Our Story

Long, but very cute.

Brad and Ashley met in the summer of 2005 in Okoboji, Iowa while working at Oak Hill Marina. Right after Ashley graduated from high school, she and her friend Tracey moved into Tracey's parents cabin for the summer to work at Oak Hill Marina in the rental shack. At the time, Brad was the service writer for the company. Ashley found herself making "short-cuts" through the marina just to see him. One day, not too long after meeting each other, Brad asked Ashley if she wanted to go for a ride on his motorcycle. They went for a long ride and stopped at a local state park to talk a little longer. The next day, Ashley left on a trip for ten days with her fellow graduates. Every other night, she received a phone call from Brad, asking how her trip was going. Ashley told Brad that "she didn't move to Okoboji to get a boyfriend." But that didn't last for long. When Ashley returned from her trip, she found herself hanging out with Brad every chance she got.

In the summer of 2005, many things changed for both Brad and Ashley. Brad purchased his first home in Spirit Lake, IA. He spent a lot of time outside, trying to make the dead patch of grass grow. Brad also spent a lot of time riding his rocket around the lakes. When Brad and Ashley weren't working at Oak Hill Marina, you could usually find them lying around, watching Family Guy or That 70's Show. If they weren't at Brad's house, you could find them out on the water.

In the fall of 2005, it was time for Ashley to head off to her freshman year of college at South Dakota State University in Brookings, South Dakota. Her and Brad went through a couple rough patches, but they made it though. During that school year, Brad and Ashley brought a little one into their lives, Lizzie. Ashley came home almost every weekend to be with Brad and their new puppy, Lizzie. Ashley's freshman year ended and she decided to live with Brad for the summer while working at Oak Hill again.

Another summer went by. Brad and Ashley spent a lot of time working and wakeboarding. They also spent many weekends traveling to see Brad's family in Minnesota and going camping with Ashley's family. As the summer came to a close, Ashley and Lizzie moved to Brookings for her sophomore year of college.

During the fall of 2006, Brad made the decision to put his house up for sale and move to St. Cloud, MN, to live with his brother. He got a job at Polar Tank & Trailer. With Brad living in St. Cloud and Ashley living in Brookings, SD, they were about four hours apart and weren't able to see each other very often. During this time, Ashley made the decision to move to St. Cloud to live with Brad and his brother. She changed her major to Finance and enrolled in St Cloud State University.

Brad and Ashley lived with Brad's brother, Keith until they decided to buy a home during the summer of 2007. They looked a quite a few homes. When their realitor showed them a house they couldn't resist, they had to put in an offer on it. On July 29, 2007, Brad and Ashley closed on their first home together. The Monday following move-in weekend, Ashley started working full-time at ING Direct.

The following week, on August 8, 2007, Brad asked Ashley to marry him. At one o'clock in the morning, Brad came home from work to find Ashley sleeping. He knelt down next to the bed and took her hand. Ashley slowly started to wake as he placed a ring on her finger. She was instantly wide awake at this point. Brad asked her the famous question, "Will you marry me?" Of course she said yes!

At the moment, Brad and Ashley are living in their home in St Cloud and are loving every minute of it. In Febuary 2008, Brad and Ashley added one more little one to their family, Drake. He is another purebred Papillion and is definitely a hand full when it comes to house breaking. Ashley is busy working and going to school full time. Brad keeps busy out in the garage with his 2nd love, his Harley and enjoys it very much. Lizzie and Drake also keep Ashley and Brad busy. Some days the house can be chaotic, but they love having them in their lives. Brad and Ashley are just enjoying life to the fullest, waiting for the Big Day to become Mr. & Mrs.!

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