I met Jonny Rodgers my second week of my freshman year of college and it truly has been an adventure ever since! Our love story wasn’t a love-at-first sight type of deal. It was a we met, spent a year being good pals (I was even his wingman) and then one day when It hit me—maybe I liked him as more than a friend.;) Lucky for me we ended up in the same class the following semester and he quickly charmed me by tying my shoe laces together in the middle of our class & I soon charmed him by reading our class textbook to him several nights a week. It soon struck me that is sudden dedication to finishing every class reading could be indication that he had /feelings/ for me too. After several months of dedicated flirting and some honestly pretty angsty times, we decided to go for it! And my, what began has been truly one of the most beautiful, raw, and wild journeys I’ve ever embarked on! Jonathan’s adventurous & loving soul has captivated me beyond what words can express and his faithfulness to me fills me with gratitude daily. His fierce loyalty, his passion for authenticity, & his gentle spirit are just a few of my favorite things about him.

I feel so blessed by God because in these last few years I’ve been able to experience so much with Jonathan. He’s had my back in the craziest & most difficult situations, he’s been my travel companion, & he is forever by my side, wonder-full & grateful for what God has given us. He is my dearest friend & having him by my side these last several years—through the golden days, the really hard days and the mundane days in between—has been a great honor and delight! Though we are the very best of friends & deeply in love, our relationship isn’t perfect—we fight about stupid (and important) things, sometimes I act like a complete jerk, and frankly, we are still kids trying to figure out our lives together—but He who is perfect in Heaven has blessed us with peace and joy in our relationship. With the Lords banner of love waving over us, I am giddy and oh-so-ready to enter into this marriage covenant with my beloved, Jonny Rodgers!

Christine & I met the 2nd week of college at a movie showing of quite possibly the the greatest hit of the summer, Divergent. My friend Ellie had met a girl named Rachel & we sat next to her & her friend Christine. We started talking & all immediately clicked. After the movie, we ended up buying fun snacks at Harris Teeter to celebrate Christine’s birthday & I bought her an apple & a balloon for a present (if you want love just start buying apples for people). The next year consisted of a super fun friendship full of exciting adventures & interesting conversations. At one point Christine was actually my wingman, trying to talk me up to a girl that I had a crush on. She was obviously a terrible wingman as it didn’t work out (or maybe she was ultimately an amazing wingman for herself?) As we entered Sophomore year, we both had a class together & got to know each other more on an individual level & I realized that I started to develop feelings for her. This realization came about when we started staying up late together working on leadership homework. As someone who did the bare minimum, this was very rare & made me question my studious behavior. What attracted me to Christine was that she was hilarious, loved to go on crazy adventures & was just super fun to goof around & hang out with. I was really attracted to her unique beauty/personality & loved how she was so passionate about God, missions & helping others. One day in October of 2015 we went biking to one of our favorite spots & I read her a letter that I had written telling her that I liked her! Even though it was super cheesy & definitely makes me cringe now, she still admitted that she kind of liked me too. We went on a date & after a rough beginning began dating in February!

We have had so many adventures since then including traveling for a semester abroad in Scotland, running late at night, exploring A LOT of nature, creating a business together, eating tarantulas, thrifting, & climbing abandoned towers. Over the past 3 1/2 years together, I have loved getting to know more about Christine. From her openness, to her insight & wisdom, I have learned so many amazing things through my relationship with her. Towards the end of our senior year, Christine became really sick with a chronic condition that we are still trying to figure out. Its primary symptom is intense fatigue and has made it hard for her to do a lot of things that she loves to do. Though this has been really tough in certain ways, we have really grown closer to each other & I know that God is working through us & our relationship amidst all of it. Christine experiences so much hardship every day & I have been so inspired by her constant perseverance & her ability to find joy in the smallest ways. I am so excited to continue our journey together by committing ourselves to each other through the beautiful covenant of marriage. Here is to the rest of our lives together!