Chris and Kelly met in January 2015 with the help of OkCupid, a dating website. Chris had recently moved to Winston-Salem for a job at Winston-Salem State University and had planned to use the site as a way to meet people in his new city. Kelly was in her second year of law school at Wake Forest University and living with a house full of girls. Kelly and two of her roommates created profiles together over a long holiday weekend as a way to pass the time. Shortly after Kelly had activated her profile, Chris reached out with the line, “So, is law school really as hard as people say it is?” Chris says he specifically asked this question to prove to Kelly that he had thoroughly read her profile and was legitimately interested in getting to know her. Kelly says she responded to his question as an opportunity to vent about school. Immediately after their introduction, though, Chris and Kelly hit it off and spent the following week getting to know each other over the phone.

The next weekend, Chris and Kelly met for dinner at Village Tavern for their first date, followed by a trip to the movies. Kelly went into the date not expecting it to turn into a relationship because of her very busy school schedule. Chris was optimistic based on their previous conversations and was anxious to finally meet her in person. Despite Chris’s obvious nervousness, they had a great time and really enjoyed talking to one another over dinner. As the date wound down, Chris asked Kelly out on a second date the following night to a local concert, to which Kelly replied…that she “had to check her schedule." Despite a successful first date, Kelly was still skeptical about starting a relationship during school. When she went home, one of Kelly’s roommates suggested that since the date hadn’t gone poorly, that a second date couldn’t hurt. So the following night, Kelly met up with Chris at the concert. But this time, Kelly brought two of her roommates, Jeanna and Rachel, so they could help her decide if Chris was “dating material.” Immediately upon meeting, Jeanna, Rachel, and Chris got along great, and the girls made a plan to exit the concert shortly after it started, leaving Kelly and Chris to enjoy the music together. Following the first two dates, Kelly and Chris continued to find ways to make time to see each other and their relationship quickly developed into the love they share to this day.

Early into their relationship, Chris was adamant about wanting to adopt a dog. Knowing how much work and expense adding a furry family member can be, Kelly wasn’t sure it was a good idea at the time. But four months into dating, Chris began visiting local dog rescues and, after a month of searching, he fell in love with a puppy named “Darla.” Kelly was living in Virginia at the time completing an internship but made the trip down to North Carolina to meet Chris’s new puppy on the day he was bringing her home. Initially, Kelly was very clear that this new dog was to be Chris’s responsibility and that he would be in charge of taking care of her. However, within minutes of meeting, Kelly and the puppy, now renamed “Sadie,” became inseparable. As everyone knows, Kelly and Chris are obsessed with their fur-baby. Sadie is all cuddles and doggy smiles and they are so lucky to have her as their “puppernutter.” Little did they know, Sadie would become an essential part of Chris’s proposal…

Kelly and Chris knew early on that they were each other’s future. But they also wanted to build a solid foundation and enjoy the dating phase of their relationship. After about three years together, they began discussing marriage. However, by their fourth anniversary, Chris had still not proposed. With a trip to Italy planned for April 2019, Kelly was certain Chris would propose on their European adventure. However, Chris knew that he did not want to propose in Italy because Kelly would undoubtedly be expecting it then, ruining the element of surprise. Chris instead decided he wanted to pop the question at their favorite winery in North Carolina, but he hadn’t yet asked Kelly’s dad for his blessing. So, Chris planned a secret trip to Virginia and met her dad for lunch, where he formally asked for Kelly’s hand in marriage. With his approval, Chris then worked with friends to ensure Kelly had her nails professionally done and that there would be a surprise engagement dinner/celebration with friends following the proposal. On the day of the proposal, Kelly and Chris made their way to Jolo Winery. Unbeknownst to Kelly, Chris had the ring in his glove compartment. Initially, he planned to propose on the grass overlooking Pilot Mountain, but as luck would have it, it was pouring rain all day. As a result, Chris scrapped that idea and scrambled to come up with an alternate plan. He instead made their apartment into the perfect proposal spot, complete with candles, rose petals, and pictures--all while Kelly was getting ready for dinner in the next room. To Kelly’s complete surprise, Chris called her into the living room, where she discovered him down on one knee. Sadie was posed perfectly next to Chris, but now with some new accessories--a pink bow and diamond ring on her collar! The proposal was private and meaningful, as Kelly had always wanted it to be, and she of course said “Yes!” After the proposal, they continued celebrating their excitement at dinner with friends.