We're getting married!

On a Saturday, Halloween night in 2020, I went out with my girlfriends downtown dressed as a group of hippies. Michael had plans to go elsewhere but those plans fell through. He ended up meeting up with an old friend downtown who just so happened to be part of the friend group I was with. When my girls and I walked up to the rooftop bar, my feet were already begging me to sit down from my heels. I found the closest seat to me which, little did I know, was next to my future husband. He was dressed as a life guard (biceps on display, I might add). From the second I sat down, Michael and I spoke for the next 3 hours and didn’t take our eyes off one another. Something felt so natural and so right - I was just the perfect amount of nervous. When it was time for my girlfriends and I to leave, he asked for my number and scheduled a date for us on Monday. Years later and we’re counting down the days until we’re man and wife. 🤍

We were lucky enough to have a week in Hawaii planned at the beginning of March. Michael and I are a pretty open, communicative couple and I am quite the planner. I think we were both pretty convinced that Hawaii made sense for the big question. However, a couple days before my birthday, my sister and best friend came up with Michael surprising me by proposing on my birthday with family and friends around. From my understanding, it was a huge last minute scramble but they totally pulled it off. The night of my birthday, my friends helped get me dolled up (knowing this would be more than just me turning 26). I had no clue... When Michael picked me up, he was insanely quiet and seemed very nervous (he can’t get anything past me…). This was my first clue that something was up. I quickly connected the dots of how helpful and excited my friends were to get ready with me for my birthday dinner. Michael pulled into a gas station and got out to pump some gas (I now know he did this to stall) so I instantly tried to track my sister, who’s location was turned off. I then noticed my friends locations weren't on the way to dinner like they should’ve been. Michael gets back in the car and I was pretty certain it was happening… I started to get super giddy and nervous but tried to play it cool. I was excited to let it unfold and see how it came to life!! I remember telling myself “This is it!”. We pull into a meaningful, local park where we had our 2nd date and my heart dropped with full understanding of what was happening. He was so cute and nervous the whole time! As we walk towards the familiar, beautiful gazebo, I ask if I can look around (knowing that my friends had to be in the bushes somewhere but not wanting to totally ruin the surprise). He allowed me to survey the area with a huge smile on my face but before I could spot them, he was down on one knee. We both have talked about how we completely blacked out in that moment but I remember his words were so sweet and thoughtful and brought me to tears. After I said yes, my friends and family came running towards me with smiles, tears and cameras. We went to dinner that night with lots to celebrate. Afterwards, he surprised me with a fancy hotel downtown, complete with rose petals. It was the most wonderful night of my life and much better than a proposal with a bunch of strangers. I’m so thankful for everyone coming together to pull it off for me. 🤍

* * *