I first met my future wife when I was in seventh grade, when I was the new kid in class at St. Charles. This is where Hailey and I would first discover God's incredible plan for our lives.

While being in middle school, Hailey and I would develop a relationship filled with the most innocent form of love. Note passing, handholding, and even a quick kiss on the cheek would all help to contribute to a story that neither one of us could possibly imagine at the time. With no way to feasibly communicate outside of school, we were both dreading 8th grade graduation. We would say our goodbyes, and both go on to attend different high schools.

Fast forward four years later, the Holy Spirit would guide Hailey and I to reconnect. We went out to dinner at Culvers, where we spent the next three and half hours sharing our experiences of the world we had lived in without each other. It would seem that a world without each other was one we were ok with (or so we thought), as we would not reconnect again for another year.

Once again, God had facilitated us back into each other's lives, this time making it clear for us that we were meant to remain there. I had finally worked up the courage to officially ask Hailey out on a date. And again, a few weeks later, when I asked Hailey to officially be my girlfriend at a brewers game.

For the next two and half years, Hailey and I would continue to date, until we took a walk by the tree we carved our initials in as kids when I then asked her to marry me.

Our story is an incredible one filled with love, faith, and perseverance. It is the type of story people write books or movies about.

Max and I first crossed paths when we were only twelve years old in seventh grade. He had just transferred to the school I had been attending since kindergarten- St. Charles. It was so exciting to gain another student in our tiny, intimate class. Little did I know, this new student would come into my life and stay there forever.

Throughout middle school, Max and I "dated" off and on. He was my first boyfriend...I use these terms loosely because in our innocent youth, we didn't even know what being in a relationship meant. Max and I were learning and growing together from this young age forward. We would share secret glances in the classroom, we would brush shoulders in the hallway, and he would subtly hold my hand under the desk. Considering how young we were at the time, it was challenging to find ways to communicate with each other outside of school, but we found our ways.

When it was time to graduate from St. Charles, Max and I shared a heartbreaking goodbye. Before we moved on to high school, Max had told me that no one would ever be able to replace me- I had no idea he was serious.

We spent the next 4 years apart, where we both experienced life independently. We reconnected over social media, and that's when we decided to meet again in person. We met at the Culver's in Sussex where we talked for hours about our life stories and how we ended up there, together in that moment. At that point, we weren't quite yet ready for each other, so once again, we went our separate ways.

About a year later, we reconnected yet again. This is the point in the story where everything changed. One fateful night, Max swept me off my feet and stole my heart, and he has held and protected it ever since. We officially started dating on June 6, 2021.

On December 22, 2023, Max got down on one knee and asked me to spend the rest of my life with him at St. Charles, next to the tree where we carved our initials way back when we were immature preteens.

Our middle school selves would freak out if they saw where we are today... engaged and waiting to get married. God knew what He was doing the entire time, and He always kept us connected through an invisible string.