Our story began in August, 2020, when we began talking on Hinge. Two months later, we met in person on October 14, 2020, at El Jefe in Minneapolis. Brendan showed up 45 minutes late, but the rest of the night went so well that Brendan took Alexis to his favorite Minneapolis dive bar, the 331 Club, for some cheap and classy Moscow Mules and barrel-aged Manhattans. Within a few dates, Brendan and Alexis realized that they were headed toward something special, and Alexis moved back to Minneapolis in February, 2021, after spending a year working remote in South Dakota. She and Brendan looked forward to living in the same neighborhood and the ability to spend more time together. However, there was a catch: Soon after moving to Minneapolis, Alexis was told that she would start eight months of loadmaster training for the Air National Guard in April. Despite the disappointing timing, Alexis and Brendan dove headfirst back into long distance, this time for nearly two years! They managed to see each other at all of Alexis' training spots: San Antonio, Texas; Spokane, Washington; and Little Rock, Arkansas. The time between Spokane and Little Rock was particularly special, in which Brendan drove from Minneapolis to Spokane to pick Alexis up and spent their first road trip traveling back through Glacier National Park and the Black Hills. After Alexis settled into Little Rock, Brendan came around to visit a few times so that they could enjoy the humidity, southern food, and a Razorback football game together. It was at this time that Brendan moved to San Diego, and after Alexis completed her training and moved back to Minneapolis, they continued to travel to see each other for the entirety of 2022. After a full year of traveling back and forth, they began to make plans for Alexis to move to San Diego so that they could once again live near each other. Alexis moved to San Diego in February, 2023, and she and Brendan settled into Coronado, savored the great weather, beautiful beaches, and met new friends. They enjoyed exploring their new home together and hosting many tri-tip and brat cookouts. For five months they enjoyed being a "short distance" couple until that July, when Alexis was called up to deploy to Africa with her unit that August. For five more months, Alexis and Brendan went back to long-distance mode, yet the time went by quickly as they were able to talk nearly every day and kept busy on opposite sides of the globe. Once Alexis returned in December, and Brendan knew it was time to ask Alexis for her hand in marriage. Brendan went to the only jeweler in Coronado to start ring shopping, only to find that the jeweler only makes custom engagement rings. And so began many back and forth trips to the jeweler, with Brendan reviewing stones and designs until he settled on a look that he knew Alexis would love. With the ring ready to go in April, Brendan waited for the right occasion to ask Alexis for forever, and he popped the question on Coronado Beach at sunset on May 13, 2024. Our story is four years in the making, spent in five states (so far), and we can not wait to have you join us in our beloved adopted hometown as we begin a lifetime of marriage together.