Like all good love stories, ours started years before either of us realized it.

I started going to a local CrossFit gym, where I became friends with Tyler's aunt, Lacey. One day, she casually mentioned that she had a nephew she thought would be a perfect match for me. The funny part? She refused to tell me his name, show me a picture, or give me any way to find him. Apparently, she did the exact same thing to Tyler about me.

At the time, I was in a season of focusing on myself, so I tucked the thought away and never really pursued it.

Fast forward a few years.

One Christmas, I happened to see Tyler in one of Lacey's Instagram posts and immediately thought, "Wait... is THIS the nephew she was talking about?" Naturally, I did what anyone would do—I investigated. (Okay... I stalked his Instagram.)

With a little liquid courage, I finally sent him a message:

"Fun fact: I'm the girl that Lacey was trying to set you up with a few years ago."

...And then I waited.

For two weeks.

Nothing.

Eventually, Tyler replied, and we started chatting here and there. But life got busy, conversations fizzled out, and that seemed like the end of it.

Until three months later.

He liked my Instagram story from a UL baseball game.

So this time, I decided to shoot my shot.

"Want to come to the next one?"

His response?

"Absolutely."

Three days later, on April 27, 2025, we had our very first date at a 2:00 p.m. UL baseball game.

From the moment we sat down, we talked and laughed nonstop. Hours flew by. Oddly enough, I left the date thinking it was more friendly as it wasn't overly flirty, and I honestly wasn't sure he was interested.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

According to his mom, Tyler came home that night with the biggest smile on his face and couldn't stop talking about our date.

The rest, as they say, is history.

We kept spending time together, and almost instantly, we knew there was something different about what we had. It was a connection neither of us had ever experienced before. The best way we've found to describe it is that it felt like our souls had recognized each other.

Just 13 days after our first date, we told each other, "I love you."

Two months later, Tyler moved in.

Sometimes people ask how you know when you've found your person.

For us, it just felt easy. Like we had finally found home in each other.