We're getting married!

After graduating from Columbia, I realized that it was my "now or never" moment to follow my dreams of living in Austin for a year, but here I was fresh out of grad school, newly single, and not knowing anyone besides my family. So, I decided to put myself out there by signing up for Tinder and telling myself that a date would "just be a drink, some good conversation, and a chance to get out of my apartment." After swiping right on Shane, he started the conversation, but in my opinion, was taking way too long to ask me on a date. His profile mentioned that he both worked and went to school full time, but would always be down for a whiskey drink. So, eventually, I asked him when he was going to ask me out for that drink. From there, he planned our first date at Seven Grand that following Saturday... 11/11/2017. Our one whiskey drink turned into three, which turned into Maker's Mark shots on dirty 6th, which turned into late night pizza, and by the end of the night, I was inviting him to dinner at my place. He may have disliked my homemade chicken piccata dinner that following night (which I only learned he didn't like a year later...), but he continued to show up in every way possible for Finny and I each day since. It has now been almost six years together, and since that first date we have moved into three different apartments, survived the pandemic quarantines, celebrated Shane's college graduation, started new jobs & careers, bought our first home, road tripped across the country 4 times with Finny, and supported one another through it all. Never could I have imagined that my first and only online date would turn my "one year in Austin" into building a life here with the man of my dreams. We cannot wait to take these next steps together & to celebrate with y'all in November!

So, let me start my story a little bit before I met Ally... Coming out of my own breakup, I was intent on refocusing my efforts personally (reconnecting with friends), academically (continuing to pursue my BS in engineering), and personally (including a serendipitous Tinder profile). My start to online dating though was not exactly as smooth as hers, as I found myself unable to connect with any of the girls I met, and maybe also being catfished that one time. Thankfully, when I met Ally for the first time she actually looked like her profile pictures. From that very first date, I knew that our connection was unlike anything that came before it. Before we even met, our conversations were filled with laughter, honesty, depth, and an undeniable chemistry. It didn't take long for me to realize that she was the one... along with Finn too, of course. Astonishingly, it was not Ally's weekly (and at times daily) inquiries on when we were going to get engaged that made this day happen - I have been planning my proposal to her since that very first year. I went through what felt like countless ideas as we started to build our lives together; traveling the country, growing our careers, buying a home, and booking a wedding venue (true story... this happened even before the proposal lol. Ally's nothing if not preprepared). In the end, I settled on surprising her at Sekrit theater, where her best friends and Finny were in the wings to capture it all. Life with Ally and Finn has been more than I could have ever imagined for myself. No matter what is to come for us, I am looking forward to standing by her side through it all. Cheers to celebrating our wedding in November! We cannot wait to see y'all there.