MTM Contestants

Alyssa Leavy and Ray Robinson

Leavy_Robinson
Their story

Friendship is often the cornerstone of a successful marriage, and for Alyssa Leavy and Ray Robinson, friendship has been the building block of their relationship from the beginning.

“I think with us being friends first it made our relationship so much easier. He knows I’m goofy and I can be a little ‘air-headed’ at times, but he accepts me, flaws and all,” Alyssa said. “We laugh at each other, and that keeps us close.”

The couple both met while in high school and then again a year later in college. Although it wasn’t love at first sight — Alyssa thought Ray was rude — their friendship blossomed after being introduced for a third time in college.

It was through a tragedy of Alyssa losing her best friend, CaShundra, in a car accident and Ray being by her side that made her realize that she was meant to spend her life with him.

“Ray was right by my side while I cried,” Alyssa said. “I remember falling to the floor and him pulling me up and holding me; he said, ‘I know that I can never replace Shun, but you’ve got a friend in me.’ That was it! He touched my heart then and there.”

After 10 years together, Ray proposed in Las Vegas over breakfast in the MGM Signature hotel while they were attending his family reunion.

Ray asked Alyssa if she’d like her dessert, then lifted the cover off the plate to reveal a platinum, two-carat, three emerald-cut diamond ring in a Chanel set from Bailey Banks and Biddle. On one knee, he asked her to marry him.

Alyssa and Ray are planning the wedding for August 2010, but the details are still hazy. The couple would like to hold the ceremony in Las Vegas, but family members are encouraging the wedding to be in Little Rock. One thing, however, is decided — they want guests to have fun.

“We know we want to have a wedding where everyone is free to just have fun and dance the night away,” Alyssa said.

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By alyssaray | Posted in Leavey/Robinson | Comments Off

Jana Gertsch and Adam Jokerst

Their story

Adam Jokerst and Jana Gertsch know their love will endure, even if they’re an ocean apart.

Adam, 25, and Jana, 24, met in a microbiology class where, Jana said, “We paid more attention to each other than the subject.”

“One look from those blue eyes and it was love at first sight for me,” Jana said. “He is intelligent, fun and adventurous. From the moment I met Adam I just knew we were right for one another.”

Since their graduation they have been separated by an ocean while Adam worked with the Peace Corps, survived a summer in the Wyoming wilderness doing volunteer work and moved to Colorado for graduate school.

“Adam graduated a year before me and joined the Peace Corps,” Jana said. “He was sent to Mali, West Africa, and to say communication was limited is an overstatement. He was only there for a couple of months before deciding to come home. That is the point when I knew we would get married.”

Upon Adam’s return the couple decided to attend graduate school together at Colorado State University and that summer they moved to Wyoming to volunteer for the U.S. Forest Service in the Wind River Mountain Range.

A typical date for the couple always involves the outdoors, something the couple has a passion for.

“When we lived in Arkansas we spent every weekend we could on an Ozark river, fishing for smallmouth bass and camping on the river bank,” Adam said. “We love to be outdoors.”

Adam even proposed on a camping trip, where Jana said she suspected nothing.

“We went to a place we have camped before,” Jana said. “It was so peaceful and beautiful; the moment could not have been more perfect. Without any suggestions or help from me, Adam picked out the most beautiful engagement ring. It was a complete surprise.”

The couple is planning a June 2010 wedding at Our Lady of the Holy Souls Catholic Church in Little Rock. The reception is going to be a comfortable, casual barbecue in Jana’s parents’ backyard.

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By janaadam | Posted in Gertsch/Jokerst | Comments Off

Sarah Longwill and Derek Keathley

Their story

Sarah Longwill and Derek Keathley met on the first day of seventh grade at Abundant Life School in Sherwood. They sat beside each other in Honors Algebra.

“Once I broke through his shy shell, we were best friends and inseparable,” Sarah said. “He got me and I got him.”

Although there was a connection, the pair didn’t date until their senior year at Abundant Life.

“When I got my first boyfriend, which wasn’t Derek, all I could think about was how much I missed him,” Sarah said. “This made us both realize that we were meant to be with each other.”

Their first date was a double date to a haunted house in Jacksonville.

“I hated it because I’m a wimp when it comes to scary things, but Derek loved it because I held onto him the whole time,” Sarah said.

The two went to the University of Central Arkansas, and after dating for two years, Derek proposed.

The proposal came on a Thursday in December — Dec. 18, 2008.

Sarah, Derek, Sarah’s mother, Kathy Longwill, Derek’s mother, Patsy Keathley, and Sarah’s godmother, Jo Kern, went to visit Marlsgate Plantation in Scott. They planned to see the Christmas decorations and enjoy lunch together.

After walking around, Derek told her he wanted to get a picture of the painting of the dog in the Eternal Light room, the room where the owner keeps a lamp burning 24 hours a day in honor of the love his grandparents had for one another.

“Derek started by telling me ‘I love you. I’ve spent the best years of my life with you,’” Sarah said. “At first, I couldn’t understand why he was telling me this. That’s when he got down on one knee and proposed.”

Sarah’s first reaction was to bring her hand over her mouth and say ‘Oh my goodness.’

“Derek finally said ‘Aren’t you going to say yes?’ and of course I said yes,” Sarah said, laughing.

The couple plan to marry Jan. 2, 2010 at Sylvan Hills Community Church in Sherwood, and the reception will take place at Next Level Events in Little Rock.

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By sarahderek | Posted in Longwill/Keathley | Comments Off

Sabrina Johnson and Andrew Rodgers

Their story

Can you imagine being asked one of the most important questions of your life in front of an entire crowd of people? That is exactly how it went for Sabrina Johnson when her fiance, Andrew Rodgers, proposed.

He took her to dinner at a restaurant called Huckleberry’s. Both of their parents were present.

“Little did I know that he had already spoken with my parents and also asked my dad for my hand in marriage,” she said.

In the middle of dinner he got everyone’s attention, kneeled and popped the question. After she accepted, several couples congratulated them and gave them some advice. One man that had been married for 61 years told them, “One sure way to make your relationship last is to always remember to nod to your wife and say, ‘Yes, sweetheart. Anything you say.’”

Sabrina said she knows she was meant to be with Andrew forever. There may be differences between the two, but “we will work out any problem that comes between us, because giving up is not an option.”

They are to be married in July 2010 in an outdoor wedding on the riverfront with a purple and lime green-colored theme.

“We have the music, the DJ, the wedding party, the wedding planner, the seamstress, a caterer and a cake baker but have not chosen the cake,” Sabrina said.

After the wedding, they plan to finish their degrees in psychology. Sabrina plans to also get a nursing degree and work with adolescents. Andrew will pursue a doctorate in psychology.

“He has major plans and high hopes for our lives, and whether we reach the top or remain in the middle, I will continue to love him the same,” Sabrina said.

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By sabrinaandrew | Posted in Johnson/Rodgers | Comments Off

Natasha Barkins and Michale Brinkley

Their story

You’ve got to hand it to a guy who has the guts to introduce himself to a woman at Walmart. Natasha Barkins said when Michale Brinkley first approached her at Wally World two years ago, she was skeptical.

But she was also intrigued. She was curious about his background (Michale, who is originally from Delaware, is in the Air Force and stationed at Little Rock Air Force Base).

After exchanging a couple of calls, the couple had their first date at the Lakewood Village Shopping Park in North Little Rock.

“We walked around and talked and ate ice cream,” Natasha said. “We went and sat down by that big fountain. … We were probably there for 2 1/2 hours.”

Natasha and Michale’s love grew from there, and on Mother’s Day of this year, Michale cooked breakfast for Natasha and pulled out a gift bag.

“I thought he had gotten me a bracelet because had said he wanted to get me that,” Natasha said.

Instead, Michale dropped to one knee, telling Natasha he wanted to take their relationship to the next level.

The couple plan to wed Saturday, March 20, 2010, at the Pulaski County Courthouse. Natasha said they chose the courthouse because it’s a beautiful building and “doesn’t require a lot of setup.”

Natasha said the trickiest part of getting married at the courthouse will be finding a place for a caterer to set up. For her decorations, she’s employed a family member who is a decorator in south Arkansas, but she’s not been able to plan much yet.

“I haven’t decided on a color,” Natasha said. “That’s where we’re at right now, trying to decide on a color.”

The bride-to-be said she’s hopeful the government doesn’t decide to ship her fiance overseas before they’re able to get married.

“Michale’s been to Iraq three times,” she said. “We’re hoping that’s over and done with and that he doesn’t have to go anywhere else.”

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By natashamichale | Posted in Barkins/Brinkley | Comments Off

Molly Pate and Logan Bloom

Their story

Molly Pate and Logan Bloom both found their passion by the age of 14. Without knowing each other, both decided in the same year they would enter into the ministry — in the youth ministry to be exact. In pursuit of that career, they chose the same college. They met in their first class at John Brown University, when Logan entered the room and sat behind her. The two have been friends ever since.

The two of them are a couple unlike many in today’s world. Not only were they each other’s first love, but they were each other’s first date and first kiss.

Neither one was very into causal dating, they both wanted a short but strong relationship. They were best friends for three years, dated for four months, and on their Jan. 9 wedding day, they will have been engaged for eight months.

Pate graduated from JBU this year and moved to Kansas to look for a job while Logan finishes up his studies. Being so young and so far away from each other requires the two of them to “live on love.”

“We are young and long distance, so we have obstacles, but with God’s help we can make it through anything,” Pate said.

Their wedding, while traditional in most ways, will have a few unique features. Keeping in line with most weddings, they’ve decided it will be big — about 600 people. They have already picked the church florist and caterer and plan to have dancing at the reception.

Their wedding will be different from most when guests will have the opportunity to ride on a horse-drawn carriage during the reception. When the bride and groom are ready to leave, the carriage will take them to the door of their honeymoon suite.

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By mollylogan | Posted in Pate/Bloom | Comments Off

Meaghan Wilcox and Scott Gillespie

Their story

When Meaghan Wilcox and Scott Gillespie met for the first time, they connected with each other so quickly that Meaghan said it felt like “they were picking up where they left off.”

“Once we started talking it seemed like everything in ours live meshed perfectly,” she said.

But despite that, she kept her guard up because she had never had a serious relationship and didn’t know what to do or expect.

They started dating for a few months before she moved to Colorado. He decided to leave his home and move there, too. Eventually he found a good job in his home state of Arkansas and returned. And Meaghan, who decided she couldn’t stand to be away from him, followed six months later.

On the anniversary of their first date, he proposed in an unconventional way — a scavenger hunt. When she woke up one morning, her mom handed her an envelope with a clue. When she opened it, she read a poem that led her to a salon and instructed her to get a manicure.

She then received the second envelope, which contained a map. When she followed it, she discovered it led her to a place where she got a facial and a massage. After her pampering, she received the third envelope. This one told her to meet Scott on the big walking bridge.

She arrived before him, so she sat on a bench to wait. Not long after, he arrived with her dog. The dog had a pillow, holding a ring, tied around its neck. He untied the ribbon, knelt on one knee and proposed. She accepted.

Now in full wedding-planning mode, they have most big details picked out. They want a small, traditional wedding in early May. After the wedding she plans to look at going to medical school in Memphis.

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By meaghanscott | Posted in Wilcox/Gillespie | Comments Off

Stephanie Rice and Bryan Eagle

Their story

When Stephanie Rice first met the man of her dreams, she wasn’t in a great place.

“I had just ended a three-year relationship with somebody else,” she said. “I was kind of spiraling downward.”

Enter Bryan Eagle. The two met through a mutual friend, Bryan’s roommate, who worked with Stephanie at a hospital pharmacy in Russellville. They were both students at Arkansas Tech University (Bryan has since graduated while Stephanie has a year left).

“He thought it was love at first sight,” Stephanie said. “But I was less convinced.”

Bryan soon convinced her that they were meant to be together, and in December of last year, he devised a plan of how to pop the question.

At the time, the couple’s daily routine usually involved Bryan getting off work around 3 p.m. and immediately calling Stephanie. So when she got a call from him at 1 on the afternoon of Dec. 12, she was a bit surprised.

“He said he’d had a bad day, so he had gone up to Mount Nebo just to think,” Stephanie said. “At first I was mad. I thought, ‘Well, you could have invited me to go up there.’”

Bryan lured her to the mountain by telling her he had a flat tire. She showed up, and he proposed amid a beautiful natural setting.

The couple will wed on Saturday, Dec. 19, in Subiaco. Stephanie said it seems like they’ve gotten a lot done in terms of planning, “but there’s a lot of little stuff yet to be done.”

She’s gotten plenty of help from her future hubby, though.

“He’s been pretty good about [helping plan the wedding],” she said. “He always likes to know what’s going on.”

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By stephaniebryan | Posted in Rice/Eagle | Comments Off

Jamie Cash and CJ Duncan

Their story

Jamie Cash, 22, and CJ Duncan, 21, of Conway have been “hooked” on each other since their first date.

The couple met through Jamie’s cousin Kendra Milligan, a hairstylist in Fayetteville. CJ, a friend of Milligan’s, asked her to cut and style his hair while she was in town for a visit. Milligan, who had been wanting the two to meet, asked Jamie if she could use her home to do the job, and she agreed.

“When he walked in the front door, I thought he was the cutest guy I had ever seen,” Jamie said. “While he was getting his hair done, we talked and talked as if we were trying to get to know each other and were very interested.”

A few months later, Jamie said she found CJ on Facebook and they started talking.

Their first date started out at Starbucks and ended with them renting Finding Neverland. As they watched the movie, Jamie told CJ that she likes to collect fairies, so they began to call each other JamieBell and CJPan.

A year and a half later, after coming home from a month-long mission trip to South Africa that they went on together, CJ threw Jamie a surprise Disney-themed birthday party. CJ dressed as Peter Pan and gave Jamie a Tinker Bell costume to wear. As they were opening presents, CJ’s gift to Jamie was an empty camera box. Confused, Jamie looked at CJ, who took the box from her, dropped to his knee and pulled out his real gift — an engagement ring — and asked her to marry him.

“It was the best moment of my life — one I will never forget,” Jamie said.

The two plan to wed in May 2010 at Jamie’s grandmother’s home overlooking Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs with the reception at the Austin Hotel. Other than the wedding and reception sites, Jamie said they are still early in the wedding-planning process.

“Since it’s such a long engagement, I’ve really just gone to look for dresses. I haven’t really done much else,” Jamie said. “I’ve pretty much found the dress, but that’s about it.”

Perhaps a Neverland fairy tale theme for the decorations?

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By jamiecj | Posted in Cash/Duncan | Comments Off

Holly Humphries and Brennan Duke

Their story

Sometimes you’ve just got to love the one you’re with, as the song says, and then sometimes your soul mate is right around the corner.

Holly Humphries, 21, and her fiance, Brennan Duke, 22, met while Holly was visiting a mutual friend in Fayetteville, where Brennan was going to college. Holly, who is a student at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., but who is from North Little Rock, was dating a guy in New York, so needless to say she wasn’t looking for a new relationship.

But when Brennan first saw Holly, “I said to myself ‘There’s my wife. It was a weird feeling — I just knew.”

The two stayed up all night talking, and Holly got an inkling that maybe Mr. New York wasn’t Mr. Right.

“I had never been attracted to another guy,” Holly said. “But I was drooling on myself. He looked so handsome in his [Army combat uniform].

Brennan and Holly spent many weekends together that summer, even though they lived three hours apart.

Brennan was sure that they would be together one day — he started saving for her engagement ring the day after meeting her — but had to be patient and wait for Holly to realize it, too.
During a visit to New York to see her boyfriend, Holly realized she was falling for Brennan.

“Something had changed. My physical self was in New York, but my heart was in Fayetteville,” she said. “It was at that moment that I realized I was in love with Brennan, my best friend.”

She broke up with her boyfriend, and Brennan and Holly started dating in June 2008. On Nov. 21, in front of the Terry House in Little Rock, Brennan got down on one knee and proposed.

He has since transferred to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock to be closer to Holly. And while she must return to Nashville, Tenn., for her senior year of college this fall, they hope to see each other every weekend.

The couple plan to marry on Saturday, June 26, 2010, at the Terry House.

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By hollybrennan | Posted in Humphries/Duke | Comments Off

Hannah Cook and Christopher Byington

Their story

When Christopher Byington sat down at Hannah Cook’s table in biology lab, he was not at all what she thought she was looking for in a boyfriend. She never suspected to find the beginnings of a romantic relationship while dissecting frogs in class at John Brown University.

“He kept staring at me, and I kept thinking, ‘He’s not my type.’ I came up with all these excuses why I didn’t like him,” she said.

Hannah, who had been blissfully single and enjoying “anti-boyfriend parties” with her friends, agreed to go out with Christopher when he finally asked because she “felt sorry for him.” Her apprehension over the date was so great, it had her thinking of scenarios akin to those in How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days just to get out of it.

“I just really didn’t want to go. But then we watched a movie in his dorm room with some of his friends, and then we went to get hot chocolate afterward, and it was the most perfect date ever,” she said.
Hannah later learned that she was Christopher’s first girlfriend.

Hannah, an early childhood education major, said she is the more outgoing of the two. Her fiance refers to her as “spunky.” Christopher, a biblical theology studies major, has aspirations of being a preacher, and while he is someone who is easy to talk to, he is a more reserved person, Hannah said. After only six months of dating, Christopher drove six hours from where he lived in Missouri to propose.

“I was napping when he came to the house, and when I finally got up to answer the door he was standing there, dressed very nicely, and said, ‘I took a wrong turn in Missouri and wound up here,’” Hannah said.

When he presented her with the ring, Hannah said she cried.

“And I never cry,” she added.

The young couple, both 19, plans to wed June 19, 2010. Hannah and her sister are both wedding coordinators, so the wedding plans are well in hand, she said. She has already booked the chapel and reception venue, and a woman at Christopher’s church has offered to make her wedding dress for free.

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By hannahchristopher | Posted in Cook/Byington | Comments Off

Cynthia South and Michael Hassan

Their story

Who needs white wedding cake when you can have hot pink? And who needs an afternoon church wedding when you can get married under the stars?

That’s what Cynthia South and Michael Hassan are planning for their wedding. They don’t want the traditional white wedding, but a ceremony all their own. The hot pink cake comes from wanting something modern, and the starry night is included because Michale proposed to her at midnight.

From the start, no one believed their relationship would last.

Michael left for basic training in the Army, and the two of them have been separated for much of their engagement. He lives in Arizona, and she’s studying to be a school teacher here in Arkansas.

But the two met in high school and went to prom together.

On his first visit to her house, the two walked down a trail that ended at a lake.

After that day, the two took many more walks down the trail and created many memories. And then one cold December night, he proposed to Cynthia on their six-month anniversary.

He asked her to take a walk down the trail around 11 p.m. Every few feet there was a glow stick in the ground.

Each one represented another memory. When they got to a place that represented one special memory, where Michael had committed his life to Christ, there were several glow sticks clustered together. She thought that was the end of the walk, but he had much more in store.

They kept walking all the way to the lake at the end of the trail, where he told her how much he loved her and why. She had the slightest idea he might propose, but when he was through he got up and started walking away. Seemingly out of nowhere came a couple of their good friends. One playing guitar and the other singing. They sang “God Bless The Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts.

Before the end, they paused, and he proposed. Even though they have been apart through most of their engagement, they know they are meant to be together and plan to be married on Friday, Oct. 9.

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By cynthiamichael | Posted in South/Hassan | Comments Off

Bailey Newcomb and Will Faulkner

Their story
Bailey Newcomb, 28, has had a crush on fiance Will Faulkner, 31, since they were children.

“We swam at the same neighborhood pool,” Bailey said. “I had such a big crush on him that when he came to swim I would get out of the pool and walk home.”

As they got older, life led them down separate paths. But in 2007, fate put them in the position to reconnect when they ran into each other with a group of mutual friends, where Bailey revealed her childhood crush to a friend. A few days later, Will got Bailey’s number and asked her to go see Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix .

“She went on the date, but didn’t like the movie,” Will said. “But she didn’t tell me until eight months after we’d been dating.”

One particularly special aspect of the couple’s relationship has been Will bonding with Polly, Bailey’s three-legged rescue dog.
“Will gave up many Saturdays during football season to go through extensive training classes with her,” Bailey said.

Will wanted to earn Polly’s trust and loyalty because she is an important part of Bailey’s life, he said.

When Will finally decided to pop the question, he had lunch with Bailey’s father to ask for approval.

“I was really really nervous, but when I shook his hand, a calm came over me and I knew it was OK.”

Her father said yes, so Will faced the challenge of planning his proposal. After much consideration, he decided to propose to Bailey at her house.

On May 8 of this year in Bailey’s living room, Will recited a poem from memory asking Bailey to be his wife. She gladly accepted, and Polly approved.

“She was jumping up and down,” Bailey said. “I asked her ‘Polly, do you want Will to be your dad?’ and she put her paw on my ring.”

On the morning of June 30, Bailey’s house was broken into. Several items were stolen, including her engagement ring. Although the couple is devastated at the loss, nothing can stand in the way of their happiness.

The wedding will take place in on Saturday, Sept. 12. The couple is planning a traditional Southern wedding with their close friends and family present.

“It’s the easiest thing we’ve ever done,” Will said. “It just feels comfortable and the right thing to do.”

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By baileywill | Posted in Newcomb/Faulkner | Comments Off

Amy Strickland and Lance Williams

Their story

Amy Strickland, 22, and Lance Williams, 24, are the traditional “high school sweetheart” couple. They met in Spanish class, made it to senior prom, graduation and now the wonderful world of wedding planning.

Their first date, five years ago, started out as an average dinner date, but afterward they went to a strawberry field. Earlier in the day, they picked a whole box of strawberries and they returned after dinner for a fresh-fruit dessert.

The two of them love the outdoors and all of the activities that go along with that — including hunting. Amy used to hunt with her dad, and Lance has been hunting since he was 7. They also like fishing, riding four-wheelers and “other outdoorsy stuff.”

The day Lance proposed, the two of them picked sunflowers and watched a sunset at Pinnacle Mountain. She was surprised by his proposal, but “definitely excited.” They plan to have a standard- sized wedding, with about 120 guests. The two are in the process of planning all the details: flowers, a location, colors, invitation lists and more.

Amy will graduate from UALR in December. Her mother insisted that she finish her degree before getting married. Because of that, she’s been planning this wedding for a long time — on her early May wedding day, she and Lance will have been engaged for two years. She wanted to get married in October, but that’s the middle of hunting season, Lance said, so she settled on May.

Planning the wedding’s many details has been difficult for Amy, even though she’s using the help of a wedding planner. Her parents are helping to pay for some of the expenses, but she’d like to win this contest because “that’s one less thing to worry about.” After the wedding, she plans to return to school to get her master’s degree.

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By amylance | Posted in Strickland/Williams | Comments Off

Abbie Caldwell and Danny Kent

Their Story

Danny Kent knew it was God’s will to marry Abbie Caldwell after a dream he had about her being his wife. The only thing was that he had only spoken a couple words to her after a church youth member dared him to “mess with” the preacher’s granddaughter a couple years before the dream.

“After that dream, I laughed like ‘yeah, right’ because she was gorgeous and I thought she was out of my league,” Danny said.

But instead of shrugging the dream off and moving on, he wrote it down and decided to see if it was a sign for his future.

Years passed, and Abbie and Danny led separate lives. Danny played music in the church and carried on a relationship with a fellow church member. Abbie had been engaged, moved to Los Angeles to pursue her career, moved back to Arkansas for her fiance, and then her engagement ended.

Exactly a year after her engagement ended, Abbie was prophesied over by a minister that God was ready to do some things in her personal life and that it was very important who she married. Not too soon after that, Danny had the dream. And not too soon after that, conversation began between the two on Facebook.

“It was just casual conversation here and there that led to us being friends,” Danny said.

On their first date on Aug. 29, 2008, the couple went out to dinner and went back to her house to watch a movie.

“We were like teenagers sitting on the couch with our hands close but not touching. … They kept getting closer and closer. It was so funny,” Abbie said.

Things moved very quickly after that first date.

“I only date with a purpose,” Danny said, “and when you know, you know. Having that dream was the Lord’s way to tell me that she was the one. She was created for me.”

Danny proposed to Abbie in April 2009 during a picnic on a private cove overlooking the Arkansas River. The couple plan to wed at An Enchanting Evening in Roland on the same day as their first date: Aug. 29.

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By abbiedanny | Posted in Caldwell/Kent | Comments Off

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