It was a dark and stormy night in the middle of South Dallas....but really though! We met on a rainy night at an Unashamed mission trip. I (JonCatherine) was just suppose to be there to help with serving food but i got asked to jump in and co-lead with Matt Middleton. Had never met a Matt Middleton before, fun fact, Matt Middletons wear rain suits and Keens on really rainy days(#iykyk). We became fast friends and were eventually asked to co lead a small team of young adults down to Haiti. We spent about 6 months becoming really good friends in the process of getting ready for Haiti. 2 weeks after we got back from Haiti we started dating. And the rest is HIStory...get it...like history but HIS story😉

Our individual stories are pretty crazy, Matt and I both have lived a lot of life before meeting each other, we have both said to each other that it's a good thing that the Lord waited to introduce us to each other. We are 2 crazy kids who have a heart for the nations, for serving people, and for being adventurous. We are both high energy people and we never really slow down. So when we started dating all of our friends thought that we would be that couple that is wild and adventurous together. Ever since Day 1 of our relationship our best adventures have been finding great hammock spots, long car drives, sitting together in coffee shops doing work, going to buy groceries with each other, and if we're really feeling wild we'll watch a couple of episodes of The Office. Jesus knew what we needed better than we did, He knew we both needed rest in this season. In the 10 months that we dated the Lord taught both of us a lot about savoring the little moments and being still. We learned a lot from each other through good days and not-so-good days. We were best friends that fell in love the more that we grew closer to the Lord alongside each other. So that was our big adventure during the dating season. No skydiving, foreign countries, exotic foods, new languages, or any of the other things we put on our "dating bucket list". Just 2 imperfect kids that fell in love through 10-heart-refining-months.

2020 started off with some major fireworks...literally! Matt had made reservations for a fancy dinner for both of us on New Years Eve. I didn't have anything super fancy to wear, so ya'girl ran all over God's green earth looking for a dress, I was so flustered I didn't think twice when my friend Tori asked me to get my nails done. Fast forward to that night, we went out to eat super late that night, we were both dressed up which was super out of the norm for us. Matt was so calm the whole time so I didn't suspect anything at all. We reflected on the past year, talked about our highs and lows, what we learned, etc. Around 11:30pm we drove back to his house to "get some stuff"...again I was completely oblivious! As we're walking up to the house I'm going on and on talking about something, Matt opens the door, all the furniture is moved out, and a candlelit path is leading out to their backyard. At this point it hits me, to which i respond, "WHAT! NO! WHAAT!". Matt still being oh so calm leads me to their backyard where he strung up lights, laid out candles everywhere, and had our songs playing in the background (shoutout to For King and Country and JohnnySwim). Matt read a letter he wrote me that said "I love you", which was the first time we had said that to each other, all tears that were being held back just came gushing out. Waiting to say I love you was such a gift, those words signify a covenant promise, and I'm so glad we saved it for that moment. At this point it's midnight, so literal fireworks are going off in the distance (not planned...but a nice bonus). So...Matt got down on one knee and asked me to marry him...to which I said "Yes, Yes, YES!!". We spent the next few moments praying together and slow dancing together. It was a beautiful way to start off a new decade.