Well, settle in with a coffee for this read because our story takes many twists and turns! When I look back, it’s funny how long our story has been unfolding without us even realizing it! Ty and I go way back to 4th grade at Chapel Hill Academy. His family had just moved from Poland to Minnesota, and we became fast friends (with a little elementary school crush sprinkled in too). In middle school, we were the kind of “friends” who texted constantly, especially once we got our first phones (which I’m sure our parents loved). We still laugh thinking about how much we would text each other while we were on family vacations. We also had several random pairings as lab partners throughout middle school, where we pretended we didn’t like each other (and of course I still have all of our science projects we did together). In high school, we stayed close friends within our bigger friend group, but we dated other people. At the end of high school, during the peak of COVID, Ty and I decided to give dating a try. Unfortunately for us, the “social distancing enforcers” (also known as our parents) were not messing around. Their guidelines were clear: 6 feet apart, and preferably outside…even in the middle of a Minnesota winter. So yes, some of our earliest “dating” memories are us bundled up watching movies outside in lawn chairs…in the snow. We also made a lot of snowmen together, and somehow those freezing nights outside are still some of our favorite memories. Eventually, during a COVID lull, we finally got to have our official “first date” and went to Big Bowl. That summer was so sweet and was full of boating, cabin trips, and spending time with family. Ty and I started college together at the U of M, and we made up for all the time we couldn’t spend together in person. We did our online classes together, went to college ministry with our sweet group of friends, and ate way too much Chipotle and Noodles (because dorm food during COVID was…rough). At the start of our sophomore year, though, we broke up and went our separate ways. At the time, we had different visions of what life looked like, but we both knew we still loved each other. Because our college friend group was important to both of us, we had a civil friendship and saw each other on and off throughout college. (Our college apartment units also had living room windows directly across from each other, which we originally thought would be so fun and Friends-like… but ended up being slightly less ideal in a breakup situation.) Then…after 3.5 years apart (now officially coined “the blip”), we reconnected at a Halloween party. We caught up casually until a little driving miscommunication happened at the end of the night. Long story short, we ended up driving home together, and what should have been a short ride turned into a several-hours-long conversation about where life had taken us and where we both hoped to go next. We decided to start chatting again, and we prayed about whether we should enter back into a relationship. Ultimately, we decided to give it a try, and we’re both so grateful we did. In a true full circle moment, we decided to have our second first date at Big Bowl. This last year of dating has been such a gift. We got to know each other again in a completely new season of life, had many long conversations about what our future could look like together, and eventually realized we truly couldn’t picture life without each other. So, on December 13th, 2025, in my backyard with an elaborate Christmas light background, in below zero weather, Ty got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. And I, of course, said YES. We are so excited for this sweet season of engagement and even more excited to begin our marriage surrounded by so much love and support from all of our favorite people. We can’t wait to celebrate with you at our wedding!