We were just a pair of dorky 8th graders who had similar classes. We actually didn't share a class until Senior year in high school. We went to prom together, but still, nothing more than friendship seemed to blossom. Over the summer after graduation, we hung out a lot with the intention of staying friends through college. He went to Carnegie Mellon in Pennsylvania and I worked for a year before starting at Berry College in Georgia. We would often Skype or text and he would tell me all about his college adventures. We saw each other over summer breaks and we FINALLY went out on our first date on 08/08/2011. We dated for almost 2 years, but distance took a toll on us and we went our separate ways. A couple years later, we reunited over FaceTime! And the rest as you say, is history.

I love Christmas. Our Christmas tree was up 2 weeks before Thanksgiving and I knew it would be the last one down. This year, we went to visit family in Georgia for the holidays. We had been back home for 2 weeks now and had yet to take it down. I kept coming up with excuses for why I didn't want to pack it up just yet, saying we didn't have boxes or enough paper or something was more important than chores, etc. Finally, halfway through January, Taylor decided, today is the day to take down the tree! It was a typical Saturday morning: Taylor made my favorite gluten-free pancakes and coffee. After breakfast, we put on some music to work with. We took our time gathering the boxes, tape and wrapping paper and quickly began the process. We were almost done packing up all the ornaments, when Taylor turns around and says, "Wait, I think we forgot an ornament? Remember the pickle?" to which I replied, "Oh yeah! The Christmas pickle!" I knew he had hidden it so it was up to me to find it. I looked all around the naked tree and reached for something shiny. I was surprised to hear a clink when I touched it. I went around the front to get a better angle and reached for it. To my surprise, I also grabbed another thing. My first thought when I looked at it was "When did we get a ring ornament?". I didn't even process what it was until I looked over at Taylor as he was taking the string off of the ring and getting down on one knee. I started crying as he reached for my hand and asked me if I would marry him. Of course, I said yes!