Michael and I first met during the summer of 2019 at an event through our church called Ski Wake and Surf. I remember the first time I saw Michael; he was up in a tree. I was sitting with some friends when I heard someone shout "Get down from there monkey boy"! I looked up and there was Michael. I distinctly remember my friends asking who was up in the tree and I said, I have no idea, but he is so cute! My friends proceeded to joke around with me and try to get me to talk to him but being the little homeschooler I was, I would not budge, this is also because I remember thinking he was way out of my league, and we'd probably never see each other again after this trip. We had a few more interactions with each other after that trip because of mutual friends hanging out and then as expected we kind of lost touch. That is until April 24th, 2020, when Michael replied to a story I had posted on my Instagram. From that moment we started talking more and more and then eventually I got up the nerve to ask him out for coffee so he could show me his new truck that he got, of course Michael could not turn down showing off his truck, so he said yes, and that led to us starting to hang out again! July rolls around and, I knew that I wanted to be more than just friends with Michael, but I had no clue if he felt the same, but my question was answered after a fun day at the lake with some friends. That evening Michael told me he had feelings for me, and I told him I felt the same, I asked why it took him so long to say something and he said he was worried and did not want to start a new relationship because he was leaving for lineman school that August. We were both really nervous about that, but he asked me to be his girlfriend that night and of course I wanted to say yes but he was leaving in just two short weeks so I told him I needed to think about it before I said yes. I went home that night very excited and nervous at the same time, I knew I liked him, and I wanted to date him, but I did not want to do the long-distance thing. I talked to my mom about it and prayed about it and then a couple of days later I told myself that I would rather give it a shot and it not work out instead of being afraid to go for it and wonder what could have been. So, on July 26th, 2020, at the Madera Drive in Movie Theater, we decided we both wanted to give our relationship a shot. Best decision EVER! Michael and I were both about to move into a phase of independence together; he was at school 4 ½ hours away from home while I was working part time and going to school full time. We fell back on each other often for support when things felt overwhelming, and while things felt confusing at times the one thing that was not was that we wanted to be together. While it has not been easy and Michaels job requires him to work away from home, that has just shown us how strong our love is for each other. Fast forward almost 4 years on July 6th, 2024, on what I thought was a simple beach trip with my siblings and best friends Kaitlyn and Hayden, Michael knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and asked me to marry him!! Now this question, I did not need to go home and sleep on at all! We both are so beyond excited to start this next chapter and journey of our lives together! We’ve been able to look back through the years and see God’s faithfulness and work in our story then and continue to see it in our lives now. We cannot wait to see what God has in store for us, whatever comes our way we are ready to face it hand in hand for the rest of our lives.

“So, they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together let no man separate.” – Matthew 19:6