They say that good things happen when you least expect, and boy is that the truth. Our love story began at the Royal Solaris resort in Cancun, Mexico. For our college spring break in 2019, we both decided to book a last minute vacation to an all inclusive resort in Mexico. Joe went with his good friend, and I with mine. When we arrived at the resort, before even checking into our room, my friend and I quickly changed into our swimsuits and made a trip to the swim up pool bar. Low and behold, Joe and his friend were at the bar getting a drink. I quickly recognized Joe as “that cute biology TA who proctored our exams”, but I had never spoken to him. We both attended the same university, studied similar things, and even lived in the same apartment complex. In the end, it took us traveling 1,290 miles to a different country to officially meet for the first time. I have never bought into the notion of ‘love at first sight’, but after our very first interaction that day at the pool bar, I knew. Somehow, someway, from that moment on, Joe would be in my life forever. We spent the next 6 days laughing, dancing, and making memories together. We both believed we were falling in love, but thought that maybe our feelings were confused by the romantic setting. We wondered if those feelings would fade once we were back in Indianapolis. After returning to the city, our feelings just continued to grow stronger and stronger. We started dating shortly after returning from Mexico in Spring of 2019, and our love has continued to grow every day since.

I knew really early in the relationship that I was going to marry Miranda. I was so taken back by her self confidence, how she cared for others, and her ability to light up every room she enters; but what most told me I was going to marry Miranda was that she was the first girlfriend I had who so clearly put God ahead of me in our relationship. Something I now realize to be crucial in a successful marriage. All of that is to say, I’ve had PLENTY of time to think of proposal ideas. In the summer of 2021 we went through the paces of talking about her dream ring, finding out her ring size and discussing engagement and what that would look like in our current season of life. I purchased the ring in July of that year and found the perfect hiding spot, under the floor mat in my Jeep, which looking back maybe wasn’t my smartest idea haha. I wanted it to be somewhat of a surprise so I waited until the fall to propose. I was working at my hometown hospital in October and planned to pull it off then. I worked with both of my parents to set up the perfect plan. Miranda was coming down for a dinner with my parents on the Friday of October 15th. When she reached the top of my parents driveway she would see dozens of floating lanterns out on the pond along with a trail of torches lighting the way to the bank. Then there would be me, waiting for her in the row boat to go for a ride. This was all perfect until the weather report showed a 100% chance for the evening :( so we took it in stride and switched gears. My parents helped me decorate one of the 150 year old barns on their farm with pumpkins, string lights, fall flowers, and rustic farm equipment. Pretty slick if I do say so myself..We made a ‘Marry Me?’ Sign and hung it from the rafters and one of my groomsman, Kyle Damen, would be waiting in the bushes, along with our parents, to capture the special moment. When that evening came, I can vividly remember the thoughts running through my head as she drove up the driveway. I felt nervous, but it was an excited kind of nervous, something I had never felt before and haven’t felt since. I met Miranda half way up the drive and told her I had to show her something in the barn. If you know me, you know she probably was rolling her eyes internally, expecting to see a deer hanging from the rafters or one of my newest hunting “toys” as she so lovingly describes them. As we rounded the corner and the scene came into view, I could see the sense of surprise on Miranda’s face, and I knew I had pulled it off. In the following moments I told Miranda what she meant to me; how much I loved her, and how every time I thought about my future, raising kids, buying a house, moving to a new city, she was always there. I couldn’t picture these joys of life with anyone else. This website and the save-the-dates leave little in terms of suspense, but yes, she said yes, Kyle snapped some beautiful pictures, and we have such a incredible memory to serve as the origin of our engagement. Thank you all so much for reading my ramblings and for scrolling through our website, we can’t wait to celebrate with each and every one of you on June 3rd, 2023!