"My older brother, Peter, introduced me to Mike in high school at one of his traditional Sunday Chicago Bears viewing parties at our parents’ house. Mike came over every Sunday to watch the games, and I started to notice him more and more. I noticed his smile and how funny he was, and we started talking more and more every week. I even made it a point to learn more about football and the Bears so that we would have something to start our conversations. Little did he know, I wasn’t very concerned with how the Bears did on the field, I was only concerned with impressing him with the knowledge I had learned about the game.
"I finally had the courage to ask him out about half way through the season and he agreed to grab a cup of coffee with me. It was a bit awkward for the two of us because we were seeing each other without my brother’s knowledge. Needless to say it was a bit more awkward for Mike when he told Peter that he wanted to date me.
"Mike and I stayed together once he went to college and I joined him at Wittenberg University upon my graduation. After seven years of dating, Mike and I decided to move in together. In November 2014, Mike proposed.
"The day Mike proposed was quite the adventure. Sports have still been a large part of our relationship, and over the years I have grown to love all of our Chicago sports teams. Mike played rugby throughout his college years, and he bought us tickets to a historical game at Soldier Field. The New Zealand All Blacks were in town to play Team USA and a lot of our college friends were in town for the game also.
"After the game we went to dinner near the Chicago River and then he asked if I wanted to take a walk around Lincoln Park Zoo. The cab driver drove us to the zoo, and when we pulled up he alerted us that the zoo was closed. Mike told him that it didn’t matter because we were going to walk around the nature walk on the perimeter of the zoo.
"We walked until we saw the “honeycomb” structure in the park, and we stood and enjoyed the view of the city. He got down on one knee and proposed! I was so nervous, happy, and had a face full of tears. Two of his friends were in the bushes preparing for the special moment with a camera in hand to capture the moment.
"After we took some pictures we went to celebrate at our favorite neighborhood bar. He had one more surprise for me when we got there. All of our friends that attended the rugby game and our close friends from the area were there ready to celebrate with us. It truly was a perfect day!
"Mike and I will be getting married over Memorial Day weekend on May 28, 2016. We are getting married at St. Nicholas church in our hometown of Evanston and a reception to follow at the Orrington hotel. We are very excited to celebrate our love with family and friends. Thank you so much, ChicagoStyle Weddings, for making our special day even more special!" -- Stephanie
