Our Story
When We First Met
Justin and Jennifer first met in the summer of 2012 while training at the same basketball facility. They quickly became best friends and frequently hung out on the weekends and during the summer since they did not go to the same high school. They spent most of their time going on drives, getting slurpees at 7-Eleven, playing basketball in the driveway, and swimming in Jennifer's pool. This picture is one of their first together, after a pool day in the summer of 2014.
Love is in the Air
During the second half of senior year of high school, Jennifer and Justin started spending almost all of their free time together. In the spring, sparks really started to fly when Jennifer asked Justin to her senior prom with a box of Krispy Kreme donuts, which he could devour in one sitting at the time. Justin also took Jennifer out on many unofficial dates the previous few months, but their first "official" date was June 14, 2015 at J. Alexander's restaurant.
And So It Began
June 26, 2015. The day that started it all. Justin and Jennifer went to dinner at Bonefish Grill in Troy, and after dinner Justin officially asked Jennifer to be his girlfriend. She obviously said yes! This picture was taken shortly before they left for dinner.
Growing Together
Over the next 4 years Jennifer and Justin would grow together not only as a couple but as young adults as well. Justin, while studying at Wayne State, would frequently visit Jennifer at Michigan State and attended enough football and basketball games to call himself an honorary Spartan. They spent as much time together as they could while home from school, and they also became dog parents when they adopted their first dog together, Mocha, in the fall of 2017. They both went on to earn Bachelor degrees and celebrated with a month-long grad trip to Europe in the summer of 2019.
Growing Together Cont...
After college, Jennifer went on to obtain her Doctorate degree while Justin began his career. Over the next 3.5 years Justin frequently brought Jennifer food or coffee while studying, would take her out on drives to take a break from school, and also volunteered to be her "patient" if she needed to practice at home. One thing that they made sure continued despite their busy schedules was that they still made time for date nights and they still took vacations together as they were able.
September 28, 2023
After Jennifer finished graduate school, it was time for another celebratory Europe trip. Together with Jennifer's parents and 2 friends, they traveled for 2 weeks, with their final destination being in Formia, Italy where Jennifer's family is from. On the last night of the trip, Justin and Jennifer went up to the rooftop of Jennifer's family apartment to take sunset pictures before going to dinner. After a few pictures, Jennifer began to walk away, but little did she know that behind her Justin was down on one knee. She eventually turned around and saw him, and needless to say he asked her to marry him. With much excitement she said yes, and they ended up having more than one thing to celebrate that trip. More pictures of the engagement are at the bottom of the "Photos" page! :)