We have been in a relationship for over seven years, but our story goes back further than that. We originally met in middle school, and danced in and out of the same social circles all the way through high school. We became close while working together at our first job, sharing our time both in and out of school. After high school, we both continued our educations, Alex at West Valley Community college, and Lauren at Paul Mitchell Cosmetology school, where she met some of her closest friends. Throughout this period, we would still spend as much time together as possible, from early morning breakfasts, to late night beach runs. In 2019, Lauren and I went to Australia on working holiday visas, where we lived together for the first time. We explored, made new friends, and even took a short vacation to Thailand. We eventually had to return home due to the outbreak of the pandemic, but we still always managed to make things work for us. In 2020, Lauren welcomed Alaska and Juno into our family, where they will join us in our future endeavors. We got engaged on October 11th 2022, during Lauren's birthday camping trip to Sunset State Beach in Watsonville. She said yes, and here we are, planning out the rest of our lives together. We're excited for you all to join us to celebrate the next chapter in our story.