Jack and Taylor had no way of knowing when they were living across the street from each other as children that they would be engaged 19 years later. They carpooled to school together with their siblings, played games in the neighborhood, played a lot of Super Mario Smash Brothers, and Taylor became good friends with Jack’s younger sister, Reilly. As Taylor began spending more and more time over at the Johnson house, Jack’s mom told his dad, “One day Jack and Taylor are going to get married!”

During Taylor’s sophomore year at North Carolina State University and Jack’s senior year at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, amidst attending college events with friends such as parties and get togethers, they began going on dates that included competing against each other at the infamous North Carolina State Fair, bowling (spoiler alert: Jack always won), teaching Taylor how to drive his manual car, and dining at local restaurants that Jack labeled as the “hidden gems of Chapel Hill”, one of Taylor’s favorites being Maple View Farm Ice Cream due to her sweet tooth! Over the next 7.5 years, their relationship grew stronger as they took up new hobbies together such as golf, explored the many activities Atlanta has to offer including Brave’s games at The Battery and the Botanical Gardens, made new memories on family vacations, and overall spent quality time together, which led Jack to discover his all-time favorite restaurant called Tay’s Tavern (i.e. Taylor’s cooking).

Fast forward to November 8th, 2025, the day Jack popped the question! He planned an “Excel Spreadsheet Date” (which Taylor had jokingly requested after seeing him utilize Excel for planning work items) that included a timeline, links, and pictures of what they would be doing in Blue Ridge, Georgia for the day! The morning consisted of a Chick-Fil-A breakfast and shopping in downtown Blue Ridge before moving on to Mercier’s Orchard mid-afternoon for a tractor ride around the orchard, snacking on boiled peanuts and fried pies, and buying 10lbs of apples so Taylor could make her first homemade apple pie (which was a delicious success according to Jack!). Lastly, they headed to Taylor’s family cabin as Jack stated that they had to "pick up some Christmas decorations” that Taylor’s mom had left at the cabin. After almost giving Jack a heart attack by panicking about not hitting a squirrel that ran into the middle of the curvy mountain road, with the sun setting behind the Blue Ridge mountains, Taylor was so surprised when he said, "So I lied about why we’re here," before getting down on one knee and asking her to marry him on the cabin’s front porch. It was an exciting ending to a perfect day, but also an exciting way to start the next chapter of their lives!