For those of you who don't know how our love story began....we were both in Anna Maria Island, FL, on family vacations in May of 2022. It was a quiet Wednesday night at Island Time Bar and Grill. Ryan was there with his siblings, Conner and Mady, and I was there with my mom (aka Kath). As the guitarist finished playing, a bar fight broke out and our tables got pushed into each other during the chaos. We began a friendly conversation about what brought us to the island and discovered that both our families own condos there! Ryan and I talked, laughed, and flirted for about an hour. One of the first things I noticed and loved about Ryan was his joyful and contagious laugh. We left the bar, boarded the Monkey Bus, and right before Ryan got dropped off, he asked me for my phone number. I didn't hesitate to put my number in his phone. The next few days were filled with chats on the dock, a first kiss, kayaking with manatees, dancing, and a romantic evening walk on the beach. After our first date, Ryan told his family that he had met his future wife. We said our goodbyes and Ryan promised he'd come to Chicago to visit. That summer we talked on the phone every day and visited each other as much as possible. Ryan moved to the Chicago burbs in October and the rest is history!

We went to Anna Maria Island for vacation with family and friends in May of 2023, exactly 1 year from when we met. Ryan made anniversary dinner plans for us at the Bridge Street Bistro which was above Island Time, the bar where we first met. After a tasty and romantic dinner, we went to have drinks and listen to live music at Bridgetender, an outdoor bar by the dock where we had our first date and shared our first kiss. Our song, Here on Out, by Dave Matthews, began playing over the speakers and Ryan asked me to dance on the dock. I was not suspicious at all because Ryan is always so thoughtful and romantic. As we danced, Ryan said he knew he wanted to marry me since our first date on that pier. Ryan got down on one knee, pulled out a ring, and asked me to marry him. I literally jumped with joy and said yes as our families and friends were on another pier across the way watching and cheering. We celebrated by riding the Monkey Bus and doing an island bar crawl.