The featured picture is our first documented picture together! We may have had others, but they weren't saved. This picture was taken on December 26th 2021, the day Caroline met Randy's family. We had known each other for 46 days before this picture. Caroline doesn't like having her picture taken!

So, Randy had been single for 10 months and was interested in another relationship with the right person. Caroline had been single for less time, but was also open to another relationship. Both of us do not particularly love social situations, especially for dating purposes. That fact led us both to, you guessed it, the dating app Tinder!

After having fantastic conversations over the app for about a week, we met up for a lunch date at a diner in Clarkston! It was Veteran's Day 2021 (November 11th). After eating, we took a drive through Orion Township, where Randy worked as a Firefighter at the time. We ended up stopping at the Oxford house that Randy purchased a short time later. After the driving, we found ourselves on a long walk on a trail between Orion and Oakland Township. Randy could tell Caroline's love for fishing when she saw a fish swimming in the stream and became super excited!

We had to have walked at least 4 miles that day, always full of great conversation. Caroline felt it was a very wholesome first date, which is a rarity to experience from a man in the dating pool nowadays. Randy could tell that Caroline was a very down to earth and easy-going girl, what a blessing!

I don't know if there's been a day in our lives that we haven't spoken to each other in some way or form since the day we matched on Tinder. The attraction has grown for each other since we met!

In late 2024, Randy knew it was time to move the relationship forward after 3 years of dating! Randy knows Caroline loves turquoise, and wanted to incorporate that into a wedding ring. Randy finalized a design online and let the thought sit over our 8 day cruise in January 2025! Cruises are another annual trip we seem to take! We love taking in the sun and tropical weather in the middle of winter (It helps Caroline make it to spring!). Once we returned from the cruise, Randy made one small change to the ring, and then purchased it! Randy always had a plan for the marriage proposal. It had to be at Caroline's favorite place on earth; The beach at her family cottage in the Keweenaw Peninsula. In March of 2025, we took a trip up to the Keweenaw peninsula for a quick getaway. We stopped at Caroline’s grandparent’s cottage on Lake Superior and went down to the (very frozen and snow covered) beach. Caroline did what she always does… and looked for rocks. There was obviously too much snow to actually find any rocks, but when she heard Randy say “I found one rock”, she turned around to see him on one knee. She obviously said YES and we can’t wait to be married on June 5th, 2026! The picture for this story is the picture Randy took as Caroline was ahead and we were both walking to the beach. Caroline had no idea whatsoever that Randy was going to propose!

Caroline and Randy decided to officially start dating 32 days after their first date! After that, we were absolutely inseparable. We spent basically every single night together that Randy was not at work. We found that we basically grew up the same way, and had a lot of the same family norms and traditions. We even had very similar values and views on life. Wed never felt like we related to a partner so well!As Randy purchased and worked on the Oxford house, Caroline would make the 1.5hr drive to come see Randy after working at the doctors office without question. Our dedication to spending time together was unrivaled and very touching. Randy enjoyed showing Caroline his completed projects, new items, and interior decor tastes. Caroline was a huge help with working on the house. Thats where we bonded over teamwork! We absolutely love to travel and adventure. In March 2022, we traveled to Traverse City to explore the area. It was cold and snowy but we loved every second! We joked multiple times about moving up north (How ironic!). At one point, we were on the Old Mission Peninsula and saw a bunch of fire trucks running lights and sirens to some type of scene. Caroline said Hey! That could be you! And you know what.. That really stuck with Randy. After that trip, Randy looked at Firefighter job postings for Northern Michigan. Nothing was really paying all that well, and Randy gave up on the idea.In the meantime, Randy and Caroline seemed to take at least 1 trip a month and do amazing things together. In early June 2022, Randy noticed that Leland Township had a job posting out with an updated contract that would match the pay Randy was currently at. Was it a sign?? Either way, Randy called up his Mom to talk about a wild idea.. Moving up north into her spare home in Charlevoix? After some talking, it was a yes!Then the even bigger question.. Was Caroline in to moving up north with Randy after only knowing each other for 7 months? That was a YES!! The most significant life move we've had besides getting engaged happened on Labor day weekend 2022 when we moved to Charlevoix and started new jobs! Living in Charlevoix was amazing, and very relaxing. Even though Caroline hates the winter, we still loved our time together. We looked for a home to move out of Randy's parent's house, but affordability was a challenge. Caroline ended up attending a CNA class and started working at Bay Bluffs in Harbor Springs taking care of the residents there. Caroline works three 12-hour shifts a week, and Randy works 48 hours on duty and 4 days off, so we both have a lot of time off together. In September 2023, we found a house for sale and we ended up with our own home in Charlevoix! The house has needed a LOT of work, but still overall worth it. Through teamwork and determination, we fixed and cleaned enough to get the main rooms of the house ready to use, and we moved in early April 2024! Summer 2024 was amazing because we had our first boat! Even though the Seadoo jet boat broke down frequently, exploring all of the lakes around us was priceless. Adventuring together is one of our very favorite things to do! Right before Christmas 2024 we went down to the Smokey Mountains for what seems to be an annual trip to the area! The Smokey Mountains feel special to us and we have a lot of memories down there after 5 trips down there (And a 6th trip scheduled for April 2026!). During our December 2024 trip, Randy's brother Kyle was looking over the house and found that the basement was flooded. Somehow, the outside faucet turned itself on and was absolutely flooding the ground next to the house, which was getting into the basement. We didn't let it ruin our trip, and we cleaned everything up when we got home. Around this time, Randy felt it was time to move the relationship forward and ended up proposing! (See the proposal story). Right after Randy proposed, came the crazy ice storm that hit Northern Michigan in March 2025. We were out of power for 3 days, but made off much better than most people! The light at the end of the ice storm tunnel was a sweet deal on a bigger boat! Randy and his brother Kyle drove to Wisconsin for the boat and we can't wait to keep exploring the Great Lakes! In early summer 2025 Caroline's beloved cat, Junior, passed away. It was sad for both of us. Out of that situation we ended up with another kitty named Moe! He's very fluffy. Throughout the rest of 2025, we spent a ton of time on the jetskis that Randy bought and fixed up. During jetski summer and into the fall we also worked on planning our wedding. The following months have been just loving life together and writing our story on here! We can't wait to see everyone in June 2026!