John and I both attended SIUE and met while in the education program. We never dated in college; however, John says he admired from afar.

In September of 2013, John asked me to a St. Louis Cardinals game. To much of our surprise, the game time had been moved up due to incoming weather and we had missed most of the game. We ended up spending our first date at the Casino Queen playing roulette and eating pizza at Joey B’s on the landing. It was a very interesting first date.

We continued our fun and exciting dates for the next 9 months. In June of 2014, I accepted a teaching job in Quincy, IL. I was worried about what this would do to our relationship; however, John wanted to keep going strong. We drove to Quincy to look for a place to live, and he ended up accepting a teaching position. It was fate.

God continued to bless our relationship for the next four years. Little did I know, that John was planning the best surprise I would ever have the pleasure of experiencing.

For Christmas 2017, my parents asked if we would like to go to Branson, MO. Of course we said yes; we love Branson. On December 26, we left for Branson. That evening, we went to Dixie Stampede for dinner and a show. It was incredible. The next morning, December 27, we ate breakfast and spent the next several hours “junking” and antiquing. We found so many treasures.

Our short trip was ending with dinner and a show on the Branson Belle Show Boat - John and mine’s favorite spot. We had watched shows on the showboat every year since we started dating. We get on the boat and find our seats (second row!). They started the evening with a short stage game where they pulled audience members on stage. Who gets selected?? Yep... John. I’m super excited and taking a million pictures. My parents; however, were freaking out. They knew what was about to come, but the stage performance was a surprise. John ends up losing the game and returns to our table. Everything else goes on as normal. We eat a fabulous dinner and listen to great music. After dinner, John asked if I wanted to go on deck and take a picture for our New Years card. I of course said yes and started to walk outaide. John said “Why don’t to us go check your hair.” I looked at him and laughed and replied with “Ha, you know I don’t care about that.” We get outside, and it’s a blisteringly 30 degrees outside (and yes it’s sunset). We get camera ready, and as I start to smile, John gets down on one knee and asks me to marry him. I couldn’t believe it! My parents had recorded the whole thing. I still get goosebumps thinking about it. I am so ready to call John my husband.