The first time Ruth and I met was about a week before classes started. When I saw her, I immediately noticed how stunning she was, but I told myself, “No way… she’s way out of my league.” At first, she actually found me pretty annoying — mostly because I wouldn’t stop talking about how we did things differently at the restaurant where I used to work. But slowly, she warmed up to me, and before long we became genuinely good friends. As time went on, we started flirting back and forth with some pick‑up lines, and eventually I asked her out on a date. She said yes. I told her we could just hang out for an hour and no one had to know, since we were in the same friend group. That one hour turned into three… and those three hours turned into a lifetime together. I wouldn’t change anything about how Ruth and I met. I thank the Lord every day for bringing such an amazing woman into my life. We know that as long as God is at the center of our lives, we’ll be okay — He will always take care of us and our relationship.

When I first met Cole, I honestly thought he was the most annoying guy ever. He wouldn’t stop giving his opinions on how things should work in a kitchen just because he had worked as a “chef.” But soon after that, we became friends. What made him stand out in our friend group was that he was the only one who checked on me whenever I seemed quiet or sad. He always tried to remind me that he understood and that God sees everything we go through. Around that time, I was really into finding pickup lines online and sharing them with friends. One Sunday, he was fourth‑wheeling, and I sent a message in our group chat reminding everyone that Cole was about to be stuck in a car for two hours with two couples. He ended up texting me privately asking for help. Little did I know that that one Sunday would be the beginning of everything. Fast forward to today — we’re planning our wedding, and I still can’t believe it’s finally happening. I can’t wait to build a life with him, grow old with him, have fun with him, and just be us. Cole is the most amazing man. He is caring, gentle, and loving. He takes such good care of me, and I couldn’t imagine being happier with anyone else. I can’t wait to serve the Lord alongside him for the rest of my life.

The date is March 14th. The original plan was to propose on Sunday, March 15th. However, my photographer and I found out that there was going to be a severe blizzard. My brain was like, “Ain’t no way a storm is gonna ruin my plans.” So I decided that I was going to propose today! I dropped Ruth off at school so she could get ready for a chili cook‑off we had that night. I went to pick up the ring, and then at the last minute I found a spot where I wanted to propose. After getting the ring, I picked up Ruth and drove to the place where we used to go on walks when we first started dating. I found a cute spot, got on one knee, and asked Ruth to marry me. She said yes! Fun fact 1: Where I proposed was a walking trail located right in between all the places where we used to go on walks. So I proposed right in the middle of all our memories. Fun fact 2: In the months leading up to the proposal, I would bring rocks to Ruth when I was done working. I’d tell her to close her eyes and hold out her hand, and then I’d give her a rock. So on the day I proposed, I told Ruth to close her eyes, got on one knee, and said, “Ruth, I got you the real rock.” When she opened her eyes, I asked her to marry me.