We met by happenstance - Katie was working in New Orleans and returned to Iowa City only for a few days' leave. Erik was halfway through graduate school at the University of Iowa. We ran into each other at our favorite bar, The Deadwood, on Halloween 2013. We dated long distance until Katie returned to Iowa that New Years. We've been inseparable ever since!

On Katie's 28th birthday, Erik put on his best suit and popped the question. We stood under a trellis in an open field when he got down on one knee. Katie said yes and immediately called her mother.