We're Getting Married!

St. Mary's restrictions as a result of COVID-19 have changed regarding the wedding ceremony. Previously, and as included in the invitations, only family was allowed to attend the ceremony. Recently, these restrictions lifted and everyone is now welcome to attend the wedding ceremony. If you received an invitation, please join us for both the wedding ceremony and reception. Unfortunately, the Radisson is still at 75% capacity. Due to this, we had to limit our guest list to fewer than we had originally planned. If you did not receive an invitation, we are truly sorry and we appreciate your understanding. We hope you will still celebrate with us from a distance. Lastly, in light of COVID-19, we completely understand if you are no longer able to attend. As always, your health and safety are our top priority. We look forward to celebrating, in person or from a distance, with each and every one of you!

Ryan and I first met at NDSU our freshman year. Ryan was living in the dorm rooms with a friend of mine, Stephen. Stephen invited my friend and I out to eat with him and his friends. I went over to meet Stephen at his dorm, when I first met Ryan. Ryan and I had an instant connection. We sat by each other during supper and continued to hang out and get to know the other as the night went on. After that night, we became almost inseparable as it would be just under 90 days before Ryan and I went a day without seeing each other. Before meeting each other, both Ryan and I would have agreed that we'd be the first to knock the whole "love at first sight," but after that night I think a part of us both knew we were each other's forever.

Our engagement story is my favorite, not just because it's ours, but because of Ryan's creativity and my complete surprise. Ryan's brother, JT, had come up for the weekend to go ice fishing with us. Sunday morning, JT got up earlier than us and headed out to the lake. I thought it was weird he went without us, but I chalked it up to, "Man, he really must've wanted to catch some fish." Ryan and I slept in a little longer and then got up to get ready for the day. We were planning on going straight to Ryan's little cousin's birthday party after fishing, so I put myself together a little more than I would've if we were just going fishing. We got out to the lake and I went into the ice house. The ice house has a large spear fishing hole in the middle of it. I looked down into the hole to see if there were any fish, but to my surprise, I saw something entirely different. In the hole, at the bottom of the lake were the words "Will you Marry Me?" I turned around to see Ryan down on one knee. I obviously didn't hesitate to say YES to spending forever with Ryan. JT captured the whole moment on video and took amazing photographs we will be able to look back on for years to come.