When we first met:

Joel and I first met in 2020 when I was a senior and Joel was a junior at Ohio University. We met through the popular dating app, Bumble! My family lived in Chesterland, Ohio 45 minutes away from Joel's hometown Bath, Ohio and we were both home for winter break. This is when we matched and started talking!

Our first date:

Joel and I's first real date was early January 2020 when Joel suggested we go to Lucky's Cafe in Tremont for brunch. Joel and I had been talking for a few weeks before that and we've been inseparable ever since.

Moving in together:

After graduating college, I moved back in with my parents for a year while Joel finished school. In July of 2021, we signed a lease at an apartment complex in Cuyahoga Falls, OH where we currently live!

The Proposal:

In mid-November 2022, I was visiting Joel during his military deployment in Lithuania. We had decided to take a trip to Vienna, Austria for a few days where we would meet up with his mom, Dena, and step-dad, Steve. Our plan was to wake up early Saturday morning and do some sight-seeing, starting with the Belvedere Palace! As we toured the outside of the palace, Dena asked a woman to take a picture of the 4 of us on her phone. After she took the photo, she informed us that she was a Travel Blogger travelling Europe, and was taking pictures of different couples she met along the way. She first photographed Dena & Steve and had them pose back-to-back which is how she said she was having everybody stand. Joel and I were up next! We posed back-to-back and when she told me to turn around, Joel was on one knee and asked me to marry him! Turns out this "blogger" was our photographer that Joel had hired. We spent the next hour taking professional photos and then enjoyed breakfast. When we got back to our hotel, we were greeted with rose petals, flowers, champagne, chocolates, and a card from the staff. It was truly the most special day ever. We went to a nice dinner to celebrate & to a Symphony Orchestra concert after. We called all of our friends and family to share the news!