How they met

Alison and Mike met in the spring of 2007 at Oregon State University. A mutual friend set them up on a date, and the rest is history.

The proposal

After dating for one year, Mike proposed on a spur-of-the-moment hike up to their favorite spot in Corvallis: Bald Hill. They love spending time outdoors, particularly backpacking and hiking. On one of their first trips together, Alison casually told Mike if he ever wanted to marry her he didn’t need an engagement ring, just a pine cone would do!

Remembering that, he hid her ring inside a pine cone and carried it in his pocket. At the top of the hill, he got down on one knee and presented her with the pine cone. He gave a beautiful, thoughtful proposal, but, unfortunately, she barely heard a word of it through her excitement. Thankfully, he’d written it down for her to keep so she could always remember their proposal.

As soon as Alison said yes, the sky let loose a torrent of rain. In her excitement, Alison accidentally dropped the pinecone at the top of the hill. After racing down the trail in the rain for a few minutes, she realized she was missing the pinecone, so Mike ran up the hill and retrieved it for her. They were soaked to the bone, covered in mud and the happiest people in the world when they got home that day.