we're getting married!

Tatum and Dawson met on November 10th, 2023 at Winstar World Casino in true Oklahoma fashion. No, they did not lock eyes across the poker table or try to sit down at the same slot machine.... Instead, Macy and Clay Atwood (Tatum's cousin and Dawson's high school friend that are now married) decided they needed to meet. Tatum and Macy were headed to a Leon Bridges concert and Clay "conveniently" invited a friend to hang out with while the girls went to the concert. A dinner and a lost valet ticket later, Tatum and Dawson had chatted and shared mutual interest in each other. When Dawson reached out later that weekend to ask Tatum on an official date, she was quick to say yes.

After meeting at Winstar, Dawson asked Tatum on a first date and he traveled from Stillwater, Oklahoma to Fort Worth, Texas for it! Tatum PACKED the weekend full of all her favorite Fort Worth activities and restaurants (check out the "Fort Worth Favorite" tab to learn more about these places). Throughout that weekend, they went to the Fort Worth Zoo, the Rooftop Cinema Club, and the Botanical Gardens. After church on Sunday, Dawson headed back to Stillwater, Tatum stayed in Fort Worth and they were both pretty certain they had just met their forevers.

Since the first date, Tatum and Dawson have filled their time exploring Fort Worth, traveling to spend time with family, playing pickleball, fishing and playing lots and lots of card games. As Valentines Day weekend 2025 approached, Tatum was getting ready for Dawson to take her to the Rose Exhibit at the Botanical Gardens and a nice dinner in the Stockyards. The morning of the 15th, Tatum woke up to a card, flowers, donuts and coffee at her door. Tatum and Dawson spent the day playing card games and going on a walk. The small inkling she had that today was the day she would be getting engaged was gone because of how chill and nonchalant Dawson was all day. What really sealed the deal was when she started to get ready for the Botanical Gardens and made an offhanded comment about not wanting to wear makeup. Dawson's response to that was "If you don't want to wear makeup, you don't have to!" Tatum thought, there is NO way he would propose to me without making sure I was all fixed up. Fast forward a couple of hours as they were walking through the Gardens (Tatum with her makeup on), Dawson got down on one knee and asked her the easiest question of her life! After the proposal, they celebrated with friends and family at a surprise engagement party!