In the age of online dating, we actually met the "old fashioned way" - through mutual friends! Our respective roommates Erik and Carolyn had dated for a few years when we first met at Carolyn's birthday party in February 2019. We sat next to each other at Barlow (Annika's neighborhood bar) and discovered we both loved running - we even ran at the same State Championship cross-country meet back in 2009! After a few more group gatherings (and a few drinks in) we admitted that we both had feelings. We started officially dating in May 2019, and the rest is history. Two years into our relationship, we moved in together and rescued our dog Cooper a few weeks later. Though we knew each other was "the one" before adopting Cooper, training a teenage dog in a new home (not to mention during a pandemic) was a challenge, but we both rose to the occasion. Adopting Cooper not only solidified our relationship, but brought us our best friend and adventure buddy! Braden proposed on April 15, 2023 on a rainy Saturday hike up the Eagle Creek trail in the Columbia River Gorge. Annika was very surprised given that we had a busy summer ahead - 6 weeks later we moved to Bend! Though we miss all of our Portland friends, it's been wonderful getting to explore Central Oregon and expand on our outdoor hobbies. We've always been avid hikers, but have branched out into biking, stand up paddle boarding, and Annika is even learning how to ski! We have enjoyed spending our engagement getting to know Bend, and we are so excited to invite our friends and family here to celebrate our wedding!