Brad and Molly first met in Europe in May of 2016. Molly was on a backpacking trip with friends after graduating college, visiting her friend Hannah, who had moved to Prague earlier that year. Coincidentally, Brad was also backpacking through Europe with his friend Michael, who knew Hannah from Iowa State. The two groups briefly met for dinner in Prague, though Molly and Brad did not talk much—other than Molly ordering water and Brad pointing out that a beer would have been cheaper. After dinner, the groups went their separate ways to continue their travels. A few days later, Michael contacted Hannah while he and Brad were in Rome, asking if they could join the girls in Naples to visit the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii. The girls agreed, hoping to make a little money from the boys by letting them stay at their Airbnb (unbeknownst to the guys, who thought they would be saving money by staying for free) Oops! When Brad arrived at the Airbnb, he was wearing a fedora and proudly boasting about a 2-euro bottle of wine he had brought with him, offering to share, of course! Although the trip created great memories, no sparks flew between Molly and Brad at the time. In February of 2017, Molly and Brad reconnected when Molly was visiting Ames. Brad invited Molly to his upcoming ROTC military ball at the end of March. Molly wasn’t sure if he was serious, so she told him to ask again in two weeks, giving her time to order a dress. Brad insisted he was serious, so after two weeks, Molly bought her dress. From that point on, Molly and Brad began the long-distance relationship of a lifetime. Molly was in graduate school in Cedar Rapids, while Brad was finishing his last year at Iowa State. That summer, Brad moved to Kansas City to begin working as a chemical engineer. In August of 2018, Molly graduated from graduate school and started practicing in Des Moines, while Brad moved to Fort Rucker, Alabama, to begin military flight school. He graduated flight school in December of 2019, only to learn that he would be deploying to Iraq in January 2020. Despite the challenges, Molly and Brad were committed to one another and endured the deployment. Brad returned home in November, and after over three and a half years, they were finally able to begin their life together. As the saying goes, love truly is patient. Since then, Molly and Brad have navigated career changes, traveled on countless amazing trips, and most importantly, became parents to their Golden Retriever, Marjorie. In December of 2024, Brad planned the perfect proposal on the rooftop of the Four Seasons in Minneapolis, and wedding planning began!