We have been in the same class together all the way from Kindergarten to Senior year of high school. However, we didn't realize we were meant to be until we spent a very cold Friday night cheering on the Chicago Blackhawks with our good friends, Ryan and Elizabeth Gilbert. Once home, I couldn't believe how much fun the night was and (secretly) couldn't wait to see Jared again. From that night, Jared started to reach out to me and, being the gentleman he is, offered to drive whenever all of our friends got together on the weekends. I purposely came up with plans that everyone would be good with just so that I could see Jared again. After about two weeks of this, he finally asked me on a date. We had plans to get dinner together for St. Patrick's Day at Kelly's (of course) and I remember being so nervous for it to be just the two of us. Well, as they tend to do in my life, plans changed. Instead, I had to break the news that we would be having dinner with my parents and grandma. I couldn't get the smile off my face when he said that the new plan sounded great and he would be over. I had a feeling where this was going and couldn't stop wondering how we could make such a long friendship turn into a relationship. I soon found out that there was no reason to be nervous. Our conversations were so natural. I remember smiling ear to ear the WHOLE time and the hours flew by. One night, about three weeks after our first "date" (and many drinks), we admitted to each other that we were going to marry each other! We officially started dating on April 16th, 2017 and I've been smiling ever since.

We met in Kindergarten and 22 years later it was love at first sight. We were in the same classes and hung with the same crowd, but never saw what was right in front of us. For me, it wasn't until January of 2017 that I feel like I really met Mary Sue. Myself, Mary Sue, and a few friends went out to the casino one random night in January. I thought it was just another night to get away. However, the next day was not normal. I couldn't stop thinking about how much fun I had just catching up with Mary Sue for a few hours at the blackjack table. I couldn't figure out why the both of us lived in the area and hadn't been hanging out more. I found myself needing to reach out to her on the weekends to see what she would be up to. It came to a point that I had to see her more than just the time our friends were getting together, but I didn't want to be too obvious. So, I asked her if she wanted to go to a Blackhawks game and that I had four tickets for her, myself, and our friends Ryan and Elizabeth. Thank God she said yes because honestly, I didn't want to be 3rd wheel at a Blackhawks game with Ryan and Elizabeth. The day of I remember being very antsy to go to the game. I had never been this excited to see someone as much as I was to see her. I would love to say the game was awesome, but I don't remember much of it because we didn't stop talking to each other the whole time. After dropping her off at home that night, I knew I was in trouble. The entire ride home my mind was racing thinking about her. I had finally hit the point that I knew I couldn't let being friends stop this from progressing. In the next weeks to come, I finally worked up the courage to ask her on a date for St. Patrick's day (figured I'd have the luck of the Irish on my side). However, plans changed and instead of date night at Kelly's, we had dinner with her parents and Grandma😳. To be honest, going into that house for dinner I was very nervous but after that night I knew she was the one!

The night couldn't have been more normal for us. Taking the dogs for a run on the South Farm, having some beers, and watching the sunset. One of the things Jared has learned (and loves) about me is that I am usually running late. However, he was probably not expecting me to be *THREE HOURS* late to our engagement. Jared fed me lies about his whereabouts all week leading up to our vacation to Florida; telling me that he was working late to finish planting before we flew out and wasn't able to spend time with me. He then tells me that there is a Tropical Depression moving through southern Florida and we'd get better weather if we flew out on Monday instead of Saturday - I believe everything he says and switched our flights right away. Jared mentioned that he wanted to take our dogs to the South Farm one last time before we left and maybe catch the sunset. I decided I needed a few things and went shopping Saturday afternoon. Next thing I know, Saturday afternoon turned into Saturday night. Jared calls me around 7:00 asking where I am because sunset is at 7:30. Well, I was still at the mall. I hurried back and came ripping down the gravel road at 8:30 to meet Jared to "catch the sunset". He was in a great mood and joking that I made it just in time. We got in the gator, opened a few beers and took off to our favorite spot. Music was on, beer was tasting good, and the bugs were BITING. I was confused why Jared continued to open and offer me a second and third beer when it would've been more enjoyable to have them indoors. However, I went with it. The conversation was so normal for us until Jared finally asked if I had found everything I needed for Florida. When I told him I had, he responded by getting on one knee and telling me he had one more thing to do before we could go. You can probably guess what came next... LOTS of tears and of course a big "yes"! I will never forget the feeling and couldn't have been more surprised. It was the perfect night.

Coming Soon