Hello friends and family!

We are excited to announce our engagement! Our wedding will be on October 14, 2023, at Sassafras Springs Vineyard in Springdale, Arkansas. We sincerely hope you can join us to celebrate! Before the wedding, we wanted to share some information about us and how we met.

Emily was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas. Being a lover of college sports, she wanted to attend a SEC school but did not want to be too far from home. After visiting the University of Arkansas, she knew Fayetteville was the best place for her. Emily began attending the U of A in August of 2015 and studied Food Science and Agricultural Business.

Matthew grew up in the Texarkana, Arkansas area. He grew up an Arkansas Razorback fan and always had dreams of attending the U of A. After completing his freshman year at Southern Arkansas University, Matthew transferred to the U of A in August 2015 to study Mechanical Engineering. We often joke that we probably walked by one another on campus or sat in the same room without even realizing it.

While attending the U of A, we met through mutual friends. During Emily’s sophomore and junior years, she lived with four of her best friends and sorority sisters, Evann, Rose, and Emily M. Through mechanical engineering courses, Matthew met his good friend and best man, Levi. In the fall of 2017, while attending a Razorback football game, our good friends Levi and Emily M. met and eventually began dating. As a result of Emily M. and Levi’s relationship, we met and started hanging out in group settings with the rest of our friends. We remained acquaintances until December 2017 when Emily developed a crush on Matthew after seeing him eating doughnuts and singing along to a Taylor Swift song at a sorority event.

Emily’s crush grew as she learned more about Matthew and his humor, intelligence, and kindness. In January 2018, after an impassioned debate with Matthew about the benefits and drawbacks of the U.S.’s participation in NAFTA, Emily knew she had to make her feelings known. So, she did! On our first date, we went to Tokyo Sushi on Dickson Street in Fayetteville where Matthew showed off his newly acquired chopstick skills. He practiced using them in preparation for the date. Emily, much less prepared, just used a fork. After dinner, we played a few rounds of bowling and then went to Matthew’s to watch the winter Olympic games. After a couple of months of going on dates and getting to know one another, we started officially dating on March 31, 2018, and have been together ever since!

After graduating from the U of A in 2019, we moved to Michigan! Emily lived in East Lansing and attended Michigan State University College of Law. Matthew lived just an hour south in Ann Arbor and worked as a Manufacturing Engineer at the Fiat Chrysler Dundee Engine Plant. We loved living in Michigan and did not mind the cold and snowy winters! After COVID-19 struck in early 2020, Emily’s law school courses moved online, she spent most of her time living in Ann Arbor with Matthew. When Emily wasn’t studying, we loved trying new coffee shops, restaurants, and breweries. If you have not been, Ann Arbor, Michigan is a great place to visit. If you ever find yourself up north, let us know, we have some great recommendations!

While we loved Michigan, we knew it was not going to be a forever home. During a spring break trip to Nashville, Tennessee in March of 2021, we fell in love with the city and immediately placed Nashville at the top of our list of places to move to after Emily was done with law school. In November 2021, Matthew made our dream of moving to Middle Tennessee a reality! He accepted a job as a Manufacturing Engineer with General Motors at its engine plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, just 45 minutes south of Nashville. The move to GM was a great decision for Matthew and he enjoys his new company and new co-workers.

After graduating from Michigan State in May of 2022, Emily moved to Nashville and began studying for the Tennessee Bar Exam. After MANY hours of studying and A LOT of encouragement from Matthew, Emily sat for and passed the bar exam! In August Emily began working for the Tennessee Department of Agriculture in an Assistant Counsel role. She enjoys her job and loves getting to work in agriculture. We love living in Nashville! There is never a shortage of things to see and do (and eat!). Some of our favorite activities include trying new restaurants and coffee shops, playing trivia, attending watch parties for Razorback sporting events, cooking new recipes, listening to, and discussing our favorite podcasts, and exploring Middle Tennessee. Matthew enjoys participating in a weekly running group to train for his next marathon.

After the stress of the bar exam was over, we went on a vacation with Emily’s family to London and Ireland. We had so much fun exploring the streets of London, visiting Westminster Abbey, touring the Warner Brothers studios, taking in a few Irish pubs (and more than a few pints of Guinness), touring the Jameson distillery, and trying out Gaelic football and hurling. But the most special part of our trip came on our last full day when Matthew proposed on the Cliffs of Moher. We hiked our way along the Cliffs until Matthew decided he had found the perfect spot. Usually, Ireland is cloudy and it’s rare to find a sunny day at the Cliffs, but we had the most beautiful day. Through a lot of tears, Emily said yes! It was the best day to end a great trip!

Because Northwest Arkansas played such a special role in our relationship, we chose it as our wedding destination. We look forward to sharing our favorite place, and a hog call or two, with our family and friends.

Love,

Emily and Matthew

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