Celebrate our Marriage!

We are eloping in Glacier National Park, and while we would love to have everyone present, we have elected to have an intimate unity ceremony along the shores of Lake McDonald. Not to worry! We plan on filming the adventure and sharing it with everyone as soon as we are able to. We are planning a blessing of the union and a celebration of the marriage back home in Illinois, so strap on your dancing shoes and remember remember the 5th of November!

We technically met shortly before freshman year of high school at band camp. Drew was seated behind Jesi and was asked if he was as loud as his brother. Drew proceeded to say, "No, I am louder!" and blasted his trumpet at full volume right in Jesi's ears. How this didn't immediately result in an immediate swoon and initiation of an epic romance is still under investigation. The first conversation was in biology class when we were seated next to each other and discussed dinosaurs and our rock collections (a first in many how did we not see this coming). A strong friendship blossomed from here, and developed into a relationship 8 years later after Jesi graduated from nursing school.

We had already arranged to see the world premiere of Jurassic World at Navy Pier together as friends. We were at his parents house watching YouTube videos after a Blackhawks win when Drew put his arm around Jesi and asked, "So, why have we never dated?" Jesi replied with something about timing and Drew smoothly responded with, "How about we make Jurassic World date 1?" And just like that we went to Navy Pier to watch the Jurassic World premiere not as friends, but as nervous paramours. It was a perfect night. We read Jurassic Park together on the train and shared our first kiss after the movie gazing at the nighttime Chicago skyline on Lake Michigan before ending the evening at Jesi's favorite speakeasy/underground tiki lounge. The rest is history.

2020 was an interesting year to put it lightly. We braved a global pandemic as new parents with no preparation. Drew had originally planned on proposing at his 2020 run on American Ninja Warrior; however, with Covid, this wasn't able to happen. That being said, the ask was still perfect. Jesi came home from an overnight shift on her birthday to an eagerly waiting Drew with a present in hand and a hungry baby. Jesi sighed and asked to get comfy in bed while she nursed Maya and opened gifts because she could tell Drew was impatient. She opened a box that contained a rose gold necklace chain and looked up to see Drew on one knee holding a beautiful blue opal ring. "That chain looks empty. Will you marry me?" "One condition. Can we get tacos to celebrate? Your fiancé thinks that tacos al pastor are crucial building blocks to a long healthy marriage." "As you wish." (One of Jesi's favorite books is The Princess Bride, so this went over well) "Yes. A million times yes." It was not an extravagant ask. It was simple, but it was perfect and intimate. It was a beautiful moment shared with our little family. And yes, we got tacos. After all, tacos are the building blocks to a successful marriage.