It was early 2018, and Gracie had recently transferred to the University of Memphis from Ole Miss. Brandon, an active member of his fraternity at Memphis, was at one of their many house parties. Gracie decided to tag along with a group of friends, and that night, our paths crossed for the very first time. As you can imagine a party filled with young 20 year olds, I'll leave our first introduction to the imagination.

Throughout that summer, Brandon and Gracie started chatting on Snapchat (yes, the 2,350+ day streak is still going strong) and grew closer with each passing day. They say the best relationships start as friendships, and if you ask Gracie, that’s exactly what they were—just friends. But if you ask Brandon, he’d tell you it was all part of his plan. Slowly but surely, he was laying the groundwork to ask her on their first date.

Towards the end of 2018, Gracie finally agreed to go on a date with Brandon. Knowing how much she loved a good steak dinner, Brandon wasted no time booking a reservation at Paulette’s in Harbor Town (a spot that’ll come up again later). When the big night arrived, Gracie (who will now admit she was incredibly nervous) was secretly dreading the idea of eating a steak in front of Brandon on their first date. To make matters even trickier, she was only 20 and couldn’t order a drink, so she played it safe with... a wedge salad and water. Brandon, expecting her to dive into a filet mignon, was momentarily speechless. All those steak dinner conversations, and she ordered a salad! Despite the curveball, the date was a blast. Brandon still jokes that it's the cheapest dinner I've had since.

Finally, on December 22nd in 2018, while on a trip in New Orleans for Brandon's fraternity formal, we decided to make it official. And from there, the rest is history.

As we mentioned earlier, Harbortown was where we shared our first date, so it was only fitting that Brandon chose it as the place to propose.

Fast forward just over five years, and Brandon surprised Gracie with another date to Paulette’s—this time, she ordered the filet mignon and two martinis. After dinner, we stepped outside to the gazebo, where Brandon had arranged a stunning setup and popped the question. He knew Gracie wanted the moment to be intimate and just for the two of them, so while we don’t have photos from that exact moment, Gracie can assure you - it was absolutely perfect.

But the surprises didn’t end there. After dinner, Gracie walked into her house to find it filled with some of the most important people in their lives. This was the biggest surprise of all, and it showed just how much thought and care Brandon put into making the proposal everything Gracie had dreamed of and more.

Over the last six years, we've had our share of lows, but the highs far outweigh them. In 2019, we brought home our fur baby, Blue - Brandon may say he’s a troublemaker, but Gracie thinks he’s perfect. In 2020, we made the move to Kansas City, and while we’re not sure when we’ll be back, we can’t wait for the day we get to call it home again. And of course, Go Chiefs!

When we returned to Memphis in 2022 for Brandon’s job, we truly realized how special it is to come back to a place filled with our closest friends and family.

Though we don’t know exactly what the future holds, we’re excited to see where this next chapter of marriage takes us. From exploring new destinations to spending football weekends in the Grove or at Arrowhead, we know the best is yet to come.

No relationship is perfect, but we take pride in looking back at how far we’ve come. We’ve navigated the chaos of our early twenties, and as we enter our later twenties, we can’t help but appreciate the growth and deepening love that has only strengthened year after year.

Here’s to 2025 and a wedding surrounded by our love & people!