Gallery

March 2025: Stephen & Lydia’s 1st official date on his first trip to visit her in Columbus, celebrating his birthday at Eddie Merlot! :)

March 2025: Stephen officially asked Lydia to be his girlfriend on 3.13.25 at 16:11 at their favorite restaurant, XiXia!

April 2025: Stephen & Lydia’s 2nd long distance trip. He came to support her as her handler for Collegiate Nationals Powerlifting 2025 in Atlanta, GA!

May 2025: Lydia’s 1st trip to visit Stephen at Liberty University! They got sick for the first time together😅, watched Mission Impossible, and she got to see campus for the first time with him!

June 2025: Stephen’s 1st Bodybuilding Show!!

July 2025: Stephen & Lydia share in one of their favorite hobbies: cooking! She made him a popular Slovak dish, buchty (sweet dumplings), for the first time!

November 2025: For Thanksgiving, we traveled down to Alabama to be with Stephen’s dad’s side of the family!

November 2025: Our first college football rivalry game! Sharing in Stephen’s family tradition of cheering on Auburn🥳

December 2025: We celebrated our 1st Christmas together at Lydia’s church in Cleveland!

December 2025: Stephen officially moves from Virginia to Cleveland to start his new job at the Cleveland Clinic!

February 2026: 1st Valentine’s Day & double date with some of our best friends, Sarah and Chas!

March 2026: Stephen’s 28th Birthday & the Arnold festival in Columbus with our great friends, David and Marissa!

March 2026: Our close friends Caleb and Alicia’s 1st visit to Cleveland! (little did Lydia know they went with Stephen to pick up the ring this weekend😉)

May 2026: Our story led us here! On 5.15.26 Stephen got down on one knee and proposed in front of our loved ones in Virginia!