Our story almost ended before it began! Our best man Cole had mentioned that Hunter had given up on dating. Nan, in typical blunt fashion, was like: "24? That's a little young to be that melodramatic about it. Set him up on a date with me." Nan was NOT expecting anything to come out of her offer, but next thing you knew, we had a date scheduled! BUT we almost cancelled the date before it happened! We met before our first date on June 12, on a blistering hot day, after Hunter had been dragged all over Richmond, and Nan had been to the dentist (which she does not like). We were NOT in a good mood to begin with, and THEN we got into an argument about the moral ambiguity of the movie Passengers. Nan called her mom afterwards and said, "I want to cancel." When Hunter's grandma called and asked if he had had any dates lately, he said "None worth mentioning." We were off to a great start!
By the grace of God, we did NOT cancel. It literally was a miracle. And you know what? It was a really great experience for the both of us! We went to Chili's with Cole and Joy and then drove around Chester. We saw literal fireworks (not even kidding.) For Nan, she knew that it was worth a second date when she went off on a rant on theological issues and Hunter said, " I agree." (In all seriousness Nan was very pleased by Hunter's depth of character and his obvious love for Jesus). For Hunter, his opinion shifted when he realized that Nan can be pretty funny. ;) Also, when he mentioned a biography on Theodore Roosevelt he was reading, Nan responded, "Isn't Theodore Roosevelt the only president who can be classified as legally blind, because he was partially blind in one eye?" Hunter appreciated that Nan had a vast repertoire of historical facts at her disposal. (In all seriousness, Hunter figured out pretty quickly that Nan was a person of great intellect, humor and character.) Hunter had no idea how to ask Nan out for a second date (He didn't think he'd get that far, to be honest). But we ended up hanging out the next day with the Tilleys to watch The Phantom of the Opera (a favorite of us both). Afterwards, numbers were exchanged and the journey began!
Nan was suspicious. It all started on Nan's birthday weekend in November, when Hunter spent the weekend at her parents' home. Hunter was unusually silent as far as texts go, and Nan was suspicious that a BIG conversation was happening. Especially when she arrived to find her mom smiling at her strangely. But Nan shrugged it off and went about her daily life. Hunter and Nan started planning for a weekend in Lynchburg and settled on the first weekend in December. The plan was to have dinner and then walk around Liberty's campus and see the Christmas lights. Nan's suspicions were heightened again when the dinner plans went from Texas Roadhouse to Isabella's, a local Italian place where we had to make reservations (and they had the bread slices with the olive oil and vinegar. FANCY). Also, Hunter used an excuse about a staff Christmas party to explain why he would be dressed up for dinner, and why Nan should dress up too... At last it was December 4th and Nan headed to Lynchburg to spend the day with Hunter. It was the most perfect time. Dinner was delicious (see our "Things to Do" page for our recommendations!). Then we headed to the campus to see the Christmas lights. We were the only ones on campus, walking in the rain, enjoying the holiday décor. He proposed in front of the big Christmas tree by the business administration building. What was Nan's answer, you ask? Well what do you think, you're on a freaking Zola page!
Isn't God's timing funny that we fell in love and have dated throughout a pandemic! Neither of us thought we'd find ourselves planning and holding a wedding with social distancing restrictions in place. Due to these restrictions, we will be keeping our guest list rather limited. We thank you for your understanding and patience as we navigate this challenging season.