Athens, Ohio. Otherwise known as paradise, Disneyland, and the world's greatest adult playground. Nearly five years ago, Grant and I were both starting our senior year at Ohio University. I'll never forget my first encounter with him. He was friends with two of my college roommates and was over visiting at our house one morning. After a late night out at the bars, my head was pounding when I heard this boisterous guy talking in our kitchen. Enter, Grant Cunningham. I was immediately taken aback by his good looks and charm but I did my best to play it cool. I said hello and simply went back to hibernate in my room. Fast forward to a few days later when I was out (again) with friends. I was standing at the Crystal bar when I heard a loud, familiar voice yell "Kelly Conery!" I turned around to find Grant who then dove right in to kiss my cheek before I even had the chance to respond. Talk about that charm...and liquid courage. He stole my heart that very moment and the rest is history!

You don't start dating a girl at the beginning of your senior year of college without seeing a legitimate future with her. On top of that, when you have someone who trusts you enough to pack her bags, move 10 hours away to a town she's never seen... I'd say you have yourself a keeper. Step 1 - Ring shop. If you know me, you can imagine my state of confusion to find out there's something they call "the 4 C's" and a completely separate band you get for the wedding. Who would've thought there's two rings? So yeah, I had a lot to learn! I knew Kelly's dream had always been to get engaged surrounded by the people she loves the most. With her family vacation around the corner, my proposal plot began to take flight. Step 2 - Ask for her hand in marriage. Travel being tricky throughout quarantine, I never got the chance to ask Johnny for permission prior to our vacation. I thought I'd have a chance at the beginning of our trip but, to my unpleasant surprise, we were struck by a Carolina Nor'easter which resulted in 3 days of being cooped up inside. Finally, I caught him out on the deck smoking a cigar in the middle of the storm. I snuck out to chat and it was a done deal. Step 3 - Propose. The Nor'easter had put a big damper on everyone's attitude. Kelly had been checking the forecast pretty much every hour to see if our luck would change before vacation was over. Finally, at 6:30 am one day, Kelly was ecstatic when she saw the forecast had changed from 60 degrees and storming to a perfect sunny and 75 degrees. Perfect timing? I'd say so. She woke up giddy and texted everyone "IT'S A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE!" I knew today would be the day. Later that afternoon, I rounded up the family for a game of Pizza Box. Several rounds in, I flipped my quarter and wrote "Kelly will you marry me?", grabbed the girl of my dreams, and got down on one knee. To top it all off, my parents came running down from the dunes to surprise everyone! A vacation we will never forget.