Austin and I being from the same hometown of Redding, CA, we crossed paths many times without realizing we were meant to be. We had the same friend group and had a few conversations along the way. I always thought so highly of him and couldn’t believe how genuine and sweet he was. Not to mention hilarious. I always thought what a shame it was that he was stationed at the Dover Air Force Base and I didn’t get to see him often. As Austin tells me, he knew I was the one from the moment he met me and always had the biggest crush on me. Unfortunately I could not of been more oblivious to that. I then moved away to Dallas, Texas for nursing school with a graduation date of December 2023. Around November 2022 my good friend and Austin’s best friend Jason Lee let me know that Austin had finished his time in the Air Force and moved back home. This was music to my ears. I knew I had to make the first move because of Austin’s shyness which was something I had never done before. Making the first move turned out to be the best thing I have ever done in my life. We instantly fell in love. This began our year of long distance. It was hard but completely worth it. On December 15th 2023 in my empty apartment with my car loaded down ready to drive 28 hours back home to Redding, Austin got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. It was a no brainer for me to say yes. He is my soul mate and my best friend. To know him is to love him. We are so excited for our wedding and cannot wait to celebrate with all of our family and friends!