around my neck for a few months.