The summer of 2019 was the first attempt of setting up Maya and Jake. Maya decided (for some reason) she could not date someone with tattoos so declined being set up with Jake. They both thought that was the end of that!

Five months later in November of 2019, Maya wound up going to Jake's apartment before going out with a group of their friends, she walked into the apartment, turned Jakes country music off and played Lizzo's "Truth Hurts". Shockingly, Jake wasn't too happy! That night they exchanged maybe ten words. Jake was annoyed by this girl who walked into his apartment changing his music and Maya was annoyed that she had to be in an apartment that was playing country music.

A few weeks later they were again planning to go out with the same group of friends, Maya got to Jake's apartment and one by one their friends bailed so it ended up being Maya, Jake and another couple. They went out and were forced to talk to each other. Slowly but surely the distaste for each other went away as they started talking and poking fun at each other! (Spoiler alert, they never stopped)

When it came to their first official date, Jake told Maya he would have her over for dinner and he could cook "anything" as he was a "master chef". They landed on fettuccine alfredo and Jake took it upon himself to do a trial run the night before with his friends. Jake was known for being a can chicken and deli salami connoisseur, but his friends trustingly took bites of his creation and one said "this is really good but...why did you use ginger instead of garlic?", thank god for that trial run! The next night Maya came over and Jake perfectly executed the fettuccine alfredo, this time using garlic instead of ginger!

In February of 2020, Maya did a trial run month of living in New York City to see if she wanted to move there permanently. Jake supported her to try it out and even came to visit her, their first of many trips together. A few weeks after her return, COVID-19 caused the whole world to shut down. The lockdown made them come up with creative dates, they went on lots of walks, attempted taking up tennis (which they both failed badly at) and facetimed a lot. On May 22nd, 2020 they took a drive to New Prague to pick up the first addition to their little family, Saylor, a miniature tri-colored bernedoodle. Saylor quickly became the center of their lives. Jake came over to Maya's downtown apartment frequently to help her take care of the feisty yet adorable Saylor bear.

In April of 2021 Maya, Jake and Saylor all moved in together to a house in St. Louis Park, giving Saylor her dream yard! They made many memories in that house, including bringing home a little brother for Saylor named Leroy in February 2022. He was the spunkiest, most loving and destructive creature with four paws the world has ever known. He loved getting snuggles from his mom + dad but was never more than a few inches away from Saylor. The four of them made so many memories at that house, from spending every evening at the dog park located at the end of their street, to Saylor and Leroy accompanying Maya on many runs along the Cedar Lake Trail, and of course lots of nights spent hosting bonfires in the backyard (which presented a great opportunity for Saylor and Leroy to work on their mulching skills after stealing sticks from the firewood pile)!

March 2023 rolled around and they purchased a home in Chaska, where Jake grew up and close to where his parents still live in his childhood home. On July 15th, Jake took Maya out to dinner to one of their favorite restaurants, Hazelwood. Following dinner, they went on a walk on the trails behind their house where they spent many nights walking Saylor and Leroy. He brought her to a beautiful spot on a bridge in the woods, got down on one knee and asked her to marry him! Through the happiest tears of excitement she said YES! They returned home to a surprise engagement party Jake had organized! Truly the most special and memorable night of their lives!

We cannot wait to share the next step of our love story with you at our wedding!