~Todd was so sweet and wanted everything to be perfect for the big proposal like every guy out there. Unbeknownst to Jen, he had spoken to her Dad about marrying her in October while at a brewery tour (and after a few brewskis ;-) Todd took his mother ring shopping as a sweet gesture, and ultimately picked the diamond but designed the setting himself. He spent Christmas Eve with Jen's family, and was going to propose then. Problem was, Jen was fighting a horrible virus and had barely any voice at all. He probably wanted to actually hear Jen say "yes", so he opted to wait until another time ;-)

On New Year's Eve, they were on their way out the door to a friend's NYE party. Todd asked Jen to run upstairs quick so he could give her something. Not thinking anything of it, she proceeded to tell him they should probably go to the party. He complied, and so yet again another lost opportunity to propose! Oops!

Finally, the weekend of January 8th, they spent time at a family birthday party. On that night while alone he asked Jen to go to the rooftop where there was a beautiful view of the skyline of Chicago. He told her that he had something to give her, but being that it was after Christmas and the holidays, again she didn't think much of it. Since they were going outside, she thought it might be a bike or snowshoes, since he told her the gift had been outside for a few weeks (total lie.) She was thinking...she could use a new bike! Then he had her close her eyes. He was starting to tell this story about how he had this woman stitch this piece of clothing for Jen, and it took her a while to make it since she is 5'10". It was bizarre, and he was acting really nervous! Then he proceeded to say some nice things, which of course she doesn't remember since she was starting to figure out what was going on! He then said "Marry Me, Jenny" (which he calls her sometimes) and got up right away. Since Jen wanted to remember him on his knee, she asked if he would get back down so she could say YES! The ring sparkled even in the dark of night! They were so excited. They then took a walk by Lake Michigan and no one was out, so it felt like they had the city to themselves. They sipped champagne in their thermos's, and took some pictures.

~In September of 2004, Jennifer started working at Cardinal Health in Illinois. Todd worked on the same floor as her, but she didn't sit near him so didn't have an occasion to talk to him on a daily basis. (Although she always thought he was cute!) In September 2005, he was moved closer to her desk at work. He knew Jen had moved to IL from Minnesota, and sent her an email forward he received entitled "You know you're a Minnesotan if..." This sparked emails to one another back and forth about anything and everything. They would then start to meet up with mutual friends in the city. Eventually on December 23, 2005, they went out for a drink at Lenox Lounge and the rest is history.

A few fun facts...

~Jen's Dad knew Todd's grandpa back in the early 80's when they lived in Chicago. They were both in healthcare, and Todd and Jen eventually met some 20 years later on their own. ;-)

~Also, in college they figured out they were separated by one person. Todd went to Purdue, and had a buddy who was in the same fraternity that was from from Minnesota. He set this friend up with another girl from Minnesota that came to one of their parties, and they ended up marrying. The girl from Minnesota went to high school with one of Jen's bridesmaid's husbands. Small world!

~Todd was born in NW Indiana, where he grew up loving the Chicago Bears, Cubs, Blackhawks, and Bulls. Anyone that knows him knows how big of a sports enthusiast he is! In 2004, he graduated from Purdue University and relocated to Chicago, IL to work for the same healthcare supplier as Jen. Todd recently ran his first marathon and likes to lift weights, box, play tennis, travel, grill, and make Jen laugh.

~Jen was born in Downersgrove, Illinois. She also lived in Minnesota as a child and grew up in Dallas, Texas. Eventually, in high school her family relocated back to Minnesota where she also attended college. In the Fall of 2004, she accepted a job with a healthcare supplier and moved to Chicago, IL where she met her future husband! They enjoy traveling together, running, playing tennis, and she kicks his butt in Nintendo Wii bowling ;-) She is very excited to marry her best friend!

Welcome to our wedsite! Thank you for sharing in the celebration of our marriage! We are grateful to have tremendous amounts of love & support from our friends & family. You mean the world to us!

Please come back to our website often, as we will make updates as the months go on.

We hope you enjoy browsing these pages for photos and stories about us and our future plans. And while you are here, please sign our guestbook!

Lots of Love,

Jen & Todd

Update: We are going to HAWAII (Kauai) for our honeymoon. Your voting helped make the decision so thank you :-)