Like many "millennials" today, Chadd and I met online, on eHarmony. As someone who was very new to the online dating world, I was very hesitant at first and it took me several days to actually create an account. Being the procrastinator that I sometimes am, I started filling out the profile questions and then would stop, save the information and come back to it later or even the next day. After three or four days of going back and forth on whether or not I really wanted to do this, I finally completed my profile and thought "what the heck, why not?!" About a week after creating the account, Chadd reached out and even then, I remained hesitant and waited a few days to respond. I very thoroughly read through his profile to see his interests, hobbies, etc. and again thought to myself ......."why not?!" So, we began talking and got to know each other, and one of the first questions he asked, being from Southeast Ohio and an avid Ohio State fan, was "are you a Michigan fan?" When my answer was "ABSOLUTELY NOT, I'm a Notre Dame fan", his response was "this might actually work!" (with laughter included, of course). At that point, the conversations continued and weeks later, we decided to go on our first date, where Chadd drove 5 and a half hours EACH WAY in one day to meet me (talk about making an impression)! This included a very unplanned rained out Tigers game and lots of "just rolling with it" and of course, communication and laughter :) We continued the fun at Punch Bowl Social in Downtown Detroit where we ate buffalo wings (one of our favorite foods!), drank good beer, talked a LOT and just enjoyed the ambiance and each other's company. While the day may not have gone 100% as planned, this was a true test for both of us and our ability to make the most out of everything and have a great time no matter what. Certainly, this was only the beginning of something lovely and amazing :) ......And the rest is history!

....There he goes again, stealing my heart! Anyone who knows me well, knows my love for and obsession with Ireland. Chadd caught on to this very early on and was "a man with a plan" and boy did that plan take my breath away! In August of 2021, the two of us took a two week trip to my favorite country together. We traveled across Ireland (literally every direction) and explored, saw incredible sights, had the "craic" with local Irish people, enjoyed Guinness, met up with some of my Irish friends (if you didn't already guess, this wasn't my first time in Ireland :D), did lots of walking, hiked a mountain and most importantly, went back to my favorite town, the village of Tully Cross. While in Tully Cross, we ventured around the area and all the special places there (this was Chadd's first time in Ireland), I introduced him to my friends and the local people and of course, took him to the two pubs in the village. Our second day there, we went to a beautiful castle (Kylemore Abbey) with gorgeous gardens, mountains and a lake surrounding it. Kaetlin, my friend in Ireland (also a bridesmaid!) tagged along with us and little did I know that there was a reason for that; Here I was thinking she was just coming along to spend time together - Could've fooled me! :D The "man with a plan" asked her the night before to take photos of us while we were there and as we were leisurely walking through the Abbey and around the lake, I thought we were just stopping to take a photo together but man was I wrong! He popped the question right there, with an absolutely breathtaking and unforgettable view in the background! Of course, that was the easiest and best "YES!" I've ever had to say :) <3 We're so excited for our forever together, and we are so looking forward to celebrating with everyone!