Although Austin hates to admit it, we met on a dating app. It was the last few days of summer before our final year at UW–Madison, and the world was just starting to open back up after COVID. We were both preparing for one last year of college and the return of in-person classes. We first laid eyes on each other in front of Engineering Hall before walking to get dumplings on state street. Now, if you ask Austin, he’ll tell you he thought the date was going terribly—mostly because I wasn’t saying much and seemed more interested in eavesdropping on everyone around us than actually talking to him. What he didn’t realize then is that’s just kind of my thing. I people-watch. I eavesdrop. I stare. But in that moment, I wasn’t actually lost in other people’s conversations or even tuning him out - I was soaking it all in. I’m naturally quiet, but something about Austin made me feel calm and safe, like I didn’t have to fill every silence. I felt like maybe something was just beginning. So despite barely saying a word, I knew one thing for sure: I didn’t want the date to end. There was something special about him and I couldn’t let him walk away. We ended up walking to my apartment, and the moment we got there, I felt at home with him. To his surprise, I finally opened up and we talked for hours and hours. From that point on, we were inseparable. That fall, we spent nearly every day together -making tacos and only tacos for dinner, playing drinking games on my living room floor with Ally and Nicola, and going on date nights to our favorite Italian spot. It felt easy and fun and like we were building something special. Austin graduated that December and moved back home to start his engineering career, but distance didn’t change much. He was back visiting almost every weekend while I finished up my final semester. After I graduated, I started teaching special education at Milwaukee Public Schools. I moved to Milwaukee, where Austin discovered his love for cats (especially Casper) and we started figuring out adult life - together. In August 2023, we moved into our first apartment, and since then, we’ve been building a life full of love, laughter, family and friends, vacations, pool days and hot tub nights, packer games, reality TV, and Sunday’s spent grocery shopping. Austin proposed in August of 2024 on the beach in front of my family. The moment was captured thanks to my sisters Claire and Ava, doing some dumpster diving in order to remain incognito. We’re saving up for our first home and dreaming about a future filled with family, adventure, and (let’s be honest) more tacos. Thanks for being a part of our story—we’re so excited to celebrate this next chapter with all of you!