Like most modern-day love stories, we met on a dating app. But there's more to the story than that. As Taylor Swift once wrote, "isn't it just so pretty to think, all along there was some invisible string tying you to me" and that is how our story really begins. Though our story officially began online, our relationship is a novel romance of two people whose paths almost crossed several times, but the timing wasn't quite right...until it was. Growing up in the same area and living here all our lives, it is hard to believe we never met until now. All along there was an invisible string tying us together but keeping us apart until we were ready to meet. We just didn't know it.
We had the most amazing first date ever. Because of Brennan's love of baseball, we went to an iCubs game for our first date. Given that we didn't really know each other yet, this was the perfect activity because there was less pressure to keep conversation. That said, we ended up spending most of the game talking about everything from our families to our jobs to baseball trivia questions. Being together was so natural and comfortable from the very first date. Both of us knew pretty early on that something about this relationship was special. At the end of the night, we made plans to see each other again and the rest was history.
February 10, 2024 was the best day. Brennan had the whole day planned out perfectly and everyone was in on it. After months of being pestered with questions, he was finally ready to pop the question. The engagement took place out at Madison County Winery. The weather was perfect and the sun was just beginning to set. We went up the hill to where the grape vines were on display and Brennan got down on one knee. After the engagement was official, we went back to the Hayes house for a celebration with family and close friends. It was a perfect day full of love, joy, and excitement about forever.