Her version: It was our first week of orientation and we were both in the peculiar position of being college freshmen at the ripe old age of 25. We were sitting in an old, stadium-style classroom with wooden desks and a big blackboard. I was nervous. Alex was not. He was sitting in front of me chatting it up with several other new classmates, while I made jokes that didn’t land. Even then, I knew this guy was the type of cool that only derives from a University of Florida, Sigma Nu experience. I’d hoped we’d become friends, and I didn’t know we’d become much more. Our real story began at the welcome back party the next fall and this time I was less nervous…which had nothing to do with the tequila sodas. After a night of chatting and dancing, I asked him if he wanted to go to another bar with me to get to know each other better. Sitting in the corner of the Brass Monkey (if you know, you know) I teased him about how I’d made the first move. He told me “Sometimes, it’s the second move that counts” and kissed me right on the lips. And the rest is history… His version: In our first semester in college in New York City, I knew of Hali and she knew of me. We shared cordial hellos and brief conversations with each other, but it wasn't until the 2018 Fall Semester Welcome Back Party that we really started talking. In an effort to escape the loud music of the event to have a more intimate conversation, we left the venue and went to the rooftop of the Brass Monkey. There, Hali will proudly say she made the first move, but we all know that its the second move that is the most important. After that night, we began to meet up at the library where she would study and I would... pretend to study (you see, she's a much better student than me). Realistically, I just wanted to spend time with her in whatever way possible. A few months later, on December 22nd, after her first time meeting and getting along so well with my sister, Lauren, I knew we had to make our relationship official, so I asked her to be my girlfriend. The rest, as they say, is history. Reality: The truth is somewhere in the middle.

After 3 years of dating and countless hours trying to come up with the best way to "pop the question," Alex finally figured out the perfect way to propose to Hali. Knowing that a more intimate, one-on-one moment was something that Hali wanted (and truthfully what Alex needed with all of his nervousness), he decided that the next time they were both out in Colorado visiting Hali's family, he would ask Hali's parents for her hand. Then, upon receiving permission to marry their daughter, Hali and Alex would go to a place they both love just outside of Colorado Springs called Garden of the Gods. With that plan in mind and with the help of his sister Lauren, Alex reached out to a local photographer (hence the beautiful photos you see all over our website!!), and the photographer helped him set up the whole proposal! On the weeks and days leading up to the proposal, Alex put his ability to NOT tell Hali everything to the test because as stressed as he was, it had to be a surprise. On the day of the proposal, they made their way to the Garden of the Gods, and after being told to dress nicely for a hike (HUH??), Hali started to get suspicious. They made their way to the Siamese Twins rock formation, and there he gave the hidden-in-plain-sight photographer the signal to start taking their photos - a simple hug with Hali. Alex then got down on one knee and began to recite the speech he had written down and attempted to memorize. This did not go as planned, as the nerves stifled his ability to remember anything he had written. Nonetheless, the proposal itself went something like this after some other likely unintelligible sentences: Alex: "Hali Woods, what I wanted to say was: I want to spend the rest of my life with you..." Hali (abruptly cutting in): "You mean... starting now?" Alex (relieved by the interruption): "Yes, starting now!" Over two years, one move to Maryland, and two graduate program starts later, here we are, and we CANNOT WAIT to celebrate our story and marriage with everyone!