In 2023, Xavier and I technically met for the first time at the gym where I was working. He came in to sign up for a membership, and I immediately thought "this is my gym crush." He must have been a little shy, though, because it took a very modern approach, matching on Hinge, before we actually planned our first date. Xay responded to my prompt about guilty pleasure songs with “anything from The Cheetah Girls 2,” which instantly earned him major points. Our first date was mini golf at Hinkle. He technically won, but I won the hole that mattered most. The one where a whole family was watching. From there, we got along effortlessly and started seeing each other all the time. I knew I liked Xavier when he knew all the moves to “We’re All In This Together” from High School Musical (my favorite childhood movie). He knew he liked me when we kicked a soccer ball around at the park—I cheered and danced growing up, and rumor has it Xay’s shins may still be bruised. It didn’t take long for us to realize how comfortable we were together. Nothing ever felt forced, and we always had fun just being ourselves. Now, more than two years later, I truly feel like the luckiest woman in the world—and I can’t wait to marry him.

I secretly bought the ring on July 7th, 2025 with her sisters and my family. Despite having the ring, I did not propose until October 6th, so that my family could be there and celebrate the day with us. The plan was to pretend like I went to work while I actually went to pick my parents up from the airport. I told her that we had a dinner for my job that night, and we needed to dress up. The plan was perfect—until the day of the proposal. Valerie's sister Kaylee, went into labor and Valerie wanted to help Julia watch Camila. Luckily for me, Julia is a trooper and told Valerie that she didn't need any help and to go the "dinner" with me anyway. I took Valerie to the park where her friend Jas, set up a picnic area for us and took pictures of that special moment! Afterwards, I took her to her parents' house, where we had all of her family waiting to celebrate her as a surprise. Not only that, my family surprised her too! It was the best day of my life...so far.