Alex and I are both from Mandeville, LA and attended Mandeville High School. Alex was a year older than me and all I knew of him was that he played basketball and had a great reputation. We certainly did not run in the same circles. I spent my afternoons and weekends rehearsing for musicals and attending theatre conferences. Alex spend his time before and after school running basketball plays and practicing his free throws. My junior year, Alex's senior year, we found ourselves at the same house before prom; eating dinner and taking pictures. Apparently our moms met this night too and realized all the mutual friends they had in common from growing up in New Orleans. The two exchanged conversations for enough time to uncover that Alex and I's brothers attended MHS at the same time. Apparently we had more in common than we would have ever thought! Alex and I always laugh and say that we would have never worked out if we had dated in high school. High school Maddie wasn’t ready for someone as wise, mature, and gracious as Alex. Grad-school Alex claims that his high school self wouldn't have been ready to date me either. It's a blessing that we weren't interested in each other then because now he's my fiancé and I consider myself the luckiest girl in the world!

If you read the “Before We Met!” section, you learned that Alex & I went to high school together. We always say we would’ve never worked out if we dated in high school. My freshman year, still fresh on campus, I never skipped a class. Tues./Thurs. from 3:00-4:30 pm is ideal for hanging out, napping, & anything other than BIOL 1001. Alex, being a sophomore with a little more experience, often chose to spend his afternoons doing other things. I still make fun of him because I remember him saying, “That’s the only time I can go work out.” That’s not something I can picture grad student Alex saying. When the professor asked for an attendance code to make sure we were present during lecture, Alex knew he could count on me. Did I give it to him? Of course! When an older boy with a great reputation asks, always say yes! Our texts shifted from questions about BIOL 1001 to Alex asking to “hang out,” which we later stamped as our first date! We went to the secret subway on campus where I bought our lunch with Paw Points. We headed to the Music and Dramatic Arts building where we found an open practice room with a piano. Trying to sound confident, I told Alex I’d previously taught myself a song or two. He asked me to show him what I knew. Wanting to impress him, I played the intro to “Rolling in the Deep.” By intro I mean I only played the first 15 seconds of the song! Alex politely asked if I knew any other songs. Embarrassed, I said no. Alex said he used to play in high school. Before I knew it, his fingers were dancing along the keyboard playing classics from Mozart to modern hits from Bruno Mars. I was blown away & absolutely mortified that he would let me play my 15 seconds of Adele! Nothing has changed. He never stops encouraging me & loving me even when he plays some of the most famous songs & I can barely stumble through an intro. I’m extremely grateful for that day at Subway & MDA!

We spent summer 2018 apart like many summers before. With Alex abroad for 8 weeks & me in San Diego for 3 months, we were lucky if we found time to email each other. Being apart was tough, but it sparked conversations about what was next. By the end of the summer, we decided we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. Alex told me that he'd talk to my parents & that the rest was to be a surprise. Excited about the future, I waited... & waited... & WAITED for what felt like forever! For 3 months, I poked & prodded for any resolution from our July conversation. When would he propose?! FINALLY it came! A week before, our dear friend Louie texted us & asked us to get dinner. As the week flew by, my suspicion grew. Picking up on my suspicion, Alex shot me a text saying he'd like to take pictures at the Botanical Gardens early the next week. I was completely thrown off... Saturday rolled around & it was time for dinner with Louie. We pulled up to the restaurant, & right on cue, Louie called! He said he had a flat tire & would be late. Alex quickly pulled up the GPS & directed us to a nearby lake where he said he would give me my birthday present. As we walked up, Alex commented about how beautiful the ducks were; except, there were no ducks... His nerves got the best of him because he quickly filled the silence with "Quack, quack!" Still puzzled, we sat down & he pulled out several letters from the people in my life who mean the most to me. Before I even opened the first letter I began to cry tears of gratitude. His letter was last. At the end of the letter, he had written, "Maddie, from all we've been through and who you are as a person, nothing would make me more joyful than to spend the rest of my life with you." I blinked really hard to be sure what I was reading was real, & before I knew it he was down on one knee! How did I respond? With a bear hug & a tackle! I didn't even let him finish. He looked at me puzzled, I finally said yes, & the rest is history!