We are excited to celebrate our wedding weekend with friends and family in beautiful Colorado. If you feel like reading the story of how we met and the proposal, see below. If you'd prefer just the logistics see the 'Schedule' and 'Travel & Places to Stay' tabs.

We fell in love in a hopeless place. The first time I met Matt was at business school practicing interview pitches for a fictitious job. There was no soft lighting or flirtatious banter. It was not a romantic first encounter, but it showed me everything I needed to know. Matt was witty and self-deprecating, handsome and ambiguously ethnic, soft-spoken, kind, and humble. He was the smartest man in any room, but he wouldn’t tell you that. On that day, I would have given him more than just the job, but like most things with Matt (and most things worth having) it didn’t happen all at once. The build was slow and patient and honest. In the first act, there were other characters, awkward hellos in the hallway, blushing cheeks, and the nervous energy in the pit of my stomach that I had a crush on a guy who was oblivious. I was up for the challenge. Setting a foundation in friendship, we got to know each other slowly in time. A year into our friendship, I checked my ego at the door and asked a friend for Matt’s number. After 4 months of cat and mouse, our friends intervened and brought us together. At first, we sat at opposite ends of the table and over time side by side, until we were inseparable. I spent a year chasing Matt and all his intricacies. I loved more than I knew how to love another, checked my ego, dug deeper and with more patience and trust than I had given anyone in 30 years.

At the end of school, we parted ways. He was headed east and I was headed west. The inevitable breakup happened when 3000 miles separated us. Matt, faced with the cold hard fact that he was head over heels in love with a mountain hippie, made the trek out to Colorado to salvage our relationship. Imagine a Cuban, born and raised in Florida, hiking 18 miles in thigh high snow to prove he could hang with mountain folk. In the early morning hours in a tent on a mountain edge, our relationship had its ‘come to Jesus’ moment. Two lifelong commitment phobes, realizing a bicoastal love would take all they had, decided to go for it. Just like that 30 years of having one foot out the door disappeared. We were in it. We chose each other. 18 months of bicoastal lovin’ was not as glamorous as it may seem. Matt lived in Hershey PA, which depending on the day, either smelled delightfully of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups or of horse manure. I did not buy into the whimsy of small town PA, Matt would have to chase me. He took 4 flights once a month to San Francisco for 18 months. Jet lagged and bushy tailed, our love grew. After a dicey couple of months, Matt took a big risk. He quit his job, ending his contract early (to the detriment of his wallet), and headed out West to see about a girl. It was the most romantic and generous gesture of love. Matt, despite himself, is a romantic. #Mattchoselove We survived 3 months living in a studio apartment together before moving out of the basement into the sunny 1 bedroom apartment we now call home. We’ve been friends for 5 years, ‘Matt & Kelly’ for 4 years, and in 8 months in front of our friends and family, we’re excited to reaffirm the commitment we made in that tent 3 years ago.

I took my first trip to Colorado with Kelly in the Spring of 2014. Colorado did not disappoint, we hiked several breathtaking trails and I asked her which was her favorite hike. She didn’t hesitate to point to Mt. Sopris, which rises almost 14,000 feet and is visible from everywhere in Carbondale. I looked up at the snow cap mountain and took note. In 2017, we planned a trip to Colorado in the summer and I knew it would be the perfect time and place to propose. On July 3, 2017, we left her parents’ home in Carbondale before dawn for the base of Mt. Sopris. Looking up from the base I started to think I might have bitten off more than I could chew, it was 13 miles and 4,600 ft in elevation change. Kelly just smiled and said “let’s go.” It was a beautiful hike, we passed through forests, lakes, up scree fields, and even over snow as we approached the top. It took six hours before we finally made it to the summit and the view did not disappoint. We ate a small lunch and I waited for the perfect time to propose, the nerves were now beginning to kick in. My moment came shortly after we finished our lunch and the top of the mountain cleared. I got down on one knee and started into the speech I had been perfecting. I am not sure if it was the altitude, exhaustion from the hike, or just good old fashion nerves but the words I had been repeating over and over in my head were not there. I rambled for a bit before finally getting out “will you marry me?” She responded with a smile and a resounding “yes.” The nerves quickly vanished and we celebrated at the top of the mountain. It was the happiest day of my life and I look forward to many happy days together.