After a lot of convincing, Abby allowed me to tell our story from the VERY beginning. Me and Abby attended the same high school and met through a mutual friend. She did not know this but I always thought she was so beautiful. I did not have the courage to talk to her until one of my friends invited me to go to the new "Aladin" movie, and Abby was going to be there too. After this movie, Abby and I decided to continue to hang out and we could not stop talking to each other until we looked at the time and it was 2 am. The rest of the summer Abby and I spent time getting to know each other where we went on dates to the Stillwater bridge, drive-in movies, danced together, and watched fireworks at the Anoka County Fair (she would deny that we were dating but we were totally dating). It was during our time together that summer that I fell in love with Abby, unfortunately for me it was also this summer when Abby had to leave for college, so while I was positive I had met the love of my life, it was that same summer where I also had to say goodbye, not knowing if I would ever see her again. We remained friends for a short period and then quickly lost contact as she began to start her life in college halfway across the country.

When Covid hit, bringing with it lockdowns and restrictions, it also brought Abby back to Blaine. I was working at Cub Foods at the time, and it so happened that Abby lived close to this Cub Foods and shopped there often (I swear I did not know this). I was reunited with Abby when she was shopping during the pandemic and it was wonderful to see her. She approached me and talked about school, the future, and how we had been. After we caught up she agreed to hang out and to talk more! It was like she never left and I found that she was still the exceptionally funny, exceptionally beautiful, and wildly intelligent girl that I had spent the summer with the year before. I ended up confessing my feelings to her but the unfortunately it was not the right time. We agreed that we would always be friends but the hope of anything more was off the table for now.

After that summer Abby and I again lost contact, but this time it was because I was leaving. I packed up and left for my new adventure at the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire ready for a new beginning, but no matter how hard I tried I just couldn't get this Abby girl out of my head. Meeting someone truly special can be a hard thing forget

During my winter break, everything truly started to change. I asked Abby out once again (She still claims that it was never a date and just two friends hanging out but I know better). We were supposed to play BINGO in Blaine but we showed up too late and all the tables were filled. We ended up going to Running Aces Casino (very romantic I know). After our date at the ever-so-elegant Running Aces, we both did not want the night to end so at 1 a.m. we went to Roadside Bar and Grill in Blaine due to it being the only place open at this hour. We continued to talk and catch up just as old friends would. This was the date that changed the course of our friendship and it was the beginning of something more.

After finding excuses to come back to Blaine for 2 months in the spring semester of my freshman year, I finally decided to officially ask Abby to be my girlfriend on March 06, 2021. I took her out to eat at our favorite sushi place and then drove to Cub Foods, left her in the car, and then came out with a huge grin, flowers, and a question: "Will you be my girlfriend." She said yes.

The following years were filled with nothing but laughter, joy, love, and a profound feeling that I knew I found the one I would spend the rest of my life with. This feeling was made manifest in the various trips we made throughout our time together. This picture depicts the road trip we went on where I dropped her off in Arizona for 3 weeks. We drove across the country and she showed me so many new places including Colorado, Kansas (more importantly the BBQ), Sedona, Flagstaff, The Grand Canyon and so much more. Since we started dating we have visited the North Shore, The Apostle Islands, and Florida. She has shown me how beautiful the world is but how much more beautiful it is when you are exploring it with your best friend.

The proposal came last year and it was beyond perfect. Blake rented out the Conservatory at the Minnesota Zoo, hired a photographer and had Abby's mom bring her to "look at flowers." It was there that he got down on one knee and asked Abby the most important question of their lives....

The Wedding Day!