Patrick and I both started at Augie in 2014, he as a junior and I was a freshman. Since we were both playing sports, we got to know of each other and eventually met. By my sophomore year, I saw him around campus more and thought he was cute and always secretly wanted him to make a move, but he didn't.

Fast forward to January of my senior year (2018). I had posted a picture of my passport with Hannah on Instagram and then turned my phone off for our flight to London. When we got there, I saw I had a message from Patrick asking where I was headed - and we've been talking every day since! :) (I have Flynn to thank for that - he was the one that told Patrick I was single and to make a move).

Patrick at the time was living in Australia and playing baseball. So for the first two and a half months we were messaging on Instagram whenever we could (the time difference made it interesting), and then we upgraded to video chatting through Facebook. When he finally got back to Sioux Falls, Patrick took me on a date the 2nd day he was back in the States. He took me to a Mexican place - Inca. He'll say that I just sat there and didn't eat (lie), but I was so excited and nervous to actually see him in person after talking for so long!

We continued to go on dates and got to know each other more, and on May 31st, we officially started dating. :)

The first year of dating was for watching Patrick play baseball, meeting each others families and friends, and spending a lot of time together.

Since May 31, 2018 we have traveled to 15 states and three countries together and are always looking for an excuse to buy our next plane ticket!

We went to Australia in November 2023 so Patrick could show his dad and me his favorite place. For the first three days, we were in Airlie Beach.

Patrick's friend, Jules, drove down and stayed with us for the weekend. Jules is a helicopter pilot, so of course he had to take us up and show us the beautiful beaches of the Whitsunday Islands. At our second stop, he took us to Whitehaven Beach. While I was enjoying the white sand and clear water on my own, Patrick came up to me and I thought we were just enjoying the moment together. Then he turned me to face him and asked me to marry him. It was the most special moment in the most beautiful place. He did good!