Our families have known each other forever, and we were reintroduced through work in the spring of 2020! Corey scheduled a lunch program at my office. The day prior, he contacted me and asked, “So, I know I’m bringing lunch to your office tomorrow, but how about dinner?” I think I surprised him by saying Yes, since we’d been chatting for a few weeks and I had told him I wasn’t ready to date. We decided to call it “It’s just dinner” and made a plan. When he arrived for the lunch meeting, there was a lot of flirting happening, and my team quickly picked up on it. We enjoyed a group lunch, and my staff promptly cleaned up and went to the back office leaving the two of us alone to visit (definitely not your typical rep lunch program!). Later on, Mom commented about the flirting and that Corey didn’t talk about pharmaceuticals much! We enjoyed dinner together at Basil that evening, followed by Dairy Queen blizzards. Because with Corey, dessert is always part of the meal (and I’m not complaining)!

Corey convinced Camille Clausen to come out of retirement and do a couple’s photo shoot for my Christmas gift! We had the best time laughing and sharing our story. Three sites were important: The colorful peacock mural at Esprit; Snowden Bridge; and the Fairview Pool. Special arrangements had to be made to get the pool time. Ask us about the significance of the three sites! On the drive out to the bridge, Camille asked to hear our story. I told her I knew the moment he stole my heart: we were on top of the rims overlooking Billings after our first date night in Billings, and Corey asked me to officially be his girlfriend. He proceeded to share his vision for us. During our time in the car with Camille for the photo shoot, he was vulnerable enough {BRAVE} to read it aloud, sharing it again with me for Camille to hear. Needless to say, there were tears and exclamations of joy!

He really surprised me! Looking back, I recall him saying, “I just want it to be a perfect day.” He didn’t seem nervous at all. We settled into the hotel (Hilton Molino Stucky Venice), then set off to explore Venice. We toured some amazing architectural and historical sites and enjoyed each other’s company. We took a gondola ride and walked around all day, holding hands. We had an amazing candlelit dinner at Aromi Restaurant. We were waiting for dessert. Corey handed me a piece of paper. “I wrote you a poem, well actually it’s song lyrics…” Corey had written out a verse of “Til You Can’t” by Cody Johnson. At the bottom of the paper I was instructed to turn it over. The back read, “Look up…at me.” And when I did, he was there with an open ring box (Sugarplum Fine Jewelry - my favorite). I could only see kindness, sincerity, and so much love in his eyes. He said, “I want it to be more than just dinner. I love you, Michelle. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?” I mean, it was something like that! Super romantic and I was swooning and couldn’t believe it was happening! Corey tells me I said, “Yes, a thousand times yes!” I believe him! I was quite impressed he pulled off a surprise like this, especially considering he spoke to my dad and three daughters to ask permission in advance, and they all kept the secret! We had the trip of a lifetime including a cruise with dear friends and enjoyed our time (and all the food, coffee, and gelato) in Venice, Split, Bari, Corfu, Messina, Naples, Rome.

Just us & our kids in Paradise Valley 💍🤍