Meier Long Wedding
How We Met
Rachel and Rob met many years ago at East Main Church of Christ (EMCC). Rachel has been going to this church her whole life. Rob was invited to go to the EMCC youth group by another youth member. She was 10 and in the 5th grade and he was slightly older at 12 and in the 7th grade. Although they were never in the same youth class, they laughed and played together at church events. The most notable event was going to Alive 2000.
In high school, Rachel and Rob were two grades apart. Rachel was friends with some of Rob’s friends and Rob was friends with some of Rachel’s friends. Unfortunately, their timing was never quite right. When one wasn’t in a relationship, the other was. So, they more or less admired each other from afar. God was just waiting for the right time to bring both of them together!
How We Started Dating
Sometime in 2011, Rob and Rachel started talking on Skype. Rob hadn't used Skype for a long time, but one of his friend started getting him to use it for a game. Rob and Rachel just happened to be friends on there and began talking to each other. They would talk for hours upon hours. So, they decided to exchange phone numbers and began texting each other as well. Anyone who knows Rob knows that he doesn't text much, so he must really like someone to text them on a regular basis. One weekend, Rachel was in Kentucky working an auction with her mom. After the auction, all the employees went out for a drink. Rachel, in her normal chatty self, started texting Rob. One thing led to another and they arranged to meet at Rob's apartment for dinner.
Rob was super excited and made his, and incidentally her favorite meal; Steak and Potatoes. They sat and talked for hours while they watched “Wild Wild West” and “Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.” After such a great night, they decided to get together again the next day to have dinner and watch another movie. This time, Rob went all out and made homemade tortellini in alfredo sauce, fresh green beans, and breadsticks. The night went on and when Rachel was getting ready to leave, Rob asked her if they could make this “Facebook official.” Since then, they have been happily dating!
Our Engagement Story
The day before the proposal, Rob and Rachel were spending time together like they always do; watching movies and talking. Rob was trying to keep his cool, because he didn’t want to give away the fact that he was going to propose the very next day. However, he forgot one very important thing; Rob never asked Kurtis (Rachel’s dad) for his blessing. He was pretty nervous, but he went to Rachel’s house with the intent to ask permission for her hand in marriage. When he got there, Rachel was attached to his hip. As the night went on, Rob didn’t get a chance to ask Kurtis. This was proving to be a difficult task. Rob was thinking of anything and everything to try and get him and Kurtis alone, but Rachel almost seemed to be onto his plan as she always thought of a reason to stay by his side.
Towards the end of the night, Rachel finally left his side to go to the bathroom. Taking this opportunity, Rob pulled Kurtis aside and told him, “Tomorrow, I plan on asking Rachel to marry me.” Anyone who knows Kurtis knows that he can be a man of a few words. He simply said, “Well, you have my blessing.” With that, Rob ended the night and went home to bed.
Rob and Rachel already had a date night planned. When Rob went to pick her up, she was wearing a beautiful dress and had her hair curled. Rob immediately thought that she knew what he was planning. His heart started to race as he was trying to figure out how to stay calm. Rob thought Kurtis had said something to Brenda (Rachel’s mom) who, in turn, was hinting to Rachel that it was going to be a special night (Brenda didn’t know a thing). Nevertheless, Rob took her out on their date.
To backtrack on this story a little bit, Rob was given a demand for his proposal from Rachel’s cousin Kayla. Kayla ordered (excessive force was used) that he had to call someone to follow them around and get pictures of the proposal. Being the problem solver that Rob is, he thought of the perfect plan.
Now, back to the story! Rob took Rachel to the Fairfield Commons Mall. Unbeknownst to Rachel, Rob was looking for something specific. They spent hours walking around shopping. Each jewelry store they passed, Rachel subtly hinted to Rob to go in and look at rings. As his heart raced, he made some manly excuse to not go in as he looked down to make sure the box in his pocket wasn’t noticeable. Having walked around the whole mall and not finding what he was looking for, Rob’s plan seemed to be falling through. However, he had a backup plan!
Knowing that Rachel is a Wolverine (the comic book) fan, Rob asked if she would like to go to Piqua and watch the new Wolverine movie. Clever ol’ Rob had ulterior motives. He knew without the shadow of a doubt that the object he was looking for would be found in the Piqua mall. He made sure to leave the Fairfield Mall with enough time to spare, before the movie, to give them an excuse to walk around the Piqua Mall. Rob and Rachel walked down the first hallway and found what Rob needed; a photo booth. Rob asked if she would like to get their picture taken and being the shutter-bug that she is, she agreed.
The photo booth takes 4 pictures in a time lapse setting. The first picture was your average couple picture; cheeks scrunched in, silly little grins, and sparkles in the eyes. Click! For the second picture, Rachel decided to get a “traditionally cute” picture. She closed her eyes and leaned in for a kiss. During this picture Rob pulled out the ring, opened it, and placed it in front of them and the camera. Click! They opened their eyes and Rachel was in shock to see a ring in front of her. The third picture was taken while Rachel still had the surprised look on her face. Click! Rob then said to her, “This is the part where you say ‘yes’.” As tears filled her eyes, she looked at Rob and said yes. They kissed. Click! The final picture was taken. They were engaged!