In September of 2023, I met the love of my life, but I wouldn't realize it then.

I was beginning my sophomore year of college at Winona State. My life seemed to be consumed by school, Aquatennial events, and trying to keep my head above water. Life was extremely busy. All I could do was trust in the Lord and that He would provide. I was content in singleness and put my relationship with Jesus first. Then one day, as I was scrolling Tik Tok, an ad came up for a dating app called "Upward". It was a Christian dating app. I didn't have much hope in a dating app but something told me that I should download it. So I did. As I swiped through these profiles, feeling kinda weird about what was happening, the guy, "Matt", came up on my phone. I remember he looked like he had the kindest eyes. Eyes that wouldn't even hurt a fly. I looked closer at his profile where he shared that he was a teacher. Seeing a male teacher is pretty uncommon, so I was intrigued. Of course I immediately start thinking how cute it would be to have two teachers together. How we could bring our kids to work with us. I know... cheesy! The eyes, his love of the Lord, and his desire for a wife, and maybe with some influence of seeing the cutest dog, I swiped right. And.... MATCH! Later that day, Matt had sent me a message. From the start, our conversation never seemed to run dry. We talked about our love for the Lord, our desire for a partnership, and our passion for teaching. After a week or so of talking, I realized with the load of school and Aquatennial, I was not able to give the amount of effort that Matt deserved. Knowing his desire for a wife, I didn't want to waste his time. All I could do was trust in the Lord that my future husband would find his way to me in His timing.

For the next few months, crazy continued. The fall semester finished, Christmas came, and I left for a Visiting Dignitary trip with Aquatennial to Pasadena, California. Little did I know that in California on December 30th, my future husband would slide right back into my messages with a simple "Hey". I remember my heart jumped. The conversation never stopped flowing. We texted all the time. My Aquatennial sisters, Brooklyn and Kaia, were the first to hear about this Matt guy. I would not stop talking about our conversations. I had gotten home from California, getting packed up to go back to college, and my mom saw a message from "Matt". Curiously, she asked who he was and I responded with a quick "um nobody." And left it at that.

After a few weeks of nonstop texting, we planned to FaceTime. After a 4.5 hour call, with a bathroom break in the middle, I knew this was something different. Five days later, Matt was making his way to Winona to meet for the first time. Boy was I nervous! A random guy driving an hour and a half to spend the day with me, sounded a little sketchy. For those who were curious (aka the Lee family) many people knew about this and I felt completely safe! On January 20th, 2023, Matthew Micheal Blake walked up to me for the first time. The first words he every said to me you may ask "Wow, you are taller than I expected!" We spent the whole day walking in downtown Winona and hiking the bluff (in January). From this day on, we were inseparable. We talked every night for at least 2-3 hours. It was late night FaceTimes, quick calls whenever we could squeeze them in, and random trips to Chippewa Falls.

The talk of marriage started very early. I knew within the first month that he would be my future husband. It was only a matter of time. As an Aquatennial Princess, I was under contract where I was unable to be engaged, married, etc. Boy could I not wait until July 22nd when my contract was over. Within the week, I exchanged one adventure for another. July 28th, 2023 you asked me to marry you! It was the easiest YES in my life!

July 13th, 2024 will become one of the best days of my life. The day that I get to begin the rest of my life with my best friend by my side.

Matthew Michael Blake I can not wait to marry you! It is still unbelievable to me that God put you into my life when He did. He knew that we were meant for each other. That we could lead each other closer to Him and glorify His name together in the process. I can't wait to see where the Lord take us through marriage. I love you!

The countdown is on!

M&K

Wedding Day

4:30 PM

4:30 PM

Ceremony

5:00 PM

5:00 PM

Social Hour

6:00 PM

6:00 PM

Dinner

7:30 PM–10:30 PM

7:30 PM–10:30 PM

Dance