It all started in Atlanta in 2016, when fate (and maybe a dating app) brought us together. Our first date? The finest establishment in town: Waffle House.

From there, it was an on-again, off-again saga, until 2021, when we went on a cruise with Andrew’s family. Somewhere between the buffet line and the shuffleboard deck, Andrew’s mom’s friend Vickie made the prophetic declaration: “Emma is the one for Andrew.” Spoiler alert: Vickie was right.

For the next few years, we insisted we were “just friends,” despite calling each other every night for hours and talking about absolutely everything under the sun. From 2021 to 2024, we both went through huge personal transformations and life changes, but through it all, we stayed each other’s constant.

Then came Henri—the dog that changed everything. Emma adopted him because, in her words, “If Andrew just wants to be friends, I don’t want any other man. I’ll get myself the best companion there is: a dog.” When Andrew found this out, he had a long, hard think. Several weeks later, it hit him: maybe we weren’t “just friends” after all.

On Valentine’s Day 2024, Andrew sent Emma a bouquet of roses and asked her to “go steady.” She said yes, and things moved quickly from there. We took lots of trips between Columbia and Atlanta, until July 2024 when Emma packed her bags and moved to Columbia for good. The rest of the year was a romantic whirlwind of new jobs, a new apartment, and new friends.

Exactly one year later, Valentine’s Day 2025, Andrew got down on one knee at the California Grill at Disney World. Fireworks were literally exploding in the background when he pulled out the most stunning ring. Emma’s first words were, “Are you being serious?” When Andrew assured her he was, she immediately burst into tears and said “YES!”

Since then, we have bought a beautiful home in downtown Columbia and blended our fur families together—four cats and, of course, Henri, the dog that started it all.

These days, you can find us watching Star Wars, listening to Harry Potter audiobooks, playing music, reading, hanging out with friends at a Martha's Vault show, or cuddling up with our pets. And if you ask us, we'll tell you: every great love story should come with good friends, great pets, and at least one very wise woman named Vickie.

Emma and Andrew are so excited to celebrate our love and the start of our lives together with you. Thank you for joining us!