Ashley and Jay met in 7th grade at Canton Middle School. They remained friends all through middle school but lost contact when Jay moved to Schaumburg. Fast forward to June 2003. Ashley put on her AIM away message that she was swimming in the backyard with friends and anyone could stop by. Jay was hanging out at a friend's and saw the away message and they decided to stop over. They talked the entire day and exchanged LAND LINE phone numbers. Jay called Ashley everyday until they started hanging out regularly. After weeks of hanging out, on July 31, 2003 Jay asked Ashley to be his girlfriend. They continued dating through the remainder of high school and went on to attend Southern Illinois University together. Ashley joined Sigma Kappa sorority and Jay joined Delta Chi fraternity. Jay lavaliered Ashley in his sophomore year, which means he gave her his fraternity letters. Soon after, Ashley became Jay's fraternity sweetheart and Jay became the Sig Kap Doveman. They both graduated from SIU in 2009. After a few years of living at home, Jay and Ashley moved in together in 2012. They started hosting Christmas for their families and building a life together. On June 6, 2015 Jay proposed to Ashley in their home after several attempts to take Ashley on a hot air balloon ride. Three weeks later, they went on that balloon ride and it turned out to be terrifying and exciting so proposing at home was perfect!