We're getting married!

Let’s rewind to our early Austin days. Jeni had just packed up her life and moved to the city from her hometown, chasing a career in Animal Welfare and searching for a church community where she could grow in faith and friendships. She didn’t know a single person—well, except for one friend… who had conveniently moved away. Meanwhile, Alex had been living in Austin for a while but was this close to calling it quits and heading back to Wichita. He gave himself one more year to see if Austin could feel like home. Spoiler alert: it delivered.

The “official” story we told everyone: We met at a downtown Austin coffee shop. Jeni asked Alex for a drink recommendation in line. He suggested an iced caramel macchiato. She smiled, thanked him, and ordered something totally different. They chatted briefly, parted ways, and then—like a true romantic—Alex chased her down before she left and asked for her number. Adorable, right? Yeah… that never happened.

We met on Hinge. (Hinge, if you're reading this—yes, we’re open to sponsorships.) After some witty messages and a great vibe, we went on our first date. Then a second, just three days later. That was enough for Jeni to know Alex wasn’t just “friend material”—even if she played it cool. Alex was all in from the start. Six weeks later, over dinner at a restaurant we won’t name (because it was mid at best), Alex asked Jeni to be his girlfriend. Still, it was perfect in all the ways that mattered. Eventually, Jeni joined Alex’s church (yes, the one he works at), after visiting several others. She felt connected to the community—and wanted to see where this relationship could go while growing in faith together. Three months in, she said “I love you” first… and thank God, the feeling was mutual. Since then, life’s been a joyful, slightly chaotic adventure. We’ve served together at church, cheered each other on in our careers, and built a relationship grounded in faith, love, and a lot of caffeine. We’ve fallen in love not just with each other, but also with each other’s people (and pets—shoutout to Molly). We’ve shared early morning coffee dates, tried more restaurants than we can count, half-mastered cooking, and gym-ed together (sometimes begrudgingly). We’ve taken spontaneous road trips, danced in the aisles of Target, napped on the couch, and swapped playlists full of John Mayer, Stephen Sanchez, Stephen Day, and The Jonas Brothers. Most importantly, we earned the stamp of approval from Jeni’s niece and nephew, who now call him “Tío Alex.”

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