I love telling everyone that Michael and I actually had our first date sometime in 2012. I still remember the first time that I saw him standing by the doorway of the main entrance of Hospira, Rocky Mount (now Pfizer). It was pouring down rain and a crowd of employees had gathered by the main entrance wondering whether to wait out the weather or take a chance and book it to their vehicles without getting completely soaked. While I was assessing the situation, a guy that was also waiting caught my eye. He was tall and so handsome, I had to stop myself from staring at him to avoid a possible awkward eye-contact situation. I was mainly intrigued because I had been at Hospira long enough to where I pretty much knew everyone around the facility, if not by name at least by sight, and I had NEVER seen this man before. So I did what every inquisitive female would do and I nonchalantly stole a glance at his employee ID badge to figure out what his name was to run back to my office and do some high-level investigating on which department he was in at Hospira. Maybe then I could strategically plan an "unplanned" run-in at the site to create an opportunity for an introduction. This is where the story gets interesting, and I promise you (hand over my heart) that all details given in this description are 100% true without exaggeration. I got back to the office and ran into my boss's office and said, "Dude. You'll never believe who I just saw at Hospira. I met my soulmate." Now, my boss was used to me being a bit extra at times, but never had I ran into his office declaring I had met the love of my life. He looked at me, rolled his eyes and said, "What are you talking about?" So I told him about this guy named Michael Everette that I had seen by the main entrance of Hospira and declared that he was my soulmate and we had to figure out where he worked. We did a little digging and found out that he actually worked 2nd shift as a Supervisor in the Aseptic Production area. My dreams of strategically planning an "unplanned" run-in at the office were crushed. With us working completely different schedules, my chances of running into him were slim-to-none. That was until a few months later... I wasn't a regular in the bar hopping scene of Wilson, but close to where I was living was a small restaurant/bar called Pups. One night, my friends and I decided to go out to Pups to grab a couple drinks and maybe listen to some live music. After being at Pups for a little while, I was standing outside when I happened to glance up and make eye-contact with none other than THE Michael Everette! I immediately dropped my gaze and thought to myself, "OH MY GOSH. HE'S HERE!" Next thing I knew his friend (we're still foggy as to whom this particular friend was that was present at the time of the event) walked up to me and said something to the effect of, "Hey! Do you work at Hospira? My buddy over there said he's seen you before. You should come have a beer with us."...and that's how we first officially met! We exchanged numbers that night at Pups and eventually planned our first date to watch a movie together at his apartment. This is where God's timing came in and, for reasons unknown to us, put a little pause on our timeline. Fastforward to the beginning of 2022, I was back on the "dating scene" and (with some slight reluctance) decided to take a chance using a dating app. I began carelessly swiping through, completely uninterested, until suddenly a familiar face popped up on my phone. I immediately sent a direct message and said, "Is this Michael from Hospira?" Soon after, I got the reply I was hoping for when Michael said, "Is this Dillon? What are you doing on here? Do you still have the same phone number?" I gave him my contact information and we planned our 2nd, 1st date at La Rancherita in Wilson...and we've been pretty much inseparable ever since. To this day I still joke that Michael was waiting for me through all of those years we were apart.

I always wondered what it would feel like to experience the moment in which a man would take a knee in front of me and ask if I would spend the rest of my life with him. Would I cry? Would I be shocked and speechless? I think more so I wondered if I'd ever actually meet a man willing to put up with some of my more "challenging" personality traits that would want to spend the rest of his life with me. I know now that any possible proposal scenario that I could ever come up with in my head wouldn't come close to how perfect the proposal was that Michael planned. Even after being together for over a year, we realized we had never gone on an actual vacation together. So, we decided to take a trip out to the western part of NC over the long July 4th weekend to hopefully escape some of the summer heat and crowds that were heading east to the coast. We decided on Lake Lure after reading some great reviews about the location, and reserved a room at a place called The Lodge on Lake Lure. I had everything planned out...fireworks and dinner/dancing at Lake Lure beach Saturday night, couples' massages scheduled Sunday morning followed by a food tour in downtown Asheville then dinner reservations back at The Lodge, kayaking and trails all day Monday (weather permitting). "You can't plan everything" Michael said. "I may want to plan a couple things while we're there." My spidey senses were tingling a little bit, and I had thought to myself that it would be pretty cool if he did actually propose while we were finally alone on a vacation together. But I was convinced that there was no possible way he'd had the time to get a ring and talk with my parents to get their blessing. Little did I know how much planning was actually going on behind my back the week leading up to our trip! We arrived at The Lodge and immediately started unpacking our bags to get acclimated before taking a walk down to the lake to see the views. I started looking at some of the snacks and goodies provided in our room while also looking over the dinner menu to see what the dinner options were for the following night when Michael gently grabbed my hand and said, "Dillon, will you please put that down and listen to me for a minute." Embarassed, I had no idea that he'd been trying to get my attention, so I put the menu down and turned to face him to give him my undivided attention. That's when I noticed him reaching into his pocket...him dropping to his knee...the words coming out of his mouth became more real and all of the individual details going on around me started clicking into place in my head when I realized what was actually happening in that moment. The overwhelming feeling that came over me is something I never would have been able to comprehend in my past years of attempting to imagine what this moment would be like. When I heard the words "Will you marry me?", the joy and happiness and love that ran through me simultaneously had me crying and shaking all at once. I was shocked that I was finally receiving the blessing of this beautiful proposal, but I was also so thankful and overwhelmed with joy that Michael was the one knelt down before me. But, like I had said 10 years ago...I knew he was my soulmate all along. :) It took me a couple of minutes to compose myself and finally give Michael my definite answer of "YES!" and after that, all plans I had for the remaining part of Day 1 were thrown out the window. All we wanted to do was to sit and soak in this beautiful moment together, so that's what we did, and then we were able to enjoy the rest of our vacation starting the next chapter of our lives together. We're so excited to celebrate this next chapter of our lives with you! Can't wait to see you in friendly Kenly! :)