It was a date neither of us expected. We started the day adventurous - rock climbing, wakeboarding, horseback riding, and then transpired into casual yet deep conversations of our past, present, and dreams as we watched the skies taper into twilight.

The day had come when Ken had to leave for the United States. It was bittersweet. Bitter because we did not know how long we were going to be thousands of miles apart. Sweet because this needed to happen for our dreams to come true.

Finally in each other's arms after 11 months! I drove 4 hours+ from New Hampton, IA that night to Sioux Falls Regional Airport. I was super excited to finally see my girl! Her smell, her hug, her voice, everything I expected to feel was even more in reality. (Ken)

Ken had everything planned out months prior without Rio's knowledge. It was a beautiful Saturday morning. Everything fell into place - the fine snowy and sunny weather made it even more dreamy at Foster Park. Because I always joked about how I wanted to be proposed to in Paris, he had to improvise and brought the Eiffel Tower to me instead. He knelt down on one knee under the lacy white gazebo in Le Mars.

We usually average around 180-200 minutes almost everyday just talking to each other over the phone. Some days it's more! <3