In November of 2016 Justin and I met at West End for dinner. I wasn't sure if this was a date date or just a casual catch up from both of our recent running adventures (marathon by me, Ironman by him.) When I didn’t hear back from him afterwards I assumed it was a casual catch up. Fast forward to June of 2021, I had just moved up north to Ottertail Mn, and sure enough I get a message from Justin. We start talking very frequently back and forth, I was surprised at how easy the conversation flowed and it just kept going. When I mentioned I’d be in the cities for a weekend he asked me to brunch, I reluctantly agreed (I thought to myself "I’ve already been on that date.") We met at Hope breakfast in St. Paul, Justin calmed all my nerves right from the start. We had great conversation, a bit of flirty banter and we even shared bites from our meals (mine savory and his sweet.) I remember leaving thinking “that was the best first date I’ve ever had.” Technically second but who’s counting.

As you may know, Christine and I have known each other since High School. Our paths continued to cross and I'm grateful they did. Since our "second first date" our conversations around the future were always discussed with smiles. It was clear very early that she was my love and person I wanted to experience life's ups and downs with. Once we moved in together, the engagement ring planning was in full swing thanks to my dad, Rod, the jeweler. I tried to keep meetings a secret, Disguising them with common themes "Dad, come check out this TV." but Christine was already suspicious. Towards the end of 2022, I received a promotion that would require us to relocate to Charlotte NC by the end of the year. Family & friends have always been a huge part of our lives and it was important that our engagement could be celebrated with everyone we love. Time was ticking to propose before the holidays, but Christine became sick in December giving me a shorter time table to what days I could pop the question. I wasn't going to propose to her as she sat on the couch surrounded by Kleenex running a fever (I knew better). As I was traveling for work I'd have family checking in on her to gauge when she would be back to 100%. Luckily, she turned the corner and we had set a date to enjoy one last night in downtown Minneapolis before our move south. Throughout the morning I would check in with Christine,"How are you feeling?" She'd reply with "Great!". Each reply that was positive made me more excited but also nervous. I had repeated my speech a hundred times during the day and while sleeping. She got ready a lot faster than I expected. Thinking I'd have a bit more time to psych myself up. I planted the seed to take a picture by the Christmas tree before we left. She came down the stairs into the living room in a beautiful merlot dress. I almost forgot my next steps when I saw her, breathtaking. My Shaky hands were finally able to position my phone on the ledge of the cabinet and had her stand next to the tree, then I hit "record". I ran over to Christine, we both smiled ready for a picture, and then I turned to her to share that there was no photo being taken. The words from this point forward got all mixed around. The first three attempts to share how important and special she makes me feel never created a full sentence. But, I finally expressed how happy I would be to share a life with her, we both became misty-eyed. Down on one knee, I didn't mix these words up, I asked her to marry me. I received a yes followed by I love you. Gosh, I love her too :-)