Lindsey moved to the DC area after graduating from Michigan State University in 2015, and Ryan moved to the DC area after graduating from Virginia Tech in 2016. We had a lot of the same friends who dated each other, but somehow between 2016 and 2019 our paths never crossed. In March 2019, the stars aligned when we were both single and were introduced by mutual friends.
We immediately connected over our love for country music, whisky, and our college sports teams. While hanging out for only the second time since being introduced, Ryan saw Lindsey yelling at the TV over Michigan State basketball in the Final Four game against Texas Tech, and knew he had found the woman of his dreams. We spent the summer going on fun surprise dates that Ryan planned, from a Nats game, to wine and painting, bowling, and dinner and drinks at the Lincoln followed by the POV rooftop at the W hotel. As we got to know each other, we quickly realized we had a lot more in common than our taste in music and drinks. We both came from supportive, tight-knit families, we both love dogs, and had the same career and life goals in common. Once we were in each other’s lives, we couldn’t imagine life without each other. In one another we found our best friend and life partner, and we both knew it immediately.

After a year and half of dating and co-raising our dog, Bennington “Benny”, we moved into our first apartment together. Living together was fun and easy. We spent multiple weekends with the other’s families, and even brought Ryan’s parents up to Lindsey’s cottage on Houghton Lake, Michigan for a long weekend with our families in August 2021. Our families blended together perfectly, and it was so clear to us that we found our lifelong partner in each other. I can’t recall a specific moment that I knew he was the one. I think I always knew deep down from the day I met him that he would be the last of my firsts. On February 12, 2022, on another family trip where Ryan’s parents joined us for a weekend of snowmobiling in Michigan, Ryan popped the question! We can’t wait to begin this next chapter of our lives as husband and wife on October 28, 2023!