By suggestion of the Student Activities Director, Megan paired herself with the one new Student Orientation leader she didn't know.... Austin.

The first time they met was at a local coffee shop in Ripon, WI to write their orientation floor's welcome postcards. It was pretty awkward meeting a stranger the week between finals and graduation. On top of that, it was raining, so Austin offered to drive Megan back to the Commons.

They got along really well during Welcome Week and struck up a strong friendship. They casually hung out from time to time throughout the year.

At least three weeks before Austin's graduation, they ran into each other at Tall Paul's and figured out both were living in Ripon over the summer; Megan to work in the Admissions Office and Austin to intern in the Student Activities Office. They had a great summer, hanging out on campus, hitting the town, and even going on the Ripon Wine Walk together. A few times, Austin would crash Megan's work (both Admissions and the winery) just to hang out.

At this point, Megan was interested in Austin, but the timing didn't work out.

They kept in contact when Austin moved to Georgia for the military training. Things eventually got weird and they stopped talking for a bit.

While Megan was in Las Vegas, Austin texted her asking to hang out the next time she was in the area. After Ripon's graduation, Megan drove to Brookfield where they met at Cooper's Hawk for a drink to reconnect. Both expected this to only be for an hour. Four hours later, they decided they should part ways so Megan could visit a friend in Milwaukee before heading back to Nebraska.

They talked and texted throughout the summer, Megan in Lincoln, NE and Austin in Waukesha, WI.

Megan went back to Crete, IL for Labor Day and asked if they could meet halfway. Because it was Labor Day, the sushi restaurant they planned to go to was closed. So Buffalo Wild Wings it was. After talking, laughing, and driving a bit, they returned to the parking lot. When they hugged good bye, Austin kissed Megan. Eventually, they decided they were dating. Thus, began a long-distance relationship

While Megan was in grad school and Austin moved to Madison for work, the world began to change.

Graduation, a new job, and moving plans were quickly delayed by long periods of time. The distance was difficult, but Megan would spend a week or two at a time in Madison, quickly falling in love with the food and lakes.

Megan luckily got her job at UW in November 2020 and they moved in together.

In January, Megan and Austin opened their home to Cookie, their chihuahua mix.

Two weeks later, Austin found out he would be deploying to Djibouti, Africa for ten months (returning in July 2023). It was another long stint of long-distance.

Austin and Megan started talking about the future.

In August 2024, while on vacation in San Francisco (primarily for baseball), Megan convinced Austin to visit Napa Valley for a few days. At the St. Supéry Winery, they enjoyed a tour, tasting, and snacks (complimentary of the winery). Austin tricked Megan into setting up a camera to take a nice photo together. Instead of having a timed photo, he recorded the proposal. They got to enjoy the rest of their vacation engaged!

10/4, the day they become the Houstons!