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From fifth-grade bus seats to our first home in Streetsboro, we’ve spent nearly sixteen years growing up together. This is the timeline of how a stolen pair of Ugg boots turned into a "forever" kind of deal.
Where it all began...
2010: The Ugg Boot Heist
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Our story began on the bus ride home from Lakeview Intermediate. Living just one street apart, we became bus-seat buddies after an introduction from our friend, Marissa. One winter afternoon, Alex decided the best way to get Rachel’s attention was to steal her Ugg boots and flee at his assigned stop. Rachel, knowing it was against the rules, hopped off one stop early to chase him all the way to his front door. She got her boots back, but Alex decided to play the long game to get the girl.
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2014: Starting High School
We remained close during early High School, as we spent these years perfecting the art of being 'just friends,' a title that was becoming increasingly suspicious to everyone who knew us. We repped the Stow Bulldogs with pride: Rachel on the soccer field and track, and Alex on the bowling team.
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2016: Hard-Launching the BF/GF Status
After attending a Cleveland Guardians game with friends, Alex finally asked Rachel to be his girlfriend. We officially made it out of the friend zone as second-semester sophomores, proving that sometimes the best romance starts with a stolen boot and a 200-meter dash.
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2018: A Bulldog Farewell
We tossed our caps at the Kent State MAC Center, closing the chapter on our time in Stow. It was the end of an era and the beginning of us figuring out how to be adults together, without the benefit of a shared bus route. Rachel headed to Cleveland State University, while Alex moved to Dayton to bowl for Wright State University alongside his groomsman, Nick Arlequeew.
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2020: The College Years
College life was a blur of highway miles and weekend bags. Rachel lived the city life in downtown Cleveland with Stow soccer teammates Maddie and Lauren, and their new friend (and future Matron of Honor) Jordan. Meanwhile, Alex lived in Dayton with Nick, his brother and Best Man, Nolan, and their lifelong friend Alex Ridings. We spent these years trading weekends between Cleveland and Dayton, making the most of the I-71 grind, holiday breaks, and family vacations.
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On to the next chapter!
2022: Closing the Distance
After Rachel graduated from Cleveland State, she moved to South Euclid with Jordan. While Rachel was honing her passion for patient care as an Orthopedic Tech at University Hospitals, Alex moved back to Stow to finish his degree at Kent State and work alongside his dad at Missing Mountain Brewery. Now in neighboring area codes, this was the closest we had lived since high school. After years of long-distance, we finally traded long drives for frequent date nights while counting down the days until we shared a home.
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2023: Two Alexes and Two Cats
Fresh off Alex’s graduation from Kent State, we moved into our first apartment in Streetsboro with Alex’s best friend and groomsman, Alex Ridings (yes, two Alexes, one apartment). Shortly after we settled in, Jordan discovered a stray kitten during a storm and gave us a call. We took him in, named him Ollie, and officially completed our cat duo the following year with the addition of our girl cat, Josie.
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2024: The Proposal
After fourteen years of friendship and eight years of dating, Alex decided it was finally time to upgrade the "boyfriend" title. On October 1st, 2024, during a family vacation to the Dominican Republic, everyone gathered on Cabeza de Toro Beach for a family photo. In a move of expert coordination, Nolan discreetly slipped Alex the ring, and Alex dropped to one knee to pop the question. After the easiest "yes" of Rachel's life and celebrations that spanned from the Caribbean back to Ohio, we got to work. We’ve spent our engagement balancing wedding spreadsheets with exciting new chapters: Rachel is in school to become an MRI Technologist, and Alex is hitting his stride as a Sales Representative at Ohio Beverage Distributing.
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THE GIRLS
THE GUYS
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