We met during the last moments of a game night on a hot Nashville evening. As I was packing up to leave, Doug sat down next to me, asking what game I was playing. I decided to give him a minute to prove a conversation was worth staying for. Needless to say, he did - we got along easily and spoke like old friends. That's the first time I thought, "Yeah, this is definitely something."

There were many decisions that led me to the moment where I proposed. 2 years had passed since I first thought Katie might be the one. I knew I wanted to make the day special for her. I wanted Katie to feel like she deserved everything in the world. We went to the Dallas Arboretum, a place we had visited on many other idyllic Dallas days. so she didn't suspect anything unusual. Strolling around, talking about our relationship and life, we came to a spot that just felt right. I got down on one knee, and she reacted in the classic pose - hand over mouth kind of shocked, just like a movie. She just got the word "yes" out. Afterward, we went to her parents' house for what she thought was a simple birthday dinner. As we walked in to a room full of our friends for a surprise engagement bash, the support and love we have received from others and built as a couple was shown there, in the flesh. That love made me sure that Katie was my wife, that support gives me confidence to face the unknown with her by my side. I can't wait to keep writing the rest of the story together.