August 2016 I was working at a convenience store in Blanchardville, WI. That's where it all started. Once our eyes met, we began the 'smiling from afar' stage. This went on for weeks but neither of us had the courage to say a word. Soon, I stopped working there. A couple of weeks went by, then I received a message on Facebook out of the blue. It was him. He was wondering where I had been since he had not seen me around anymore. (Oh.... so you DID notice me!). It wasn't long before we hung out for the first time. After that we were inseparable, and have been ever since. We became an official couple at the end of November that same year.

I couldn't tell you what I did that day, or what the weather was like. I don't have some big extravagant story to tell, because, well, that's just not us. The story of how Preston proposed is a genuine and romantic one. One that I will never forget. The evening fell, I had put Bohden to sleep for the night and came back to the living room to sit and relax before bedtime. Not much time passed and Preston kept bringing up how tired he was. I remember thinking how weird it was because it was really early, like before 9pm. He kept asking if I was ready for bed yet. Not really, but I was tired so I gave in. As we were doing our nightly before-bed routine, we were having a mundane conversation. It abruptly stopped. He literally just stopped talking mid-sentence. I thought, "Man, he's being so weird tonight. What the heck? Must've just had a bad day and wants to go to sleep." Eventually we both made it upstairs. He went to the bathroom while I hobbled over to my side of the bed, 5 months pregnant. I noticed a huge white paper with the words, "Be Mine Forever?" on it. Then I saw the little black box. I was in shock. I just remember squealing and repeatedly saying, "Are you serious?". I looked up and he was standing in the doorway. He was grinning ear to ear and also starting to tear up. I started to cry and said it one more time, "Are you serious?" I just couldn't believe it. He could barely talk but managed to get out, "So, will you?" as he walked over to me. Both of us crying now, I shook my head yes and said, "of course!" It was perfect. It was intimate. And now every night I go to bed, I get to remember it was right here when he chose me. Forever.