Our story started in early 2023, when two young college students found each other to be a familiar comfort amongst all the unknown. Thankfully, Ellen was not the huge nerd Grayson thought she was in high school (mostly) and Grayson was not the jock Ellen thought he was. We had our first date at Muchachos in Southlake, Texas. In the years since, we have made too many wonderful memories to share them all here. This relationship has blossomed and we have grown closer through all of joys, and all of the times things didn't happen exactly as we thought they would. Whether it be Ellen studying abroad in Italy, Grayson working in Arkansas for 4 months, or the infamous dorm frat house combo of sophomore year, it all brought us closer together. We are both graduating from Southern Methodist University in May of this year. Ellen is graduating with degrees in Biology and Art, while Grayson is graduating with his degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics. Ellen will be attending UT Southwestern to get her PhD in Neuroscience, and Grayson is doing something not nearly as cool... We both attend Highland Park United Methodist and are very involved with our faith. Ellen and Grayson enjoy art, food, wine, music, and getting lost together.

Thank you so much for sharing this moment with us. We feel so blessed to celebrate with each of you as we step into this new covenant together.

- Ellen & Grayson

Grayson had known for a while that he would marry Ellen (or, at least, try to). In early August 2025, he went to the jeweler to design a very special ring. He had thought long and hard about it, assigning every detail with meaning. After he had made up the world's worst excuse trying to get Ellen off his scent on why he was in Richardson picking up the ring, Grayson had to ask Ellen's father for his approval. After Ellen's dad gave Grayson the go-ahead, it was time for a game plan. Grayson thought of everything; he studied film, he knew the plays, he was ready to play ball. When the moment came, he made his first move. Grayson had given Ellen a white dress, super subtle, and right after that, he asked if she wanted to go to the ranch that weekend... how convenient, Ellen thought. It was so funny that Ellen's grandparents would be in town that same weekend! Ellen had no clue what was going on. Fast forward to the morning of... Grayson and Ellen went to the gym, it was 9:30 in the morning on a Saturday, and the next natural step was Chick-fil-A breakfast. Ellen had noticed something off about Grayson; he was (for the first time) quiet! And, he was shaking like a leaf on a tree. "Are you okay?" Ellen asked. Grayson said he was fine and that he just had a really hard workout. Ellen had watched him do three sets of bench press, then proceed to the sauna for an hour while Ellen finished her leg day. Again, Ellen knew nothing. As Grayson and Ellen pack up to leave for the ranch, Grayson's car decides to start violently shaking at idle, so they pivot to catching a ride with Grayson's brother DJ, and DJ's now wife, then fiancée, Kate. This was not terrible news for Grayson; this way, he didn't have to try to make conversation with Ellen for 2 hours. In the state he was in, the cat would surely have been out of the bag. We fast forward to the ranch, and Grayson tells Ellen that they are going to a new steak house in town (there wasn't even really a town) and she should wear something nice... like that awesome new white dress he had just gotten her! Wow... he was so sly. As they leave for the "brand new steakhouse," Grayson decided that it was a great time to show Ellen and Kate (DJ's wife) the house that was under construction on the property. The cross Grayson had built to propose to Ellen under, unbeknownst to him, was plainly visible from any window in the house. Grayson then had an idea: let's rush this so she doesn't see the cross. So, gracefully, Grayson led Ellen outside the house and toward the truck. Ellen then got distracted by a cow... quickly throwing off Graysons game. Instead of driving down to the cross as he had planned, Grayson took Ellen's hand and started walking down a path. Grayson tried to fill the silence with words... "Check out this new gun range DJ and I built!" Ellen totally had no idea what was about to happen. After five minutes of walking, they were almost halfway to the cross. Grayson felt a nudge from his side. It was DJ, yielding the ring that Grayson had forgotten in the truck. Grayson and Ellen finally make it to the cross. This was the moment where Grayson really pulled it together. Ellen and Grayson walked to the cross, Grayson pulled out a Bible with the inscription "Ellen Griser" on it, and he read his favorite verse, Psalm 38:15 (CSB): "For I put my hope in You, LORD, You will answer." Grayson then proceeded to tell Ellen how much he loves her, then, with the grace of a drunken elephant, he kneeled and asked her to marry him. She nodded yes, and they had an awesome chest bump.

-GG