The way that we met was one that neither of us expected. While working at Pine Cove over one summer, fate led us to running an activity class together. In between trying to calm screaming children and teach the gospel through field sports, we would throw dodgeballs at each other and not so slyly create more ways to be around each other. Weeks in, the coronavirus swept through camp and took both of us down with it. We ended up having to quarantine together in College Station for 17 days! We kept busy during those days with games, cooking contests, movie marathons, and long drives. By the end, we were going to love each other... or hate each other. Love it was! It was in those moments that we look back at now as the beginning of our incredible journey.

Our proposal story all began at the very beginning of summer 2021. At that time, I was already in the process of buying the engagement ring and planning the details. During that summer, I started to convince Lauren that I was very interested in taking a photography class at A&M during that next school semester. As the engagement date got closer, Charlie, my co-best man, and I went driving around to look at prospective engagement locations. All of a sudden, I had the idea of the engagement site being around where our first date in Dallas took place, the Dallas Arboretum. We drove around the area until we found an outlook point over White Rock Lake and as soon as I saw the view, I knew that it was perfect. Fast forward to the morning of September 4th, Lauren and I woke up early and got ready, dressed to the T. Now, to avoid suspicion of a proposal, my photography class scheme came in. I made Lauren believe that we were going to do a couples photo shoot for an assignment for my “photography class” that I, wink wink, enrolled in. We drove up to the location that I had picked out a couple months prior, and I was expecting to see the blanket and picnic that my mom and Charlie had thoughtfully set up early that morning. Instead, what I saw was a group of 8 older men and women doing Tai Chi in the location where the blanket was supposed to be. In my head, I began to freak out a little as I had no idea where the proposal spot was and I was worried that the whole thing had been ruined. However, we continued to walk over a slight hill and the blanket was there all set up with worship music, food and champagne in front of a perfect view of the lake and the Dallas skyline. At this point, Lauren knew exactly what was happening, and we sat down on the blanket and I read 1st Corinthians 13: 4-13 and told Lauren how much this moment meant to me. Then I got down on one knee and asked her to marry me. That began the start to our forever.