This love story dates back to 2008. Haley and Michael, both new to ASU and the state of Arizona, met as freshmen. Michael applied to housing last minute and Haley, well she signed up the day she was accepted. However, fate had already begun designing their future and they both were assigned to live on the 7th floor of the same dormitory. At first, they were good friends, with a friendship that mainly revolved around food. Whether it’d be cooking mac and cheese together in the dorm or ordering a pizza at a party and devouring the whole pizza, or “pie” as Haley would say (resulting in countless deep conversations of disagreement). They loved spending time together, and eventually their friendship became something more. In 2013, a year after college, Haley made the move from the beach shores of New Jersey to live with Michael in Illinois. Since that time, they’ve enjoyed making a life as “we” instead of “mi”. Haley’s dream of becoming an educator became a reality when she was hired on as a 5th grade teacher in Plainfield, and Michael will be receiving his Doctor of Optometry degree in 2021. When Michael surprised Haley for her birthday with plane tickets to New Jersey, Haley had no idea what was being planned behind the scenes. After arriving, they took a walk on the beach just outside Haley's grandmother's home. From the window, family watched Michael get down on one knee and ask Haley to marry him. We're so excited to celebrate this next chapter in our lives with you. See you in Chicago!