TJ and Madi's first date was at a famous Austin coffee shop, Mozart's. After connecting online during the height of Covid and getting to know each other over text and Facetime, a coffee shop date was the perfect place to meet in person for the first time. 30 minutes before they were supposed to meet there, TJ saw an incoming call from Madi, figuring she was going to cancel last minute. As you can probably guess, that did not happen, haha! Madi's car battery had actually just died and she had no way of getting there, so against her instincts, she asked if TJ could pick her up. He happily obliged, but was confused why she had her laptop and backpack when she got in the car. Madi actually had a work meeting with a group of surgeons that evening, for her internship as a knee implant engineer. She casually mentioned she would be multi-tasking their date with said meeting, and a short time later they were set up at a picnic table on the patio with the meeting running and a hot chocolate for TJ and iced tea for Madi. Conversation flowed throughout the date as TJ and Madi talked about their jobs, interests, and other random things, Madi even showed TJ a picture of a cadaver from the lab at her work which TJ was not a fan of. Thankfully, Madi only had to unmute herself once to answer a question during the meeting, and needless to say, the date went very well. After recapping our thoughts many months later, we were both startstruck even at first sight. On the drive home from the coffee shop, 'Can I Call You Tonight' by Dayglow started playing on TJs playlist, which was one of Madi's favorite songs. They both recall having a feeling that there would be many more car rides with many more Dayglow songs. They were right :)

After a couple months of going on dates and getting to know each other, TJ knew he wanted to ask Madi to make it official. He had also already made his debut on her Instagram profile in a picture from a charcuterie night party, so he was fairly confident she would say yes :) He invited her over for dinner one evening, and when she walked in there were tea candles everywhere, and TJ was sitting with flowers and sweets/goodies, with a poster asking 'Will you be my girlfriend?' The romantic and slightly cheesy prom-posal vibes were perfect and Madi said yes without hesitation!

Over the span of the two years of dating, Madi and TJ went on many dates, took trips together and with friends, tried an uncountable number of restaurants, went to some of our favorite concerts together, hiked many trails, and so much more. Some highlights include:

- First Christmas Together + TJ met Madi's Family, Dec. 2020

- First Trip with Friends: Crested Butte Ski Trip, Jan. 2021

- Valentine's Day Snow-pocalypse in Austin, Feb. 2021

- First Trip Together: San Diego (pictured above), May 2021

- Indiana Trip: Madi met TJs Family, July 2021

- Dayglow Concert, Sep. 2021

- Getting a Dog! Dec. 2021

- Madi Graduating + Move to Dallas, May/June 2022

- Buying a House! Nov. 2022

TJ and Madi planned a trip to Austin for Thanksgiving, and saved one day to go to some of their favorite spots as a late anniversary date. During Thanksgiving festivities, TJ got the chance to talk to her parents about his plans, which were completely unknown to Madi. On Saturday, the plan was to do a coffee + small hike tour of Austin and then meet for lunch with TJ's friends. TJ and Madi's day started with Black Rock Coffee, a fall spice latte. The barista asked TJ if he had any fun plans for the day, and since Madi had gone to the restroom, TJ straight up told him, "I'm proposing to her today!" The barista congratulated him and kept a straight face when Madi walked by on their way out, but the coffee was on the house :) They took the coffee to one of TJs favorite running trails, Brushy Creek, and walked on their favorite part of the trail to the dam. The next stop was Neptune, a small, local food truck with the best horchata lattes, and a plant store next door with a giant dog named Bo. TJ and Madi sipped the coffee and snacked on a chocolate croissant before heading to the next stop, Lucky Lab, near the UT Austin campus. This shop (one of Madi's favorites for studying at during college) also happened to be next to a frozen banana stand, Banarchy, which TJ and Madi also partook in. Finally, it was time for the last coffee spot, Mozart's, where TJ and Madi actually had their first date. They sat lakeside, on the patio, and ate empanadas and drank an Arnold Palmer. The last stop of the tour was a small hike at Mt. Bonnell, a famous lookout point over Lake Travis, where TJ and Madi had been several times with family and friends. They walked on the trail, pausing a couple of times to take in the view, then in a more secluded spot with open panaormic views, TJ asked if Madi wanted to stop for a second. It was only at this exact moment, when TJ started to tell Madi how much he loved her and how much she meant to him when she realized what was happening. TJ got down on one knee and proposed, Madi said yes without taking a breath, and TJ's friends suddenly appeared around us, capturing the moment and cheering us on. It was a magical moment :) They celebrated at Austin Beerworks with everyone afterwards, and could not stop smiling after the perfect day :)