Our Story
Tyler and I were actually married before we started dating. Let me explain.... we met sophomore year of high school on the cross country team after I moved from Florida to TX. We never really spoke that year, but I always thought he was pretty cute. Junior year this fad went around on the team where people would get "married." Rather than actually run during practice, we would go into the woods and one teammate would officiate the "marriage" of two other teammates. After about 3 other weddings, Tyler proposed to me online and it fueled the crush I had already developed.
We started hanging out more, although usually still in groups at studyfests (really just xbox games and tv, but a good cover for our parents) or at dinner with friends. A Krispy Kreme store was built in San Antonio and it became the popular destination for a while. On one trip a friend backed out and it ended up being just Tyler and I headed to KK. After that first "date," Tyler pulled up at my house to drop me off and we realized our cross country coach was at my house visiting my mom. When she saw Tyler and I alone together in the car she kind of freaked out and had to know if we were dating. The funny part was my mom didn't even know that I liked him at that point, so it ended up being a surprise to everyone.
Not long after, the guys decided to have an anti-homecoming party (basically a boycott) where they just wore t-shirts (and some wore ties) and the girls wore cocktail dresses and running shoes. We all just went out to dinner and none of us had official dates. However, Tyler and I ended up talking and sitting near each other the whole evening, and it happily ended in us deciding that we should be a couple. It was a very exciting moment for both of us. Senior year went along smoothly for us. Then it came time to decide where we would go to college. I got recruited to Texas Tech for running while Tyler was recuited to Duke for track. Although we visited each other during our breaks, that first year of undergrad was very difficult. Fortunately we learned how to make it work and ultimately our relationship just became stronger. I knew I didn't want to spend all four years apart, however, (and Lubbock just wasn't for me) so I transferred to UNC to be closer to him and to attend the best school ever ;o) (Go Heels!) Our time out in North Carolina was wonderful. We only got to see each other on weekends sophomore and junior year, but it was much better than every 2 months. Our last year out there we got an apartment together and I think it really helped solidify our feelings for each other and our knowledge that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. We both moved back to Texas after I graduated. I started attending medical school at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio while Tyler was busy practicing to become a progamer at Starcraft. Tyler ended up winning a national tournament for the game and got invited to join a pro-team in Seoul, South Korea. While that meant we would have to spend even more time apart, this was a dream he had had for a while and was not something to pass up. He has since gone and returned from South Korea, and has decided that pro-gaming is not quite the life he wants. He is now back at Duke finishing up his undergrad degree while I'm at UTHSCSA in my second year of med school. Although another long distance relationship was not ideal, we're both doing what we want and know will best for both of us in the long run. It will suck that we won't actually be together for the first half year of our marriage, but we were too excited to take this next step to put it off any longer. :o)
The Proposal
Two days before Tyler was scheduled to leave for Korea, he took me to a park near my house for a picnic. We found a nice secluded spot on a hillside and spread out our blanket and food. We enjoyed the view and the sunset while we ate our picnic pizza and strawberries. After we were done, I started heading down the hill. Tyler called my name and when I turned around he was holding the ring. He got down on one knee and said "I don't have anything planned to say," so I told him to make it up. He said "Ok, I am like the wind, and you are like the air, and without you I wouldn't be possible. Will you marry me?" And of course I said yes! After being gone for about 2.5 months, Tyler is now back from Korea and we can finally experience our engagement and wedding planning together. I don't think he was ready for all of the wedding craziness quite yet, but I'm sure he'll get used to it. :o)
