Annie's Side of the Story: I would just like to put it on record that I ALWAYS thought Troy was a good lookin' guy. But, our paths didn't cross until July 3, 2019, so I had to admire from afar. My brother Johnny was helping out at Eggy's Bar, so my parents and I decided to go early that night before things got rowdy and say hi to him. I had a feeling that I was going to see Troy that night, and I still can't explain why or how I knew that. I can only assume that God was working in the mysterious ways that He does, and was nudging me in the direction of my future. We ended up seeing Troy that night, and it was instant fireworks. I had a feeling about him that can only be described as love at first sight. My mom will also tell you that I leaned over to her many times while Troy and my dad were talking to tell her that he was "the one". I knew in my heart that he was the one for me, and I was right! Troy's Side of the Story: It was a lonely Friday night, sitting on the couch. When one of my buddies said, "Hey, let's go over to the Eveleth street dance for a beer." I said "Ehhh, I don't know if I'm feeling up for it." Well, let's just say I decided to go. Fast forward an hour, and I'm sitting in Eggy's Bar having a blue yummy (Budlight), and in walks the one and only Steve "Stevie Mars" Marcella. The legend. Accompanied by his lovely wife, Kathleen. As I go to greet Stevie Mars, I see a cute blonde trailing behind him. It was Annie! As I'm catching up with Steve, I feel this intense stare coming from Annie. I look over and there she is with a twinkle in her bug brown eyes, smiling at me. I don't want to flatter myself too much, but I would say she was eyein' me up. After catching up, we both went on our merry ways, but we couldn't ignore the fireworks that we both felt. And I couldn't ignore how happy I was to have seen her. After a couple too many beers, I finally got up the courage to reach out. And the rest is history.

The moment I realized that Troy really cared for me was very early on in our relationship, the first time he drove to Fargo. It was a late summer afternoon on Friday, I was at a friend's cabin, and Troy was getting ready to go to the Boundary Waters the following day for a bachelor party. I decided to come back a day early from my friend's cabin and JOKINGLY said to him that he should come visit me before he went off the grid. Never in a million years did I think he would actually do it. But, before I knew it, he was in Detroit Lakes. I was in the midst of moving and there were boxes everywhere, but he didn't care. We laid on the living room floor, ate grapes, and talked for hours. He left at 3 AM so he could make it back for the Bachelor party. I think about that night often, and it always reminds me how much I love him!