Some people meet at a party. Some meet on dating apps. Chris and Lauren? They almost met a dozen times and didn’t even know it. Let’s rewind to 2021. Lauren made a spontaneous leap from Florida to Las Vegas for a hotel gig—setting up shop in Summerlin just off N. Buffalo, commuting to the Strip. Chris, a born-and-raised Vegas local, also lived in Summerlin and worked a street away from N. Buffalo—plus he was cheffing it up on the Strip too. Were they ever in the same hotel? Same casino? Same Trader Joe’s aisle? She went to Resorts World… he worked at Brezza. Same building. Same time? Maybe. The universe was teasing a meet-cute—but not yet. Flash forward to 2023. Lauren, still following her wild heart, applies on a whim for a seasonal hotel job in Alaska. That’s right—Alaska in the dead of winter. Bold move, Capricorn. She lands in Talkeetna in January 2024, ready for something new. Meanwhile, Chris had already been living his Alaskan chapter for a few years and had just returned to Talkeetna to take on the Executive Chef role at Homestead Kitchen. Cue the magic: March 2024, lodge bingo night. It’s late winter in Alaska (read: everyone is a little stir-crazy and very into board games). Game nights, bar hangs, small town vibes. Chris and Lauren became fast friends—think: fierce card game rivals, inside jokes, and lots of sass. Both stubborn Capricorns, both low-key crushing… neither making the first move. Their friends saw it. They shipped it. Then came the Slush Cup Festival in Girdwood—a blur of snow, sunshine, and springtime chaos. Somewhere between the après and long drink lines, Chris finally asked Lauren to grab lunch… at his friend’s food truck. 💛And if you know Lauren, you know—she’s a sucker for food trucks. 💛 That lunch hit different. The vibes were right. The spark officially lit. And just like that, the stars finally stopped playing games. They’ve been orbiting each other ever since. Now they’re throwing their biggest festival yet: A celebration of love, timing, and finally finding your person.