Story

We added each other on Snapchat and started chatting. I had put my Snapchat username on my bio from another dating app, and Justin hit me up.

Around that time, I was excitedly telling Lindsey over her birthday weekend about a guy I was going to meet up with in a few weeks.

At the same time about 70 miles away, Justin was talking to his best friend, Ian about a girl he had been talking to and was going to be seeing soon for a first date.

Our first date in Minneapolis, Justin wanted me to "show him around" and I agreed. He drove down on a Sunday and stayed at the 2 Star Quality Inn. I had a whirlwind of places to show him.

1. We went to Minnehaha Falls first where the featured picture was taken. We climbed up and sat on a large rock talking for hours.

2. We explored the Stone Arch Bridge and enjoyed taking pictures in the Yellow Room and balcony at the Guthrie theater.

3. We then went to dinner at the amazing Teppanyaki Grill and enjoyed feeding each other fondue food, and making a masterpiece with the fondue sticks on the fourth featured picture.

4. The next morning we went to Roman's Café and had a Big Johnson Breakfast meal.

5. After breakfast we went to the Mall of America to hang out. I even got Justin to do the ropes course with me there! We ended the day with Cold Stone Creamery where Justin got the specialty "Trolls" ice cream cup with popping candies.

After this amazing first date, we both knew we wanted to see each other again. Immediately we started planning for the next time we would see each other.

Justin and I started a somewhat long distance period of dating. We would meet halfway in Monticello on weekdays when it would be a while before we could be together on a weekend.

The Monday after our first date, we met up to go to Pizza Ranch but it ended up being closed, so we went to Buffalo Wild Wings. We made every effort to see each other when we could!

We made it Facebook official! On our way to Proving Grounds in Brainerd, we talked about our relationship status and decided we both wanted to only see each other.

Our First Trip Together

Already 3 months into our relationship, we traveled to Seattle and Camano Island to celebrate my friend, Alondra's wedding. Justin got his second tattoo of the space needle even before we saw it! We had a blast traveling together and getting to share those special moments with each other. We even got to travel to Olympia, WA to see my friend Michelle play a soccer game for her college team. We also went to Cracker Barrel and Voodoo donuts in Portland, OR. The best memory was that our rental car was a dodge caravan, so our joke was that I was a soccer mom lugging the kids around in my minivan!

Halloween Costumes!

2020 - Sully and Boo from Monster's Inc.

2021 - Pirates

2022 - Wonder Woman and Superman

Christmas Matching Pajamas!

2019 - Taken at Justin's first apartment in Sauk Rapids

2020 - Lincoln and Aelita age 1

2021 - Lincoln and Aelita age 2

2022 - Taken outside our new home

1st Anniversary Weekend

We took a weekend trip to Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We rented an Airbnb close to the city, but little did we know that there would be several deer and buck heads hanging out in the bedroom closet! We checked out the Irvine Park & Zoo and saw a cool cave and a beautiful butterfly there. Of course, we had to get a tour of the Leinenkugel's Brewery while we were nearby.

Things I love about Justin -

· He is down to earth and a family man

· He likes to explore and try out new places

· We always have a good time goofing off and having a fun time together

· He makes sure that I am taken care of, and wants what's best for us

Things I love about Kristen -

· She can actually be very funny.

· She is friendly to everyone, even strangers that she meets once.

· She loves to go on adventures and I am enjoying every one of them!

· We both have similar tastes in food, music, and more.

· She is patient and kind to me, even during stressful situations.

2nd Anniversary

Our anniversary fell on a Monday, so we did a cute picnic lunch on the secluded island at Silverwood Park. Pictures and picnic set up courtesy of the one and only Jackie Anderson.

I surprised Kristen with a picture frame collage that I made similar to the one I did for the first year anniversary (last post). Then, Kristen and Jackie surprised me with a picnic and the awesome collage blanket! I was totally thrown off about this perfect surprise!

We got Piper the Corgi!

We picked up our new pup, Piper from Ogilvie, MN. She has been a great addition to our family. We couldn't imagine life without her!

Engagement Day!

Justin surprised me and got down on one knee in front of Minnehaha Falls where we went for our first date two years prior. At first I said "NO WAY!" because I was so stunned that the proposal was actually happening. But then my brain caught up with me and said I probably should say yes instead, so Justin was thankful I said yes! We enjoyed the rest of the day on the surrey bike biking around the paved trails with Bryce and Jennie and the puppies, Piper and Luna that sat in the front basket. Pictures courtesy of Bishop Creative Studios.

3rd Anniversary

Justin changed jobs as of May 2022. His job's headquarters is in Sioux Falls, SD. We were able to spend the entire week of our anniversary together in Sioux Falls for his quarterly trip there.

We celebrated our anniversary over Justin's lunch hour at Blue Rock Bar & Grill and had a pleasant surprise when they said it was Taco Tuesday and they had an unlimited taco bar!

Our evening was spent at Monk's House of Ale for pizza on the patio, followed by a walk around Falls Park in the downtown area of Sioux Falls. We got ice cream and sat out on the patio enjoying the nice evening and new views.

We got married (the first time)!

Such a beautiful day and a great time spent with our families.

We bought our very first house in Coon Rapids

A fenced in yard out back was definitely a plus for the dogs!

We got Pilot the Corgi!

We picked up our newest addition to the family, Pilot! Fun fact, we brought him home the same day that our youngest niece, Scarlett was born!

Kristen's Wings Ceremony

Kristen and Justin and Kristen's dad, Ted celebrated a big life event for Kristen, she is now a First Officer Pilot for Delta Air Lines!

We are so thankful for the love and support of our family and friends. You all have molded and shaped our relationship so we can be the best form of ourselves for each other. We can't wait to celebrate our wedding day with everyone!