We'd been in the same friend group for 8+ years but the timing must have just been right when Catherine moved back to Austin in 2020. (Sara called it during a backyard hangout when we saw each other again for the first time!) After a few awkward months of not knowing whether the other one felt the same way, Jay asked Catherine on their first date to Barton Springs to swim and people watch. The rest was history!

Jay recreated our first trip together to Marfa and Terlingua. On the last day, we went on a 12-mile hike in Big Bend National Park and Jay proposed at the most beautiful lookout point in the park. Since it was so remote, we had a good 7 miles to go before we were off the mountain and had service to call our friends and family! We toasted with champagne, made a feast for dinner and looked up at the starry West Texas sky. It was a perfect day (besides the fact that both of us could barely walk after that hike).