“We’re tying the knot!”

It was the summer of 2003. I had just finished playing a softball game with friends when we decided we wanted to go to happy hour. One of the girls on my team told me she knew a good-looking guy that works at Salt Grass that she wanted me to meet. So, I obliged. I was still in my softball gear, so I wasn't ready to make any kind of impression, but nobody cared at that time. At least I smelled good. :-) So, we arrived, and my friend had introduced me to Chad who was working behind the bar that night, but I was of course extremely bashful so really didn't get much past "hello". But Chad made the introduction very comfortable and was such a gentleman as he still is. From the moment we laid eyes on each other, we knew we were destined to be together and talked about our 5- and 10-year plans. We ended up chatting for the remainder of the night and exchanged numbers, which back then was NOT a smart phone. It was the pay by the minutes YIPPEE! For the following 12 months, we dated and were in a committed relationship even amongst the busy part of our lives. I was enrolled in online college courses, worked two jobs and Chad worked a lot too. It took nearly a year to realize that there were two people on the periphery of their lives who might just be perfect for each other. We were both only 30 years old. But then life happens, and we needed to explore more of life in different places, even though we still loved each other deeply. We decided that we both needed to mature and grow and were unable to continue our relationship after Chad moved away, like all the way to Arizona for his daughter, who was 6 years old at the time. I had to take care of my son, who was 10 years old at the time. Both of these things took precedence over our relationship back then. We were parents first. We had to both fulfill that duty for the best interest of our children. Fast forward 21 years later, it was on January 15, 2024, which is Stephanie’s birthday. Chad sent her a birthday message on Facebook out of the blue and to quite my surprise. I was extremely surprised to hear from him and even more excited that God had given us this opportunity to rekindle our love story. God is so good, all the time! After all of those years, we STILL loved each other, even though we explored other relationships, we still had this deep love between us that nobody could take away. That periphery was proven, we really are in love! We all know the old saying, "If the bird flies away and comes back, then it was meant to be". Look at us now! At the time, Chad was living in Las Vegas. Over a couple of months, they knew it was time to be closer and Chad decided he wanted to move back to Texas to be with the love of his life because if you know Stephanie, she is not leaving Texas again! As the clouds parted and the sun beamed on a cold February day in 2024, Chad booked Stephanie a plane ticket and then it was VIVA LAS VEGAS! I had never been to Vegas in my entire life until that day. It was the neatest experience ever. I had my 6-hour fix, and that was it for me. I was ready to leave. It is a beautiful place though. We drove 18 hours straight with no breaks from Vegas to Mckinney, Texas. We saw the sun go down and rise all in the same 24 hours. That’s true love! After 6 months of dating, Chad was ready to make his move. He had discussed his plans with my kids and after getting their blessing, he planned the engagement. We got engaged by the Chapel at Adraitica in McKinney which is such a gorgeous place, and it was right before sunset on the Sunday afternoon of July 23, 2024. We were just walking down the sidewalk taking in the fresh air, with my teenagers and dogs in tow, when Chad he got on one knee and asked for my hand in marriage. I said YES of course! We could not be more thrilled for this next chapter of our lives to begin and are so excited to celebrate our love with family and friends on 9/27/2025.