We can't wait to celebrate with you!

Two different countries, two different states, 4 years of college, multiple moves, 4 years where Hoboken became home, 1 amazing daugther (Madeline - check her out in instagram @madelinesmadlife), and 9 total years later here we are... We don't actually agree on how we met. Mike say's frat house, I say through friends.. here nor there I think we can agree that he was an outgoing young gent in college who never failed to hit me with a "Hey Baby!", or "Yo girl" any time I was in the realm of his existence. I in turn would awkwardly dodge him and run away. Eventually he wore me down and the rest is history!

First date#1 was the typical discount movie night by campus where Mike who was still on crutches recovering from knee surgery INSISTED on driving. I don't remember the movie, because as Mike will tell you I don't remember the name of anything - literally anything. Not movies, song titles, or even people most of the time (i'll never forget a face though!) After the movie we went back to campus where he hobbled back to his room. I (to his disappointment) gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and ran out of there to meet my friends. First (real) Date: Technically this was date #2, but I consider it our first REAL date. Mike made the plans. He picked me up from my dorm and took me to a Hibachi restaurant in a neighboring town. I had never been to Hibachi (man does your hair smell after!) but was impressed considering, hello-we are poor college kids. Fast forward during dinner, another older couple gets sat at our table. For some odd reason they asked us if we were brother and sister?! Ummm....awkward much? So to this day if any of you wonder why Mike LOVES to introduce me as his sister and confuse bystanders and make people feel weird... this is why! It's actually funny if you know the backstory but until now no one would so...I digress. It's the end of the night he's walking me back and he hands me this envelope. He told me not to open it until I got back to my dorm. I get home I rip open the envelope and he had written me a song! A ridiculous, inappropriate, hysterical song. He's been making me laugh ever since.

I don't think its ANY secret that I was tapping my toe like tick tock, I'm not getting any younger here (9 years)! Even so, he managed to catch me completely off guard. We were back in Ohio for a college friends wedding (shout out Drew & Lauren) and the weekend was crazy busy. I never thought in a million years it would happen that weekend. On Sunday, we were meeting up with my bestie and college roommate Vanessa (also MOH) for lunch and a quick campus visit before we got on the road. We went to Mike's Place this go-to, totally unique to Kent restaurant for lunch that we frequented in college. After, we went to campus to check it out. When we got out of our cars, Mike said he forgot his phone and had to run back. (I didn't think anything of it at the time.) This is when he got the ring unannounced to me! We got to the main student center, and he suggested Vanessa and I take some pictures by the main fountain. So we did, and then Van and Mike switched off. We were taking a picture and before I knew it he was down on one knee asking me to spend the rest of our lives together where it all began!