We’re getting married

Abbey and I first met 5 years ago while she was in her undergraduate degree and I was working towards my graduate degree at ORU. There were several times when we talked, but since I was much older and technically her boss at the time it nothing more than talking as friends. Flash forward to summer 2022, Abbey came out to play volleyball at the University I work at and actually got hired for the same position that I worked. I thought it was really cool and knew she was a hard worker but I had no idea what God had in store for us. At the end of July, I decided I wanted to get myself a puppy since I have wanted one for a very long time. At that time I ended up getting Ace my Australian Shepherd! We came to our first staff meeting at work and I found out Abbey had an Australian Shepherd as well. When she caught wind that I had Ace she was so adamant about us walking them together after work. This turned into a routine where we would take them out on walks, talk about life, and what dreams and aspirations we had. I guess you could say our dogs were the best wing dogs that life could offer because here we are getting MARRIED! As we continued to walk our dogs I started thinking to myself, "you know Abbey has many great qualities maybe I should really start thinking about if I could see us being together." Clearly the answer was yes because once I started developing feelings for her I started a relentless pursuit. Abbey will tell you many times that I would use my dog to get my foot in the door and talk with her for several hours. She finally started feeling the same way eventually, and through our friends I finally mustered the courage to put it all out on the table. That was the big moment for me. I haven't had the easiest time with past relationships so there was fear of what she would think. However, that night when I told her that I really really REALLY like her she then told me that she felt the same way. What a relief that was! Especially because she was also my coworker. There were some hesitations, but I knew deep down that since we were both mature adults that we could handle a falling out if that happened (I knew that definitely wasn't going to happen by the way lol). After very real and reassuring conversations, we prayed about it we decided to pursue a relationship with one another. The way I asked her to be my girlfriend, was by taking her to the Philbrook Museum. We walked around for a good long while and then when it came time to ask her to be my girlfriend I stumbled over my words and said would you go out with me... BIG OOF. She laughed and told me to try again, and I re-asked if she would be my girlfriend. Through this relationship we found that we have many similarities and many differences but through all of this we found a steady love that will last. We have our dogs and many friends as well as God to thank for bringing us together in such a unique way! Thank you for taking the time to read some of our love story and we are excited to share this special day with you! - Taylor Smithson

Taylor switched up date night on me, so I suspected that it might be the big day.. But then Mykaela managed to throw me off his tracks by dropping hints the other direction. We still got all dressed up to go eat and I put a little extra makeup on just in case. Once we left the driveway my mom texted me and asked me to come home and pick up something my sister sent me for my birthday. I told Taylor and he immediately agreed to going, I put up a little bit of a fight but then conceded to going to the house before dinner. On the way I played all of my favorite love songs because I knew this was it. Taylor was so nervous and I could tell because his hands were super sweaty. When we got to the house he sprinted to open the gate, shut the gate, and get me out of the car. He said, "let's take a walk." As we walked out into the field I could already see the glowing lanterns under my favorite childhood tree. I had always dreamed of getting married under this tree. When we reached the tree I saw the stunning setup and I couldn't stop smiling. Taylor asked me to stand in the heart shaped out of tea lights and I made a joke about it being like Love Island (Sorry Taylor). I was admiring the pictures and lights when Taylor said, "oh look!" and Ollie came trotting up to us with a balloon tied to his harness. It was the CUTEST thing I have ever seen in my entire life no joke. He came right over to us and then Taylor bent down and untied a card that was also attached to the harness. He told me read the card, and it was full of his sweet and loving sentiments. He later told me he wrote it because he knew that I wouldn't remember anything that he said when he proposed, and he was sooo right. After I read the card he look my hands and said, heck I don't know what he said, but he proposed! He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. Of course I said yes and I could hardly see the ring because of the tears of joy. After that to my delight my sweet friends and family ran out from their hiding spot to congratulate us. It was absolutely perfect, every single detail. Yes maybe Ollie's balloon covered Taylor in all of the proposal photos, but I wouldn't change it for the world. This was the best night of my life so far and I can't wait to top it! - Abigail Fernandez