➼ Both the Bride and Groom went to Valley High School but only ever interacted in passing; Evan thought Erica was cute the whole time and Erica thought Evan went to different high school. ➼ Evan's friend, now groomsman, Jackson Waters actually took Erica to prom. ➼ Erica attended a hangout at Evan's parent's in High School which included multiple members of the wedding party; Evan was too shy to make a move. ➼ Erica and some of her Bridesmaids were invited to Evan's (alleged) cabin New Years parties; The Bridesmaids came but Erica was never able to make it.

Erica and Evan officially met in college when Erica happened to attend one of Evan and his roommates parties. Erica arrived with some friends who promptly decided it was lame and wanted to leave, but Erica was having such a good time talking to Evan that she refused to leave. Evan managed to get Erica's Snapchat by claiming he wanted pictures of her cats (which he is slightly allergic to and, at the time, generally disliked). After a few months of exclusively cat photos, he finally managed to take her out on a date. Evan is now a proud co-parent of two cats, Oliver and Rory, whom he loves dearly.

When Evan and Erica began dating they were going to Iowa State University and Loyola University Chicago, respectively. Erica had moved back home to Ankeny from Chicago and was taking classes remotely (yay COVID) while frequently visited Evan in Ames (e.g. while the Miata was broken). Shortly after Erica graduated, she moved back to Chicago and the couple did long-distance until Evan graduated and joined her in Chicago the following year. It was back to Iowa (Ankeny) the next year and then finally into a home of their own the year after that. In-between moving, Erica and Evan have travelled to Italy, Mexico, and Canada and road-tripped from lighthouses in Maine to old mining towns in Colorado.

Erica and Evan have spent the last year: ➼ Settling into their new home together (painting, flooring, hosting, etc.) ➼ Getting engaged, falling deeper in love, and planning this wedding. ➼ Sending Erica to get her Masters in Counseling from Drake University. ➼ Building their own home garden which, at time of writing, has yet to come to fruition.