The two of us started as young 5 year olds in the same (rather large) kindergarten class at Our Lady of Lourdes. Tyler was in the afternoon class, while Marissa spent most of her time in the morning class. Thankfully, Marissa was able to stay for the afternoon class quite often. Up until the end of third grade, the two of us were in the same class with several class pictures to prove it.

From sports to birthday parties to May Crowning, there are pictures of Tyler and Marissa together in places neither really remember. After third grade, Tyler transferred schools while Marissa stayed at OLL.

Flash forward to 2020 before the pandemic started. The two of us were out with friends at the same local bar. Little did we know, we knew the same people. A friend introduced Tyler to Marissa towards the end of January. We started hanging out every week, which quickly turned into almost daily. Marissa remembered Tyler from school, but Tyler is still iffy about it sometimes.

After the first kiss, we started dating in the beginning of March 2020. The pandemic through a curve ball into traditional dating, and much of our time was spent at each other's houses or with friends. We spent time getting to know each other's families and integrate ourselves into our friend groups.

By November 2020, the two of us moved into an apartment and began to talk about a wedding and future together. Little did Marissa know, but Tyler was starting to look for rings and got mom's blessing. He even started reaching out to friends and Marissa's sister for opinions.

On July 10, 2021 the day was supposed to be focused on celebrating the birthdays of Tyler and Marissa's Papa. They went to lunch to celebrate what would be Papa's birthday with family and then to play putt-putt with their friend Jess. Marissa had made reservations for a nice dinner for the two down on the docks.

After dinner, Tyler took Marissa down by the water to watch the sunset and talk. Once the sun went down, Tyler wanted to take a walk around the water and got down on one knee to propose. To celebrate the engagement, the two of us called our friends and family, met friends downtown for a concert and went to our favorite hangout to share the excitement.

The past few months since the engagement have flown by. Between the excitement and busyness of wedding planning along with day to day life, we are learning how to work even better together. We are beyond thankful for all of the love and support we have from friends and family. We cannot wait to celebrate with you all on 10/29/2022!

M&T