For most couples, when they start their married life they're excited for the possibility of what's to come and they struggle to imagine how different their lives will be ten years down the road. For us, we remember the growing pains as we transitioned from local high school sweethearts to a young, long distance couple for the better part of a decade. We remember all the loved ones we've lost and how we had to learn to be there for one another in their absence. We remember learning how to improve our communication to compensate for the distance and having to be more innovative by writing letters through snail mail and surprising each other with local pizza deliveries during Skype date nights. Most of all, we remember learning to appreciate the time we shared together more deeply. Taking mental snapshots of moments that might have otherwise been taken for granted as it could have been six months before we would see each other again. Honestly, we're not excited to build a life together as we've already done that; instead, we're excited to enrich our life together. We're excited to make time to laugh more frequently, love deeper, and to continue to support and challenge each other as we close out a decade of love shared and look forward to the future as a married couple.

We always loved the Biltmore. That had been our getaway of choice since first visiting several years ago. I think I made the decision to propose there during our first visit, actually. In other words, this plan had been in the works for a long time. With the help of our great friends, Rachel and Justin, that idea came to fruition... but not without some near mishaps of course. The three of us set up a “friends visit”, as Rachel and Justin would be in North Carolina for a separate event - so we agreed to all meet at the Biltmore for a day. I enlisted Rachel to try and get Britt to pack + wear a fancy outfit that day. The guise was that Rachel wanted to be bougie and go all out for the day. We also used that argument to ensure that Britt brought her nice camera, so that we could capture our decadence on the estate. Had I been the one arguing for either of those things... well, that would have been an early red flag. Fast forward to the drive up - I had the ring in my front coat pocket the whole time. I didn’t want it out of my sight, in case Britt stumbled upon it. I also worried that she’d notice a bump in my jacket and ask what it was, but (thankfully) she did not. Once we get there, we had a last minute trip to the Lilly store for a new outfit, as I reiterated to Britt how important this would be to Rachel, and how we just couldn’t let her down. So far, so good. The morning of... it’s absolutely freezing. We get to the Biltmore and you can feel the excitement in the air. We walk in, and make it to our favorite spot overlooking the house. Justin offers to take our picture. We get together, I take my coat off. I’m shaking a bit - I say it’s because I’m freezing (I’ve adapted to the south well), Britt because I’m nervous... maybe it was a bit of both. I get down on one knee... immediately, Britt yells “LOVEBUG”. She knows. I barely get my monologue out and the question “Will you marry me?”, before she says “YES, YES, YES!!” Now the real celebration begins!