We know this will probably come as a surprise to everyone, but we met at a bowling tournament over a decade ago. Derek was bowling in the same tournament that Ashley went to watch her dad and brother bowl. We continued to be friends, saying hey whenever we saw each other. A decade later, a simple snapchat message conversation led to a first date. And what would be more surprising than meeting at a bowling alley? You guessed it- a first date at a casino!! Derek won a jackpot that night and has been lucky ever since (ha ha)!

Every year on New Year's Eve, we gather with some of our friends to ring in the new year. We meet for dinner and spend a few hours laughing, catching up, and reminiscing about all that happened over the past year. And that was the plan again for New Year's Eve 2022. We spent the afternoon with Ashley's family and all the kiddos at the family cosmic bowling party. The whole afternoon, Derek acted really weird. He was distant, he didn't say much to anyone, and he kept looking for reasons to run errands or not be where we all were. Ashley had messaged her friend, Marlena, saying that something was not right and that she thought that Derek was going to break up with her. After bowling, we got ready for dinner. Derek picked out a dressy sweater and made sure Ashley dressed in something other than her typical jeans and t-shirt. During dinner, Derek was unusually quiet. He normally was joking with his friends and messing around but this time he just sat quietly talking with those sitting right next to him. This year, dinner took way longer than it normally did. We spent several hours sitting at the table waiting for our food to arrive. After our meal, everyone in the group started gathering their coats and such to head out. As they were doing that, Derek stood up and clinked his glass. He raised his glass and said that he wanted to make a toast. I remember thinking "Why the frig is he making a toast now and not at midnight? And why didn't he make a toast when we were sitting here for hours?" And he started to give his toast. He toasted to all the friends sitting at the table and how he was so glad that they were all in his life. He toasted that he was thankful for the tradition of always meeting up for New Year's Eve dinner, no matter how busy everyone was. And then he said "And I want to toast to new adventures in the next year- like getting married." He then dropped to his knee with the ring in his hand. Nobody, including Derek or Ashley can remember what was said when he was on one knee because everyone was so surprised. There was only one person in the room that knew what was going to happen so everyone in the room was just as shocked as Ashley was. Ashley's first response was "What are you doing? Is this real? Are you sure?" With all the shock in the room, nobody is actually sure if Derek said "Will you marry me?" and we are even less sure if "Yes" was ever given for the answer!