Ruth and Justin met through a dating app for Latter-day Saints. They chatted for two months before Ruth finally got Justin to ask her out with much persistence. They went on their first date in December, and second date in January.

For the third date Justin took Ruth to an arcade and go kart racing, which is totally not her idea of fun. But much to her surprise they had a wonderful time together. By the end they had both begun to realize that this was something special.

They began to spend more and more time together, cuddling and having long talks and that led to a deepening love. One of many nights together was during a winter storm, when Justin braved the weather to bring Ruth Hawaiian Bros and Crumbl cookies. This was when Ruth began to truly understand the many benefits of having a partner.

Ruth and Justin share a love for all things Texas. They took a few springtime day trips to find fields of bluebonnets and other quintessential Texas wildflowers. As they explored the fields, Ruth admired the flowers and Justin admired the flowers too, but mostly he admired Ruth.

Their love of Texas includes authentic Texas country music and they bonded over several country concerts together. On the way to one of many concerts they stopped at the Chick-fil-A drive thru and were turned away due to a tornado being in the area. In great peril, they drove back to Ruth’s house for shelter and checked “survived near death experience” off the proverbial New Relationship Checklist.

In the summer, they went on their first overnight trip to the Hill Country in central Texas for a concert at Gruene Hall, floating the Guadalupe river and romantic evenings on San Antonio’s Riverwalk. The couple took another trip during the summer with Justin’s children to Sam Rayburn Reservoir to play in the lake and explore the piney woods. Then Justin joined Ruth for the Ashurst family reunion in Durango, CO where he was unofficially welcomed into the family. As they traveled and spent time with their families, their future together came into clear focus.

The summer ended with a trip to Chicago to celebrate Ruth’s 40th birthday. Her birthday evening culminated with a fireworks show on the Navy Pier, after which Justin knelt down and asked her to marry him. She said yes through happy tears and they spent the rest of the weekend exploring the city as fiancés. ❤️❤️