we're getting married!

In early May of 2023, Brooke was out to dinner with some friends at Mas Tequila in West Fargo. They’d eaten supper, sipped a few margaritas, and were swapping stories when Brooke shared a past blind date experience and declared she would never do that again. Cue her friend Chan, who smirked and said, “Brooke, I have someone you should talk to.” Brooke rolled her eyes and asked, “Who is it?” Chan replied, “Aaron Wiese.” After a moment of hesitation, Brooke agreed to let Chan give Aaron her number. At 6:02 p.m., Brooke got a text from an unknown number that read: “Hey Brooke. This is Aaron. Chan gave me your number. What’s up?” Four hours later, Brooke decided to give him the satisfaction of a reply. Aaron responded immediately - and continued to do so for days, even while Brooke was in full “hard-to-get” mode. Despite the slow start, the two kept chatting and getting to know each other, and sparks began to fly. On June 10th, Brooke was at the Chokio Community Picnic street dance when she spotted Aaron across the parking lot. Did she go say hi? Absolutely not. Instead, she avoided him - until they both ended up on the dance floor. Fueled by a few too many drinks and a little encouragement from Aaron’s friend, Brooke grabbed Aaron’s face and kissed him. Subtle? Never. The next weekend, Brooke made the drive from Fargo to Kensington for another small-town celebration - and more importantly, to see the redhead she couldn’t stop thinking about. A few weeks later, on July 8th, Brooke made her first appearance at Wendell Days. She met Aaron’s sister Taylor (now one of her closest friends) and was introduced to Aaron’s dad by Chan with the words: “Tim, this is your future daughter-in-law, Brooke.” On July 14th, Aaron and his friend Brock came to Fargo. After tacos and tequila, Brooke finally asked, “Well, are you going to ask me to be your girlfriend or not?” It may not have been the most traditional ask, but just after midnight on July 15th, they made it official. From there, it was full speed ahead. The following weekend, Brooke brought Aaron to her niece Macy’s first birthday party - where he met nearly her entire family in one night (and still hasn’t quite forgiven her). Over the next year and a half, they spent nearly every weekend and holiday together, FaceTimed each night apart, and counted down the days until they could be together again. In early 2025, Brooke left her job in Fargo for a new role in Barrett, MN. By June, she had officially moved to Grant County - rekindling her love for farm life, joining a golf league, starting a garden, and turning Aaron’s farmhouse into their home. Marriage had been a regular conversation. They were so sure of one another that they even booked their wedding venue in September 2025 - over six months before getting engaged. As they watched friends and siblings get engaged and married, Brooke grew increasingly impatient. Finally, on March 29th, 2026, Aaron popped the question in the most perfect way. After dropping a few hints (ensuring Brooke’s nails were done), he told her to get ready to go out for supper, and they were "leaving at 5:00". When they got in the car, he took her to his hunting land - a place full of memories for them both. On the bridge, Aaron got down on one knee and asked Brooke to spend the rest of their lives together. Their neighbor, Liz, was head-to-toe in camo hidden in the cattails with her camera capturing the moment, and it was perfect in every way. And of course, she said yes. In true Brooke & Aaron fashion, they wrapped up the night with a suuuuper romantic supper at The Melby Outpost to celebrate. Still, to this day, Aaron refuses to give Chan the satisfaction of admitting he was the one who set us up. But he was - and we’ll forever be grateful he did. So, Chan, if you're reading this… thank you. :)