Ryan & Brittani met when Ryan was a freshman at Marian Central Catholic High School and Brittani was still in eighth grade. They were at a super bowl party at a friend's house, and hit it off right away. Brittani had hubris over her pool skills, so Ryan mercilessly defeated her at 8-ball to take her down a peg.

They were close friends during high school, then as upperclassmen, their relationship evolved. They were in the same art class and math class, and they served on student counsel together. Ryan did student counsel as a joke and student counsel meant the world to Brittani. Ryan helped Brittani with her math homework (i.e. did it for her) and Brittani wrote Ryan's English papers. When Ryan sang and played guitar at the variety show, Brittani got butterflies in her stomach.

On October 16th, 2004, Mark Stranges (groomsman) invited Brittani to a party at Mikey Huemann's house. Brittani went to the party with a girlfriend and stayed sober as she was driving. Ryan had already been drinking and spilled his beer on Brittani. "I'll forgive you if you give me a sip of your beer," she said. "I'll give you a sip of my beer if you make out with me." So she did, and they never stopped kissing.

Ryan went to to NIU and Brittani would frequently visit Ryan on campus. Brittani went to University of Iowa for two years, then DePaul University in Chicago for two. Ryan & Brittani maintained their relationship despite the commuting distance.

In 2012, Brittani moved to Los Angeles to pursue an entertainment career as a casting director. She flew back and forth between LA and Chicago every other weekend. As much as she was focused on her job, spending time with Ryan and staying together was more important than anything else.

Ryan moved to Los Angeles in 2013 and has lived with Brittani for the past three years. They are moving back to Chicago this fall, in anticipation of their winter wedding. Brittani is able to keep her job as a casting director and work remotely from Chicago. Neither Ryan nor Brittani can wait to be back home with their respectively families...and start one of their own.

Registry