Brandon and I story
Brandon and I first met in high school during his sophomore year (my senior year) and began dating in the fall of 2010. As I graduated the following spring, I went on to get my degree in Biology from Messiah College as he finished high school, and later began his time at Penn State.
The majority of our relationship was spent long distance, and although it was SO hard at times, I am so thankful for the ways it strengthened us and allowed us to grow and mature.
My senior year of college, I made the difficult decision to put off going to medical school right away because I knew in my heart I wanted to be with Brandon, and that I couldn’t endure another 4 years of a long distance relationship while I was in school.
December of 2014, I spent the day with Brandon’s family at the Pinstripe Bowl game in New York. Little did I know that Brandon had planned out the most elaborate proposal for the next day.
That Sunday, Brandon came over to my house after church and gave me my Christmas present, a book which he had made me. He told me I could only read a page at a time, and that each page would tell me what to do.
Inside this book, he had written about some of our greatest memories together over the years. With each page and memory, there was an important location which I was to drive to, and a special person waiting there with a rose.
The first page lead me to our high school, since that is where it all began. When I arrived there, my best friend Crystal was waiting with a rose.
With each new page came a new memory, a new location across our home town, and another special person waiting with a rose. He led me to the restaurant we had our first date at, my favorite coffee stop, my non-profit office, and so on. The final stop was my house, where I was met by my family, and last my parents, who gave me a dozen roses and led me out back to where Brandon was waiting. He proposed to me (I said YES!) and so many of our closest friends and family where there to see it all and celebrate.
It was one of the best and happiest days of my life, and I honestly couldn’t have planned a more thoughtful or sweet way to propose if I had tried.
Photo Credit : Maggie Connolly
Walking up the greatest surprise — all my friends and family 🙂
Less than 6 months later, on June 13th, 2015, we finally got married. It was truly a picture perfect day in every way, and more than I could have ever dreamed of. It was such a special day to share with so many amazing people, and a day I will cherish for the rest of my life.
Wedding Pictures : Olivia Rae Photography
Check out this special dance Brandon surprised me with at our reception:
Video Credit: Christian Gallagher
